Each quarter, at our tri-monthly Saturday Team Day, we host the LOVE Awards – an opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate the ways our team “Live Our Values” of Respect, Innovation, Collaboration, Diversity and Courage.

This quarter, intermediaries Tess, Penny, Fiona and Charlee, alongside Client Relationship Manager, Sue, all earned their place on the coveted Communicourt trophy.

Fiona received the Respect Award for her attuned work with a service user with selective mutism. This individual was unable to verbally communicate their instructions to their legal team at an important stage in proceedings. Fiona built rapport slowly, first by making everyday conversation they could respond to non-verbally, then introducing light-hearted topics and questions they could provide one-word responses to. Fiona took care to ensure this person felt comfortable and ‘in charge’ of their interaction. Over time, the service user was able to communicate verbally with Fiona, who could then relay their instructions to their legal team.

Tess received the Innovation Award for her thoughtfulness, care and person-centered practice when supporting a young child to give evidence. From the initial intermediary assessment, through to the conclusion of the witness’ evidence, Tess adapted her practice to ensure this young person felt comfortable, and that the court made the right adaptations to ensure their voice was heard, while minimising the impact of this difficult process upon them.

Charlee received the Collaboration Award for the quality of her work on a demanding case, alongside another intermediary. Working together, these team members supported each other, learned from each other, and collaborated seamlessly to ensure the right adaptations were made to ensure the effective participation of the individuals they were assisting. Charlee’s collaboration with her colleague ensured that the service users they were assisting received an outstanding service throughout proceedings.

Penny received the Courage Award for raising a professionally challenging matter through a very detailed and sensitive written Judge update. This matter was having a considerable negative impact upon the service user’s ability to participate effectively in proceedings. Penny’s intervention ensured that the matter was resolved appropriately by the Court and the service user was able to participate.

Sue received the Diversity Award this quarter. Sue received this award for always going above and beyond to celebrate colleagues and making everyone feel like an important part of the Communicourt community. Sue also recently volunteered a blog, sharing her thoughtful personal reflections on Guru Nanak Gurpurab, and the significance of this event in Sikhism – a great way to encourage the sharing of different viewpoints and cultures within our organisation.

You can learn more about the work of our team, and intermediaries in general, through our blogs and The Access Brief. Here is some suggested further reading (and listening):

• The Invisible Intermediary (Communicourt blog)
• How does an intermediary assist throughout a trial? (The Access Brief)
• Communication needs in the conference room (and beyond) with Siobhan McCallum of MSB Solicitors (Accessing Justice Podcast)