A lot has happened over the last 12 months for our firm and as we approach the end of a milestone year, we thought we’d share with you a round-up of some of the key developments we’ve made in 2022.
Becoming 100% Employee-Owned
In January 2022, we proudly announced we were becoming an employee-owned business, marking a significant new direction for the firm.
This was an opportunity for us to bring together every member of Ison Harrison in a way which encourages greater innovation, improved performance and employee engagement so that we are all striving for the same goal – to drive the business forward whilst delivering exceptional legal services across Yorkshire and beyond.
Throughout 2022, we have made the smooth transition to being an employee-owned business and we have also been keen to share our experience with other businesses considering the same pioneering move for their company. Our Director & Head of Corporate Richard Coulthard even gave a special presentation on Employee Owned Trusts to business owners at the Brand Yorkshire event.
New Directors
In line with our move to becoming an employee-owned business, we also appointed new directors at the start of the year.
With the new ownership model, the management structure changed to comprise of eight directors with five new directors joining the existing Board.
The new directors are James Thompson, Sarah Laughey, Richard Coulthard, Gareth Naylor and Jenny Bland.
They join existing directors Jonathan Wearing, Richard Timperley and Dominic Mackenzie.
Supporting The Local Community
In February, we helped to sponsor and support our Head of Employment Law, Yunus Lunat, with his mission to raise money for local amateur football team, Bradley’s Army FC, after a devastating fire destroyed their storage facility.
Yunus cycled on an exercise bike outside of a local supermarket for nearly 4 hours and raised £897.64, including donations from Ison Harrison.
Later on in the year, we also ran a campaign to help support local women in Barnsley who may have had an inaccurate breast cancer screening at Barnsley Hospital, following an investigation that was revealed in the Barnsley Chronicle.
As well as offering free initial legal advice for women who had cancer screenings, we also ran a free coffee morning and a ‘safe space’ for people to talk about their experiences and potential concerns with their screening and / or diagnosis.
Inquests Awareness
Over the last couple of years, our team at Ison Harrison has been more widely recognised for the high-profile Inquests work we undertake and 2022 saw some particularly notable cases conclude.
This year, our specialist Inquest team comprising of Gemma Vine, Ruth Bundey and Gareth Naylor have been representing the families of:
In 2021 we were involved with a particularly notable Inquest which was the large-scale media and PR campaign around Shane Gilmer and the crossbow campaign.
Employment & HR Packages
In the first quarter of 2022, we launched our employment and HR retainer packages to help support businesses looking for reliable and affordable employment and HR expertise.
Starting from just £6 per month per employee, our employment and HR packages offer a cost-effective way to get expert legal advice from our corporate and commercial team as and when you need it.
You can find out more about our outsourced employment and HR packages here.
Sponsorship & Exhibitions
Every year we sponsor a wide range of events across Yorkshire and 2022 was no different.
We were delighted to get involved with events including:
- The Ilkley Half Marathon (where we also had a team of Ison Harrison runners)
- The Great Yorkshire Show (where we had an exhibition stand and some fun interactive games)
- Brand Yorkshire (where we exhibited and also gave a presentation)
- The Proud of Barnsley awards (a local event to recognise inspirational individuals in Barnsley)
The Proud of Barnsley awards were particularly poignant for Sally Child from our Barnsley branch, who saw her friend Megan and her family win the award for Triumph Over Adversity.
New Wakefield Branch
September saw us announce a new branch opening, with Wakefield being our next high street location for an Ison Harrison office.
Branch manager Faye Chadwick has a team of legal experts, including specialist new build property expertise, to help and support clients in the local area with all their legal matters.
#ThisIsMe Erb’s Palsy Campaign
As part of the annual Erb’s Palsy Awareness Week in October, we ran a campaign to help spread body positivity and self-empowerment with our #ThisIsMe campaign.
We encouraged people to nominate someone they know who has Erb’s Palsy to help us shine the light on how strong and inspirational they are.
We received a fantastic response and we showcased each individual on our social media channels to acknowledge their strengths.
Winning Law Firm of the Year
In October 2022, we celebrated a significant achievement for the firm by winning Law Firm of the Year (Medium) at the Yorkshire Legal Awards.
To be recognised as Law Firm of the Year is testament to our hard-working team across our 19 branches who always go above and beyond to service their clients and help to make Ison Harrison be recognised as a leading, trusted and experienced local law firm.
The Future
What will 2023 hold for Ison Harrison? With our new employee-owned structure and 19 branches helping to strengthen our foothold within the region, we look forward to you being a part of our journey into 2023 and beyond.
