Post by Patrick Torsney on Aug 8, 2006 9:01:59 GMT
CLACs and CLANs – a summary
The concept of Community Legal Advice Centres (CLACs) and Community Legal Advice Networks (CLANs) was developed by the LSC following research, such as that undertaken by the Legal Services Research Centre’s National Survey of Justiciable Problems. The research concluded that:
there are likely to be half a million unsolved legal problems each year (2006 research)
only half of those with a problem seek legal advice: of those that do, one in seven fail to get it
the problems that people have often make them more vulnerable to experiencing further problems
current services are spread out and are not sufficient for the multitude of problems people have
therefore people are frequently passed on to other providers
the more times someone is passed on, the less likely they are to ultimately receive the help they need
The LSC intends that CLACs and CLANs aim to address these issues by providing legal advice services that are:
accessible
independent
co-ordinated
quality assured
integrated
client focussed
targeted at those areas of greatest need
The LSC has said that both CLACs and CLANs will provide (as a minimum) advice and representation in:
community care
debt
employment
family
housing and welfare benefits
any public law relating to these categories
They will also provide general advice and identify opportunities for tackling the common causes of identified local problems
CLACS
The LSC believes that a CLAC will enable people to get help with their civil legal problems from one easily accessible source, and that each CLAC will take a “strategic role to solve the causes of common problems and will play a role in educating people about their legal rights.” (LSC website: www.legalservices.gov.uk/civil/innovations/community_legal_advice_centres_and_networks.asp)
CLACs - proposals - key points:
The CLAC contract will be awarded to a single provider (or a group of providers that come together to form a single legal entity)
It will be joint funded, usually with local authority
It will be awarded after a tendering process
Each Centre will offer a readily identifiable CLS only access point within its catchment area. This does not prevent it from operating through outreach sites or from more than one permanent site in an area (i.e. satellite offices). This will depend on the geography of the catchment area covered
Centres will usually be in areas of concentrated population, particularly deprived areas
The LSC has published a Q&A on CLACs on its website at:
The LSC says that the basic principle of a CLAN is very much the same as a CLAC: providing free, publicly-funded, face-to-face legal advice services to tackle civil justice issues at the earliest opportunity and taking strategic action to solve the causes of common problems and playing a role in educating people about their legal rights
There are significant differences however; for example, members of a CLAN will remain as separate contractors. They may deliver other services outside of the CLS, but they will need to sign up to a service specification and network agreement for the delivery of their CLS services
It is anticipated then that CLANs will therefore operate from a number of sites. They may have a 'lead' organisation that would be responsible for co-ordinating the Network's services and those involved in the CLAN will be able to deliver the range of services collectively across sites
Notably, the LSC anticipate that it is likely that CLANs will cover semi-urban and rural areas as compared with CLACs, which it says will usually be in areas of concentrated population, particularly deprived areas
If you have any views on CLACs and CLANs, or are involved in one and want to share your experiences to date, then please reply to the relevant string by clicking back on your browser
