Funds squeeze law centres

MIDDLESBROUGH SHUT-DOWN: local authority cuts could trigger series of nationwide closures

The closure of a law centre in the north-east has sparked fears that local authorities around the country may begin to withdraw the charitable funding on which centres rely.The Office for the Supervision of Solicitors (OSS) last week intervened to wind down Middlesbrough Law Centre following the withdrawal of funding by Middlesbrough Borough Council last spring.David Beadle, the quality assurance adviser with the Law Centres Federation, said the closure leaves no law centre between Hull and Newcastle.

He said: 'Law centres rely on local government financing, and local authority finances are currently being squeezed.'He added that the federation has concerns for the future of all its offices, but some - such as Hackney in London, where a review of charitable spending by the local authority is currently under way - are more pressing.Sue Bucknall, chairwoman of the Solicitors Pro Bono Group - which works in partnership with the Law Centres Federation through its Law Works initiative - said any move to withdraw local authority funding would be 'very, very short-sighted'.She said: 'The centres help people at the bottom of society.

If they don't have help they become homeless, lose their jobs and have family problems.

All these things cost the government locally and centrally a lot more money in welfare payments.'A Law Society spokeswoman added: 'Law centres, and the solicitors who staff them, provide a valuable means of ensuring access to justice for the public.

If their future is in the balance because of potential withdrawal of funding by local authorities, then we would urge the government to consider a more secure way of funding this vital resource.'The government has put the not-for-profit sector at the heart of the Community Legal Service.

A spokesman for the Lord Chancellor's Department said: 'Decisions about funding of local advice services should be made in the context of local needs and priorities.'He said that although there was no guarantee that local authorities will maintain the existing levels of funding, 'Community Legal Service partnerships should ensure that funding decisions can be taken on a fully informed basis'.Jeremy Fleming