Communicourt

DIVERSITY: Bethany (Bookings Planner) recently stepped into a new role as a Wellbeing Ambassador within the company. She was nominated for her enthusiasm, proactiveness, solutions based approach and "going above and beyond to try and support those around her".

COURAGE: Aqsah was nominated for her timely interventions with an unrepresented defendant with considerable needs who was asked to reconsider their plea ‘on the spot’. Her recommendations impressed the judge and ensured the defendant could make an informed decision about the progress of their trial.

COLLABORATION: The report update group (10 out of 12 pictured!) took the trophy for their collective efforts in rethinking our approach to assessment reports, a feat of collaboration which in itself assists our intermediaries to more effectively share our findings and recommendations with the court.

INNOVATION: Rebecca is well known for her quick-thinking strategies for simplifying the nuances of legal advice. She was nominated for her ingenious everyday analogy which assisted a defendant to grasp how raising a particular point may be perceived by the jury and the implications this could have.

RESPECT: Gabrielle was nominated for her sensitive and effective interventions when working with a Family court user who reported significant significant trauma. The court user and their counsel had nothing but praise for Gabrielle's professionalism, consideration, and skill.

Our quarterly Communicourt team days are always full of learning, connection and celebration of achievements.  At each event we hold the LOVE Awards - recognising colleagues who have gone above and beyond in exemplifying our values of Collaboration, Innovation, Courage, Respect and Diversity.

Thank you, @lalyawards.bsky.social, it was a real pleasure to sponsor this year's awards. We heard so many inspiring stories, and loved connecting with so many solicitors and barristers with a real passion for ensuring the meaningful, effective participation of their clients. @wearelapg.bsky.social

#LALY25 An outstanding person and a game changing silk, making a difference to so many vulnerable asylum seekers' lives @lalyawards.bsky.social #stephanieharrisonKC @gardencourtlaw.bsky.social @communicourt.bsky.social

A fantastic celebration of our amazing Legal Aid Lawyers! Congratulations to you all! 🥳 @lalyawards.bsky.social @communicourt.bsky.social #LALY25

#LALY25 @lalyawards.bsky.social amazing people receiving much deserved recognition! 👏👏 @communicourt.bsky.social

You can find out more about why we have chosen to sponsor this event, and find out what intermediaries think of Legal Aid practitioners on the Communicourt blog! https://www.communicourt.co.uk/news/were-sponsoring-the-legal-aid-lawer-of-the-year-awards-laly25/

This year we're sponsoring the Criminal Defence category. Very good luck to the finalists, Manisha Knights (MK Law), Emma McClure (SL5 Legal) and Georgia Patterson (TV Edwards Solicitors).

The Communicourt team are getting their glad rags on ahead of the Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards #LALY25 this evening. We're really proud to be sponsoring this event, which celebrates some of the most exceptional, socially-minded legal practitioners in practice.

We were delighted to read about the person-centred, multi-modal approach our intermediary used to ensure this court user could participate effectively in proceedings. Read more feedback from barristers judges & service users here: https://www.communicourt.co.uk/referral-booking-howto/testimonials/

Top: ILPA logo Below: A torn-looking extract from ILPA blog "Supporting Access to Justive in Immigration Tribunals: Identifying Communication Needs Beyond a Language Barrier". Extract has a photo of two women talking. Below: Quote from article: "Practical barriers to diagnosis of a neurodevelopmental condition [include] the cost of obtaining a diagnosis or the geographical availability of health services, as well as assessment tools not designed for people outside the ‘Cultural West’”

We're published on the @ilpaimmigration.bsky.social ‬today, exploring the importance of - and barriers to - timely identification of communication differences and difficulties in #immigration matters: http://bit.ly/3IhbJc8 #intermediary

"I wanted to say a quick thank you to an amazing solicitor who I worked with in a conference recently...". In honour of #LALY25, we asked Communicourt intermediaries what they -really-think about the Legal Aid practitioners they've worked alongside. Here's what they told us... @wearelapg.bsky.social

Nice summary on association between #DLD and #mentalhealth . Often assumed to only impact language, flow on effects are important to recognise, identify, and support. www.wpspublish.com/blog/develop...

A square image, split in half. Left side: Dark blue background, featuring the London Legal Walk logo in yellow and white. Below, text reads "Join me on Tuesday 17t June. Paving the way for equal access to justice." Right side: An image from a previous London Legal Walk in central London. Walkers can be seen near a red double decker, in front of tall buildings. Behind the walkers is an inflatable yellow and white archway for the London Legal Walk.

Delighted to be joining the #LondonLegalWalk2025 tomorrow, to help raise money for free legal advice charities. Donate here: londonlegalsupporttrust.org.uk/donate-today/. Pick the brains of @communicourtchris.bsky.social and Sue Mahay about the role of intermediaries in #AccessToJustice en route!

In this month's Moment that Made a Difference, Angela* (intermediary) worked with Claire (a mother in care proceedings). Although Claire did not have capacity in the case, it remained vital that she could participate as effectively as possible, and give her views.

[*names and details changed]

Huge congratulations to all of the incredible Legal Aid Lawyers who have just been announced as finalists at the #LALY25 Awards. But what do intermediaries -really- think about the Legal Aid solicitors and barristers they work alongside? Here's what they had to say... @wearelapg.bsky.social

"I wanted to say a quick thank you to an amazing solicitor who I worked with in a conference recently...". In honour of #LALY25, we asked Communicourt intermediaries what they -really-think about the Legal Aid practitioners they've worked alongside. Here's what they told us... @wearelapg.bsky.social

.@WeAreLAPG is proud to announce 📢 the 30 finalists in this year's Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year awards. For an insight into the doggedness 🐶& brilliance 🌟of lawyers at the social justice coalface, look no further than our #LALY25 shortlist.......
lapg.co.uk/lapg-announc...

