Solicitors Regulation Authority

To help us continue to be a fair regulator, we have conducted a diversity census of solicitors and other regulated individuals. The census ended on 30 November 2009.

Message from the Chair

The SRA protects the public and upholds high standards by regulating solicitors in England and Wales. It is committed to being a fair regulator that is open, proportionate and non-discriminatory in the way it regulates a diverse profession.

To achieve our aims we are seeking to improve our data on the diversity of the profession. Please help us by completing our diversity census. We will use the data for regulatory purposes only, and the content of the questionnaire is completely confidential.

Please take the time to read the information below, which I hope will answer any questions you may have.

Why we support the SRA's diversity census

Caroline Wilson, head of Diversity and Corporate Responsibility, Eversheds

"We're an international law firm which embraces equality and diversity. We welcome the SRA's diversity census. It's vital that our regulator has up-to-date data for each of us so they can accurately monitor and assess that they are a fair and proportionate regulator and we will be encouraging our colleagues to complete the census."

Oba Nsugbe, chair of the British Nigerian Law Forum (BNLF)

"It is important that the SRA has a true and accurate picture of the diverse make-up of the solicitors' profession in the 21st century. Those with responsibility for the development, management, training and regulation of the profession have a responsibility to obtain information that is relevant and necessary to the fair and impartial exercise of these functions. The Diversity Census is an important initiative towards obtaining information that will hopefully assist the SRA in its commitment to the promotion of equality and diversity for all. BNLF supports the survey and encourages its members to participate."

David Merkel, chair of the Law Society's Group for Solicitors with Disabilities

"As Chairman of the Group, which is soon to become the Lawyers with Disabilities Division, I warmly applaud this initiative by the SRA. Our Group is convinced that there are many practitioners who have a disability but who, for one reason or another, do not wish to identify themselves as disabled. The SRA is not, of course, asking these practitioners to 'go public.' They want to obtain statistics. Without statistics, we are all working in the dark.

Our Group has, at the last count, fewer than 400 members. At least 10 percent of the general population have disabilities. This clearly implies that there could be as many as 10,000 practitioners who are in one way or another disabled.

Nowadays, nobody should be afraid of identifying themselves as disabled. It does not mean that the continuance of your professional career is threatened. If a respondent to this census is disabled, we hope he/she will consider joining the Lawyers with Disabilities Division.

We support the SRA in undertaking the Diversity Census and encourage all solicitors who have a disability to respond to the census."

Questions and answers

What is the SRA doing?

We are contacting all solicitors and others we regulate to request information on six key areas: gender, ethnicity, disability, age, religion or belief, and sexual orientation.

Why does the SRA need this data?

The SRA is committed to being a fair regulator that is open, proportionate, non-discriminatory and transparent in the way it regulates a diverse profession. In order to achieve our aims, we need to update the diversity data we hold on the profession—so that we can analyse and monitor our processes and procedures to identify any trends and make any necessary improvements. We also have statutory duties to promote equality in relation to race, disability, and gender.

Doesn't the SRA have any of this data already?

We have some data on some of the areas. However, we need to extend and update this data. Also, some of our existing data is based on "old" categories—for example, ethnicity data that pre-dates the standard list of categories used in the 2001 National Population Census (the standard now).

How will the data be used?

The information you provide will help us to monitor the success of our efforts to guard against discrimination and promote equality and diversity. This information will help us to analyse and evaluate our regulatory activities as well as helping us in the planning of regulatory events and consultations. The information will be held and used by the SRA in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998.

Will the SRA publish any reports from this data?

The data will be aggregated and anonymised when used in any published reports on the way we are progressing our diversity agenda.

What system are you using to categorise ethnicity and the other diversity strands?

We have based this on the standard list of categories used in the 2001 National Population Census plus best practice recommended by the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

Diversity census