Concept design
Harbour & Vale is a fictional high-street solicitors we invented to show how we'd approach law firm website design for a small practice in Basingstoke. It's a working concept site — clear practice areas, fees published in a simple table and a consultation request form that feels safe to fill in. The firm isn't real, but the thinking is exactly what we'd bring to yours.
The brief
Our imaginary client is a small high-street firm in Basingstoke covering conveyancing, wills and probate, family law and employment law. Nobody visits a solicitor's website for fun: they're moving house, losing a parent, separating or worried about their job, and they want to know quickly whether this firm can help and what it will cost.
Their existing site read like a legal document. Practice areas were buried in long paragraphs, there were no prices anywhere, and the only way to get in touch was a phone number during office hours. Firms that offer conveyancing, probate and some employment services also need to publish clear price information, so the fees had to be on the site anyway — the question was how to make them useful.
The goal: a site that looks established and trustworthy, explains each area in plain English, shows fees up front and makes the first contact feel low-pressure.
What we built
Each section answers a question an anxious first-time client has. Here's what's on the page and why.
01
Each area gets a card with a one-line summary, the three most common matters and a link to fees or to the right team. People can tell in seconds whether the firm handles their problem. On a real site each card links to a full page for that area, which is also how a firm gets found in local search.
02
Fixed fees for common matters, with typical timescales and a plain note about VAT and disbursements. Showing prices builds trust, filters out poor-fit enquiries and covers the price transparency information regulated firms are expected to publish.
03
Name, contact details, a drop-down for the type of matter and an optional message — with a note asking people not to include sensitive details until the call. It respects how nervous people feel, and gives the firm what it needs to route the enquiry to the right solicitor.
04
Directly under the hero, three short promises: fixed fees, home visits for wills, and a reply within one working day. They answer the unspoken worries — cost, convenience and being left waiting — before anyone scrolls.
05
Deep navy, warm paper and brass accents, a sturdy serif for headings and a clean sans-serif for reading. It feels traditional without being stuffy, and the colours are chosen for strong, readable contrast.
06
The footer reserves space for the regulation statement, registration numbers, complaints procedure and privacy notice that a real firm must show. In the concept it's clearly marked as fictional.
Good fit for
This approach works for any professional practice where people arrive worried, want to know the cost and need to trust you before they make contact.
Your firm
A site like Harbour & Vale is a bespoke business website: designed from scratch around your practice areas, written in plain English and built by hand with hosting included. Business websites start from £1,500, with a fixed written quote before any work starts and nothing to pay upfront. See our pricing for add-ons such as content management, so your team can keep fees and news up to date, and analytics to see which pages bring in enquiries.
We work with firms in Basingstoke and across North Hampshire, with every meeting held by video call at a time that suits you. Find out more about our web design in Basingstoke, or view the live concept on your phone to see how the consultation form feels.
Tell us about your practice areas and the clients you'd like more of. We reply within one business day.
