The annual Bates Wells employment conference

An unforgiving spotlight: culture, crisis and accountability in modern charities

In recent years, some charities have faced an uncomfortable spotlight: allegations of toxic culture, mishandled safeguarding concerns, misused funds and the quiet use of non-disclosure agreements to make problems disappear. Regulators, funders and the public now expect transparency, strong governance and cultures where people can speak up and be heard. During this session, a cross-disciplinary panel of leading employment and charity lawyers, safeguarding experts, and a PR specialist worked through the decisions that senior leaders and HR must make during a high stakes crisis.

Our panellists included Kate Husselbee (People and OD Consultant, People 360), Suhan Rajkumar (Partner, Charity & Social Enterprise, Bates Wells) and Zaiba Malik (Founder and Director, Coppergate Communications). This panel was chaired by Paul Jennings (Partner and Head of Employment, Bates Wells).

Non-disclosure agreements under scrutiny: reflections on the future of confidentiality about disputes in light of upcoming reforms under the Employment Rights Act 2025

The use of NDAs has, for a long time, been the norm in an employment context, and a key tool in drawing a line under disputes. Driven by a surge of societal recognition that a culture of silence contributes to the continuation of wrongdoing and with the Employment Rights Act 2025 set to enshrine greater protections for individuals suffering harassment or discrimination, we took a deep dive into NDAs; what it will mean for NDAs to be unenforceable in some circumstances, how that will impact exit negotiations, and what the future might look like for employers in a world without NDAs.

Our panellists included Emma Darlow Stearn (Barrister, Cloisters Chambers), Sybille Raphael (Joint Chief Executive, Protect), and Zelda Perkins CBE (Founder, Can’t Buy My Silence). This panel was chaired by Lucy McLynn (Partner, Employment, Bates Wells).

Championing and managing neurodiversity

In this session, we discussed the benefits and strengths of neurodiversity in the workplace, and how organisations can celebrate and manage this to create an effective and collaborative working environment. Our speakers shared practical and actionable steps to support and manage neurodiverse talent effectively.

Our panellists included Kate Dean (Co-Founder and Neurodiversity Consultant, ThinkND: Inclusive Solutions), Dr Nancy Doyle (CEO, Genius Within CIC), and Nat Hawley (Founder and Lead Program Facilitator, Divergent Thinking UK). This panel was chaired by Paul Seath (Partner, Employment, Bates Wells).