Helen Beech
Partner
Helen Beech
Partner
“Helen Beech. An excellent and unflappable employment lawyer who is a pleasure to work with. Highly skilled and professional.”
The Legal 500
Helen Beech is partner in the employment team, and Director of Forbury People, an HR consultancy owned by Clarkslegal.
Helen has over 20 years’ experience and has been ranked band 1 in Chambers and Partners 2023 in employment and HR related matters.
She is an industrial relations specialist having been involved in a significant number of high profile and complex restructurings and change programmes, supporting her clients, in both unionised and non-unionised environments to negotiate their way through the challenges of pay disputes, contingency planning, reputation management, strikes and union recognition bids. She has a wealth of experience advising on and managing large-scale consultation processes, employee engagement programmes and setting up employee forums.
She also acts for both companies and individuals negotiating settlement packages, often in situations involving complex discrimination issues, ranging from disability, transgender and race discrimination as well as equal pay cases, often combined with whistleblowing allegations and reputation management challenges.
Helen is frequently recognised as a leading lawyer by a number of the legal guides including Chambers and Legal 500 for her focus on complex restructures, change programmes and TUPE matters.
Her significant expertise and longstanding trusted relationships with clients mean she always has a focus on practical and commercial solutions for businesses, drawing on other practice areas and specialist experience within the HR consultancy.
Chambers: When working with Helen I am always reassured as Helen puts a great deal of thought, expertise and experience into the best approach for often complex and sensitive matters.
Chambers: It is a real pleasure to work with Helen. She has a keen understanding of our business and what’s important to us.
Experience
Redundancy / Restructuring
Helen has supported a number of major clients during the process of implementing major changes programmes including changes to terms & conditions, working arrangements, shifts patterns, closures of final salary or other pension schemes, managing the election process from start to finish, advising on collective consultation obligations and working with employee and trade union reps, supporting redundancy processes and minimising protective award risks.
TUPE and business transfers
Helen has supported a number of major clients during the process of implementing changes to or closures of final salary or other pension schemes, managing the election process from start to finish, including the auto-enrolment process, working with pension advisors to those facing the enrolment challenge.
Pension changes and auto-enrolment
Helen has supported a number of major clients during the process of implementing changes to or closures of final salary or other pension schemes, managing the election process from start to finish, including the auto-enrolment process, working with pension advisors to those facing the enrolment challenge.
Discrimination and harassment
Helen has supported a number of major clients during the process of implementing changes to or closures of final salary or other pension schemes, managing the election process from start to finish, including the auto-enrolment process, working with pension advisors to those facing the enrolment challenge.
Industrial Relations
Helen has for many years helped her clients navigate the complex issues around industrial relations, from the cut and thrust of strike action and ballots to contingency planning and reputation management as well as working in helping companies to create and/or work pro-actively in partnership with both employee forums and trade union representative.
