The number of people helped by civil legal aid rose by 12.5% over the past year, the Legal Services Commission (LSC) has said.


Figures published this week by the LSC showed that almost 800,000 new civil cases were funded in 2006/07 - the highest number in a year since the LSC was set up in 2000. Face-to-face advice was given in 685,244 new civil cases, an 8% increase on last year.



Telephone advisers from Community Legal Service Direct (CLS Direct) gave 111,319 acts of assistance - up by 51% on the previous year. The LSC attributed this in part to its slightly increased hours of operation.



The statistics showed that debt advice in particular was growing, with a 15% increase in new cases advised upon.



Hailing the statistics as 'a major achievement', LSC chief executive Carolyn Regan said: 'It is no coincidence that the growth in the number of people helped this year falls within the same period in which a new payment system was introduced for our providers, legal aid lawyers and advice agencies [tailored fixed fees replaced hourly charged rates].



'The current legal aid reforms are specifically about building on this to maximise access to legal aid for the future and to continue increasing the numbers of people helped.'



Law Society chief executive Desmond Hudson said: 'We have always supported the work of CLS Direct, but it is no substitute for face-to-face advice. Telephone services can help address some areas of unmet need, but we would like to see more specialised and detailed advice provided where necessary. This is likely to produce long-term savings because resources would be concentrated on the cases that most required them.'



Richard Miller, director of the Legal Aid Practitioners Group, said: 'While it is good news that the number of people being helped is rising, the extent of the help made available is also significant.'



He said that since April, the public has had over 200 fewer places from where they could access help, and some areas were without any solicitors providing social welfare advice.



Catherine Baksi