We cannot ignore that our planet is under severe stress. All businesses must take action to help secure a sustainable future for us all.
At Acuity, we own our responsibility to reduce our impact on the planet. We believe that companies must delve deep, analysing and understanding their footprint and taking bold action to make change.
But we also know that sustainability is a journey, and it’s one that no organisation can make alone. We are committed to collaboration and thought leadership, forming partnerships to learn and share what we have learnt with others.
Planet Mark Certified
Planet Mark is an organisation that benchmarks companies against the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, certifying those that are making progress towards greater sustainability and reducing impact on the environment.
We are proud to be Planet Mark certified.
Find out more about our Acuity Law Planet Mark journey.
Carbon balanced
Acuity is committed to a net zero future. We partner with Antalis/Forest Carbon, which offsets the carbon footprint on our paper usage, ensuring all paper used at Acuity is carbon balanced.
Internally, we encourage our Acuity team to live more sustainably in our personal and professional lives and offer tips on how to do so. We carry out litter picks around the areas local to our offices and donate all our used IT hardware to local charities.
We’re also conscious that employee perks shouldn’t come at an environmental cost. We partner with Fruitful Office so that for every delicious fruit basket that our team receives, one fruit tree is planted in Malawi to combat deforestation and offset carbon emissions. Fruitful Office collaborates with UK charity Ripple Africa, which undertakes both large-scale environmental projects and small-scale education and health programmes.
Greener Litigation Pledge
We are signatories of the Greener Litigation Pledge, signalling our commitment to reaching the position where the most environmentally sustainable options in litigation become the default. To find our more about the Greener Litigation Pledge, visit here.
At Acuity Law, we are committed to supporting and improving our communities up and down the country. Helping to create a fairer society is critically important to us, and we invest in being part of the change.
Helping our communities
We handpick organisations that share our values, leveraging our firm members’ community ties and personal passions to support, empower and partner with charities that we believe are building a better world.
Our Acuity Charities
bigmoose
bigmoose is Acuity Law’s official charity. bigmoose focuses on raising awareness about mental health issues, preventing suicide by providing free and discounted counselling, and supporting people affected by homelessness by offering food, clothing, bedding and other services, as well as donating profits from the bigmoose coffee co towards helping others and supporting local businesses and charities.
Acuity has been delighted to support bigmoose in its roster of sport-based fundraising events, through sponsorship or providing volunteers from our team to help out at bigmoose events.
Sir Gareth Edwards Cancer Charity
Sir Gareth Edwards Cancer Charity is the chosen charity for Acuity’s Cardiff office. Founded by legendary former Welsh rugby player, Sir Gareth Edwards, it provides financial support to young people aged 15-35 who are suffering with cancer.
Swansea Foodbank (The Trussell Trust)
Swansea Foodbank is the chosen charity for Acuity’s Swansea office and issues vouchers and parcels to those in need of emergency food.
Single Homeless Project
Single Homeless Project is the chosen charity for Acuity’s London office and seeks to prevent homelessness in single Londoners through support, accommodation, promoting wellbeing and enhancing opportunities.
Asthma + Lung UK
Asthma + Lung UK is the chosen charity of our Leeds and Liverpool offices. The organisation aims to improve respiratory care across the UK and change the perception of lung health.
Cardiff University Netball Club
Acuity is a sponsor of Cardiff University Netball Club.
Helping our teams
At Acuity, we ensure that all our team members are supported to perform their professional roles to the best of their abilities. But we are also committed to supporting our people to live fulfilling lives outside of work.
We have a number of policies that promote and support our staff to balance their careers with their family, health and wellbeing needs.
At Acuity Law, we pride ourselves on our purposeful and ethical framework for making the best decisions that impact our people, our clients and our wider world.
At Acuity, people are at the heart of everything we do. Our firm is structured to provide a seat at the governance table to senior leaders from both legal and operations backgrounds, democratising our services to clients and ensuring an innovative edge.
We make sure our governance policies reflect our firmwide commitment to fairness, sustainability and our ethical north star – our values framework.
Our Values
Our governance policies
These include:
Our Committees
At Acuity, our committees are central to our commitment to giving our employees a voice and empowering them to take action on issues that matter to them personally and to Acuity.
ESG Committee
“Our ESG committee is a vital tool in crystallising Acuity’s ethos of sustainability into practical goals and tangible steps towards a bright future for our environment and our communities. We are passionate about our firm’s contribution to this future.” Jenny Wilde, Committee Chair.
Our ESG committee is committed to ensuring that Environmental, Social and Governance principles are at the heart of all Acuity’s practices, policies and actions. It is of fundamental importance to us that we as a firm place our values at the heart of everything we do and make an ethical contribution to our planet and our communities, through responsible business practices across all of our offices.
Our activities include guiding Acuity along its journey towards a more sustainable future by setting and achieving environmental goals, sponsoring hand-picked charitable organisations that align with Acuity’s values, and ensuring that the governance processes and policies that underpin our actions as a firm reinforce our dedication to ESG.
Wellbeing Committee
“The goal for our Acuity Law Wellbeing Committee is to promote wellbeing – and we recognise that how that is achieved looks different for everyone. There is no one-size-fits-all for improving mental health and wellbeing and we are constantly adapting as a committee to ensure that wellbeing is firmly on the agenda and embedded into the culture of the firm.” Madeleine Chapman James, Committee Chair.
Our Acuity Law Wellbeing Committee is a crucial part of helping all Acuity employees to draw a line between work and rest. Our offering is both intellectual and physical, with current activities including yoga, pilates, a step challenge, a book club and meditation sessions. We also share information, through our firm intranet portal, which is equipped with a wealth of wellbeing resources.
The Committee works across all Acuity offices, with initiatives rolled out in Bristol, Cardiff, Leeds, Liverpool, London and Swansea.
Acuity also has four trained mental health first aiders – volunteers who undertook a week-long training to become certified supporters of employees who feel they are struggling with their mental health.
Diversity and Inclusion Committee
“Everyone has a responsibility to promote principles towards equal opportunities and to act with respect and integrity towards each other. Diversity allows for enhanced creativity, innovation, and performance.” Juliette Franklin, Committee Chair.
Our Diversity & Inclusion Committee is dedicated to promoting an inclusive and welcoming environment for all our employees, and ensuring they feel able to be themselves at Acuity – authentically, openly and supported.
We organise events, share knowledge and work to support all communities across our Acuity workforce.
Social Committee
Our Social Committee is always on the look-out for uplifting social events that bring our people together – whatever their interests. Whether people are creative, sporty, bookish, or chatty, we find activities that boost wellbeing and our Acuity community.
