Staff at Leeds law firm Clarion establish menopause peer support group

With increasing awareness of the physical and mental challenges of menopause, Clarion joined forces with Dr Ella Russell, known as the ‘Yorkshire menopause doctor’, in autumn 2021.

In a statement, Clarion said: “Since then, Dr Ella, a private GP who specialises in supporting women who are transitioning through the perimenopause and those who are post-menopausal, has been working with the firm to host regular events to help women and men across the business to better understand menopause, its symptoms and treatment.”

“Dr Ella’s workshops and educational sessions have proved so popular that the firm has also asked her to provide a consultation for those women within the Clarion team who need extra support, thus ensuring they have access to a doctor who specialises in women’s health and can provide bespoke healthcare for them.”

Staff at Clarion have also set up their own menopause peer support group, providing a safe space to openly share experiences and support one another.

Dr Russell said: “Clarion really is at the forefront of recognising how women can be encouraged to stay in the workplace by employers adopting an understanding and supportive approach to menopause – they are the only firm I’ve come across that is allocating a ‘women’s wellbeing budget’ to provide complimentary, one-to-one consultations for those in the team who are struggling.

"With research showing that at this life stage, women are at higher risk of leaving work, passing up promotions or reducing their hours, it is vital that companies provide the help women need to enable them to continue to flourish in the workplace.”

Helen Saunders, head of people at Clarion, said: “Promoting wellbeing is at the heart of the Clarion culture and, with women making up 70 per cent of our team, we recognised a couple of years ago the issues many were facing and started developing initiatives to support them. As well as simply being the right thing to do, from a business perspective it’s vital that we retain talent and also enable those going through perimenopause and menopause, who often hold senior positions, to continue to perform at the top of their game.

“With more than 20 years’ as a GP, Dr Ella is passionate about menopause and offers a wealth of evidence-based advice, empowering women to get the support and expertise they need during what can often be a difficult period.

"The feedback to our programme has been very positive with women at Clarion who are going through this natural transition, ‘spreading the word’ to peers in other law firms about how Dr Ella is helping them feel better. It has also been really valuable in starting conversations and raising wider awareness within the firm, including among men, and helping them to empathise with what some colleagues are going through.”