CC @wearelapg.bsky.social

Green background, white Communicourt logo. Two examples of guides from The Access Brief are featured - one is about Anxiety, the other about communication needs in conferences. Text in a darker green circle reads: Download free, bite-sized guides from The Access Brief Our guides explore how to support communication when working with clients with needs relating to Anxiety, Depression and Emotional Regulation

Learn more about communication and mental health in legal proceedings. The Access Brief is home to guides & resources on topics ranging from representing someone with anxiety, depression or emotional regulation difficulties: https://www.communicourt.co.uk/the-access-brief/

Title: Anxiety Text: Anxiety is one of the most common mental health disorders in people with communication difficulties and populations in contact with the justice system: 27% of people in UK prisons diagnosed with anxiety disorder. 24% of mothers and 15% of fathers in care proceedings have anxiety. 31% rate of PTSD among refugee & asylum seekers, compared to 3.9% of population. When experiencing heightened levels of anxiety people can find it hard to focus, take in information or make choices.

Cream background featuring a ringing red fire alarm icon. Title: Fight or Flight Text: Mental health conditions can cause our stress 'fight or flight' response to be more easily triggered, putting the body in a state of alarm, prioritising survival systems and de-prioritiing non-essential systems (e.g. for communication). In yellow circle with up arrow: Musles, heart reate lungs. In grey cricle with down arrow: processing information, rational decision-making, seeing other perspectives.

Cream background, featuring image of graph with yellow arrow bouncing up and down. Title: Fluctuation Text: Communication difficulties and mental health can fluctuate and support needs may vary. E.g. people with bipolar disorder experience episodes of very high mood (mania) and very low mood (depression) Depression: reduced ability to concentrate, remember and process information. Mania: rapid, tangential expression, attention may jump between topics.

Both mental health conditions and communication needs are more prevalent among defendants and respondents in legal proceedings (and other court users). So, it's important to be aware of the ways these areas of difficulty can impact, influence and sometimes exacerbate each other.

Green background with a line drawing of two hemispheres of a brain. One half of the brain is made up of complicated scribbles. The Communicourt logo is at the bottom of the page. The texts reads... Title: Mental health and communication Subtitle: Mental Health Awareness Week 12-18 May 2025.

Green background with a line drawing of two hemispheres of a brain. One half of the brain is made up of complicated scribbles. T Title: The intersection Text: Communication and mental health can both have significant impacts on how someone participates in daily life. They often occur together. People with a primary communication difficulty are at greater risk of a secondary mental health disorder. So, how do these difficulties intersect, and how might that affect people in legal proceedings?

Cream background with two speech bubbles in green and yellow. Title: Communication impacts on mental health Text: Communication difficulties (e.g. aphasia, autism, learning disabilities) can impact mental health, anxiety or depression are common. Communication differences can result in isolation from social opportunities There can be barriers to accessing treatments that rely on verbal communication (e.g. talking therapies) It can be more difficult to understand one's own mental health.

Cream background with two brain hemispheres in green and yellow. Title: Mental health impacts on communication Text: Mental health conditions can affect communication, causing difficulties with concentration, fatigue or excess energy, processing information, organising thoughts, expressing ourselves, impulsivity, recognising social cues. Mental health problems can also affect general wellbeing, with consequences for communication. E.g. poor sleep or hydration can impede cognition and focus.

It’s Mental Health Awareness Week, and we’ve been thinking about the relationship between mental health and communication.

Reducing the criminalisation of children in contact with the care system The launch of 'Joining the dots: Reducing the risk of criminal justice involvement for children in contact with the social care system'.

Next week we launch our new research with @centreforcare.bsky.social on reducing the risk of CJS involvement for children in contact with the care system.

Sign up to hear from Anna Leyland, senior researcher, Caroline Adams, @CollegeofPolice & Charlene Richardson, Safer Options.

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Tip five. Embrace technology. If the person has strengths in using technology, this can aid their access to written information. Many apps allow users to send and receive voice notes. This can be helpful for legal teams communicating with a client with literacy or retention difficulties, to send short reminders or longer updates which can be replayed as needed. Text-to-speech apps can be helpful for people with dyslexia who struggle to read documents but have a good vocabulary and attention.

Depending on your client's access to and proficiency with technology, smart phones, apps or software may help them access to written information  - particularly when you need to send along information outside of in-person meetings.

Tip Four. Easy read documents. Easy read documents are more accessible versions of written information, designed for people with literacy difficulties. Some key features include: Short sentences. Simple words. Simple definitions where complex words cannot be avoided. Well spaced text broken up into short sections. Icons and imagery to help convey meaning. Explore different styles to identify which is most accessible for your client.

Easy read documents are designed to be more accessible or people with literacy difficulties. (You can read our short guide to making easy read documents on The Access Brief: https://bit.ly/3F2bsZB)

Tip Three. Highlight and annotate. Highlighting key areas of documents can be helpful for people who struggle to maintain attention. Asking your client to highlight words or parts of a document they do not understand can help to identify problem areas. Annotation can also help draw a reader’s attention to key parts of a document. It can also be used to add simplifications and to add topic headings or simple icons.

Crack out your pencil case! Adapting a document with visual elements can help to draw attention to key areas, add simplifications of complex vocabulary or summarise what a section is about. It can also be a method for clients to indicate which parts of a document aren't clear to them.