A trio of leading legal groups has called on the government to establish a coherent national strategy for public legal education.

In a letter to Lord Falconer, Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs, the Advice Services Alliance, the Citizenship Foundation and the Legal Action Group said urgent action is needed to increase public knowledge and understanding of the law and rights.


The groups called on the government to set up and fund an independent steering group, which would be chaired by a senior figure from a non-governmental background.


Members of the steering group would include representatives from government, but a majority should be drawn from outside Whitehall.


Tony Breslin, chief executive of the Citizenship Foundation, said: 'Learning about the law is already a key part of the citizenship curriculum in schools but there is a much wider audience that needs to be reached.'