The Organisation

The West Midlands Police Legal Department, a small specialist support team providing a comprehensive legal service to the force, achieved Lexcel accreditation in 2004.

The emphasis on Best Value at that time provided one catalyst for deciding to work towards the Standard. The other was the desire to demonstrate at least equivalent effectiveness as their local authority counterparts. The Chief Officer was the driving force behind the accreditation project but the need to involve people at every level was paramount.

Lisa-Marie Smith, Deputy Force Solicitor, explained that Lexcel represented a cultural change: people were used to doing things in their own particular way and were perhaps reluctant to ‘convert’. However, they recognised that a multiplicity of methods wasted time and resources and the advantages of working to a set of agreed rules was obvious. As the department did not have a practice manager at the time, they used a Lexcel consultant to help them put together their policies and procedures and spoke to others who had already attained accreditation. WMQC’s Lexcel assessor was able to advise on the assessment process.

"Objective feedback from the Lexcel assessment makes us think ‘why are we doing it this way? What are the alternatives?’ and the areas of good practice which the assessor highlights give us a pat on the back, which is good for morale.”

Whilst a police legal department’s clients require different services from those of a private practice, there are significant similarities: the department needs to be cost effective; to have lean, clear methods of doing things; to recruit, induct and supervise staff effectively; to review files and manage risk. Lisa-Marie finds the flexibility of Lexcel easy to work with: it does not stipulate how things should be done, but considers whether the outcomes are effective.

As for the assessments themselves, Lisa-Marie believes they are a good discipline for maintaining focus. She says, “the sampling process minimises disruption to managing the daily workload ... and they are informative. We get a fresh view.” The department benefits from low staff turnover but this can result in a lack of new ideas. “Objective feedback from the Lexcel assessment makes us think ‘why are we doing it this way? What are the alternatives?’ and the areas of good practice which the assessor highlights give us a pat on the back, which is good for morale.”

The involvement of the administration staff in developing Lexcel policies and procedures has enhanced teamwork across the department and supported the development of good practice management. Lisa-Marie says, “Lexcel is embedded in our culture now ... and it helps support staff to keep control. ”