North West Leicestershire
Transforming Operations through Cloud Innovation
North West Leicestershire District Council has seen improvements across legal service access, productivity, document and matter management, and cross-team collaboration.
Learn how North West Leicestershire undertook a major transition from an ageing, server-based legal case management system to Iken Cloud.
North West Leicestershire’s Success with Iken Cloud
Secure Access with No Downtime
Moving to Iken Cloud allowed the legal team to break free from VPNs and shared drive limitations. The system can now be accessed securely from any internet-connected device, giving staff more flexibility to work productively across locations without interruption.
Data Migration with Lasting Impact
The move presented a valuable opportunity to cleanse and rationalise over a decade’s worth of stored documents. This helped the team start afresh with a more manageable and compliant case archive, making future case and document management quicker and easier.
Customisation Preserved and Improved
The Council had paid heavily for custom features in their old system. Iken worked with the legal team to replicate or improve every critical process, formally documenting those agreed requirements within the project scope, while providing smarter ways to handle core casework tasks.
Workflows and Reporting That Support Productivity
The legal team now uses workflows to help standardise key processes, reducing errors and missed steps. Reporting is used to monitor case volumes by client and fee earner, and planned automation will soon remove the need to manually compile regular updates.
Outstanding Support and Ongoing Engagement
Iken’s customer service and project support have been consistently praised. The project manager was rated “11 out of 10” by the legal team. Quick responses, regular meetings, and patient training sessions have made users feel supported and confident.
Moving from Server Struggles to Cloud Stability
The previous server-based system created regular disruption for the legal team. Connectivity issues, software updates and the need to use VPNs made the old system unreliable and slow to access.
Switching to Iken Cloud eliminated these problems and brought secure, consistent access to legal matters and documents, from any location or device. This improvement directly supports the Council’s Digital Transformation Strategy, which calls for organisational agility and service accessibility.
The cloud-based system is available whenever and wherever the legal team needs it, improving responsiveness and supporting day-to-day working practices across services.
“Having a cloud-based solution makes sure that we can respond to changes in the external environment”
Jodie Bradford
North West Leicestershire District Council
Tailored Software with Trusted Legal Functionality
Replacing a long-established system can come with risk, especially when custom features are involved. The Council’s legal team had built bespoke processes into their old case management system and wanted to make sure those weren’t lost in the move. Iken approached the transition with flexibility, asking the team to outline what was essential and working these into the system configuration and agreed implementation scope
Where exact matches weren’t possible, Iken provided practical alternatives with similar outcomes. Basic but vital improvements, such as drag-and-drop file handling and faster precedent updates, also helped the team move away from clunky workarounds and towards smoother daily operations.
“Pretty much every single thing I said we needed—Iken said, ‘Yes, we can do that’… It took me about two or three clicks to update the team manager’s name. It was done instantly.”
Jodie Bradford
North West Leicestershire District Council
Cultural Shift Towards Simplicity and Self-Sufficiency
Iken has made legal processes more straightforward and reliable across the team. Workflows guide users through the correct steps for tasks such as instructing external legal advisers, reducing the admin team’s need to intervene or chase missing information. Team members no longer rely on memory or informal prompts to follow procedure.
Simpler document and matter management features have empowered users to manage their own files, while improved reporting is helping team leaders track volumes and better understand resource needs. With automated reporting on the way, users are already preparing to work more proactively with real-time matter management insights.
“It takes away the thinking… you don’t have to remember the process, it’s just there… Our old system couldn’t do drag-and-drop or bulk email imports, it sounds simple, but it’s made a big difference.”
Jodie Bradford
North West Leicestershire District Council
In conclusion
The legal team at North West Leicestershire District Council now works with greater confidence, clarity, and control. Moving to Iken Cloud resolved long-standing access and system reliability problems, while preserving the tailored legal case management capabilities they valued. The team’s daily casework is now more productive and consistent, supported by workflows that guide users and time-saving document tools.
Importantly, they continue to receive trusted support and updates that help them adapt and evolve. What began as a procurement exercise has resulted in a long-term partnership. For the legal team, Iken is more than just software—it is a dependable, responsive ally in public sector legal management.
“The support doesn’t stop once you go live. It’s not like buying a car and being left on your own. Iken stays with you.”
Jodie Bradford
North West Leicestershire District Council
