BDB Pitmans

At BDB Pitmans, our commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion sits at the heart of who we are as a firm. It affects all areas of law firm life, and strongly informs our approach to working with clients, partners, and the communities we serve.

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We are passionate about ensuring we create a work environment where everyone feels safe, respected, and fully supported to be themselves. We celebrate diversity in all its forms, but we also recognise we have a long way to go. We are not afraid to ask difficult questions and make difficult decisions to ensure that we are taking the necessary and right steps to creating a truly equitable workplace.

Our ED&I work, though, goes beyond how we work with our colleagues. Our firm values – we act with respect, we work in partnership, and we find solutions – are deeply embedded in ED&I principles, and heavily inform how we approach client relationships, as well as external partnerships.

We have also taken steps to ensure that our ED&I and CSR work are closely aligned, whether that is through how we choose external partnerships, how we support our charity partners, our pro bono work, or our increased focused on areas such as social mobility.

The firm currently has six Business Impact Groups. Each of the groups has a core committee helping to develop and deliver their strategic plans as well as run an ongoing calendar of education and networking events. All of our groups are open to those who not only identify as part of that group, but also to those who are active allies. You can find out more about each of our groups here.

Business Impact Groups

Best Self

Best Self, our internal LGBTQ+ group, is for anyone at the firm who is lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, and questioning as well as other sexual and gender identities (such as non-binary, intersex, and pansexual). We want to make people feel fully included in life at the firm and we offer the chance to network with Best Self as well as other groups in the firm, attend events with other firms, and get to know other LGBTQ+ people in the legal sector. We feed into the firm’s D&I Strategy Group and have recently drafted a ‘Transition and Change to Gender Expression Policy’. Allies to (and from) the LGBTQ+ communities are also welcome to join the group to support the work we do.

SHINE

SHINE is our race, ethnicity, and culture group. Any member of staff who identifies as being of a racial, ethnic, or cultural minority is welcome to join, as well as those who may not be but who share the group’s ethos. We aim to support employees at BDB Pitmans in being their authentic selves, to champion the achievements of our BAME employees and to show that BDB Pitmans is a truly inclusive firm that is passionate about attracting and retaining a diverse range employees.

Mind & Body

Mind & Body is the firm’s health, wellbeing, and disability group. The group’s main aims are to raise awareness and initiate open conversations about disability and health conditions – both mental and physical – to create a more inclusive firm for everyone. The group works with HR to ensure policies are up to date and reflect the needs of staff (prospective as well as existing), including adjustments for people with disabilities.

Breaking Even

Breaking Even is our gender equity network. The group’s core aims are to educate members and employees at the firm on what gender equity is and promote how the firm can implement measures to support gender equity; to provide an opportunity for members to share and discuss gender-based issues and experiences; to hold events and support the firm in running initiatives to support gender equity; to be a group for absolutely everyone (gender equity will only be possible with the cooperation of everyone, irrespective of your gender or how you identify); and to use the group as a mechanism to empower individuals and support their development and progression at the firm.

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Balance

Our Balance group supports the firm’s working parents and carers. As with all our Business Impact Groups, Balance is not only for those who are working parents and carers, but for anyone at the firm who is an ally, or simply wants to better understand the experiences of parents and carers in the workplace. As well as holding events, webinars, and other education opportunities for staff, the group also works closely with HR to discuss issues that impact employees with caring responsibilities/flexible workers/part-time employees, and what improvements can be made to improve life-work balance

Faith in Focus

The group exists to raise awareness, initiate open conversations about faith and support colleagues to be their authentic selves at work.

They work with HR to ensure that firm policies best reflect the needs of staff to create a culture where colleagues of all faiths and none can flourish. It also exists to enable colleagues to understand their clients’ personal and organisational needs better.