- increased £4 million funding to help vulnerable people in
civil and family legal disputes
- focus on early intervention to resolve issues before going to
court
- follows proposals that see extra 2 million people eligible
for legal aid
Around £4 million will be awarded to charities and organisations
providing legal help this financial year – an increase on the £3
million provided in previous years.
The grants will help ensure people can get speedy support to
understand how to deal with the legal problems they face.
For people who do go on to represent themselves in civil and
family cases, the support will focus on resolving their legal
problems at an earlier stage with access to specialist legal
guidance in person, by telephone or online, to deal with the
problem before it escalates.
Grants will also fund services to help people through the court
process, including online guides and in person support on the day
of their appearance.
It follows the government’s proposals for two million more people
to have access to legal aid following changes to the means test.
Both income and capital thresholds will be raised,
while disputed assets will not count towards an applicant’s
threshold, benefitting victims of domestic abuse.
Justice Minister QC said:
This funding and our wider legal aid reforms will ensure that
those who encounter a legal problem will have someone to turn to,
regardless of their financial circumstances.
It will help more people resolve issues quickly, away from court,
saving them the money and the stress that can be caused.
The Ministry of Justice has provided £21 million to organisations
providing legal support for litigants in person since 2015 and
research shows that this kind of support helps almost two-thirds
of people resolve their problems without going to court.
The department is partnering with the Access to Justice
Foundation (ATJF), who will administer the funding, with
expressions of interest open to organisations from today.
Joint Chief Executive Officer of the ATJF Clare Carter said:
We’re delighted to be working with Ministry of Justice on the new
Help Accessing Legal Support grant. The Access to Justice
Foundation exists to support organisations helping people most in
need address their social welfare legal issues.
This grant will help a wide range of legal support and advice
organisations across England and Wales help people resolve their
legal issues at the earliest opportunity.
What this means in practice is that more people will be able to
get advice online, on the phone or in person which helps them
better and understand and resolve their housing, benefits, debt,
employment or family issues. In this way, more people will be
able to access support at an early stage in the process, before
things escalate. We will also be looking to support services
which exist to assist people through the court process.
The types of frontline organisations that have benefited from
government funding for legal support in the past include an
independent advice agency in East London supporting individuals
with the required documentation and forms, as well as tribunal
and court representation on welfare, housing and debt issues.
Notes to editors
- The Legal Support for Litigants in Person Grant (LSLIP)
interim
report has provided solid evidence that providing legal
support services helps people to resolve their issue without it
progressing to court: 62% of clients resolved their problems
with the support of generalised advice, casework and early
specialist legal assistance, avoiding the need to go to court.
- You can apply for grants here: Our
Grants - The Access To Justice Foundation (atjf.org.uk)
- An example of a person supported through an organisation
funded through the AJTF includes Jane (not her real name) from
Devon a young mother with two small children and domestic abuse
victim living with PTSD and depression.
- Jane stopped contact between the children and their
father over safeguarding concerns including neglect and
emotional abuse (continuously shouting and swearing at the
children). The father retaliated by filing a Child
Arrangements Order application to resume contact.
- Jane’s mental health problems and vulnerability meant she
struggled to respond by herself, especially considering that
the required paperwork and documents dealt with a very
difficult and troubling time in her life where she was
constantly abused and subject to coercive control. Her local
free legal advice charity, an Access to Justice Foundation
grantee, drafted these documents for her so that she could
comply with the court’s directions and represent her
arguments and concerns effectively.
