This week the Government launched the Community Legal Service (CLS) with great fanfare.

Worries about whether there would be any real substance behind the glitzy launch and smart image were diluted by the neatly timed injection of £46 million for public law, mental health, community care and asylum work.Many of the Government's stated aims for the CLS are laudable.

Who could possibly disagree with the objective that 'every community has access to a comprehensive network of legal service providers of consistently good quality, so th at people with actual or potential legal problems are able to find the help they need'?For decades solicitors' firms around the country have been the backbone of legal service to the community.

In the interests of those who need targeted advice, the CLS must be more than just a re-engineering of the advice network that already exists.

The idea that solicitors with contracts, law centres, advice centres, libraries and other community information points will be brought together in 'partnerships' under the umbrella of the CLS all sounds very modern.But, if the CLS is to succeed, the public must know what is on offer.

There will be two CLS badges -- the Community Legal Service Information Point and the Community Legal Service Help Point, to distinguish between different levels of assistance.

The information point is divided into two levels -- self-help information and assisted information.

The help point also has two levels -- generalist help and specialist help.

In addition the generalist help level is sub-divided in to another two levels -- general help and general help with casework.

The potential for confusion is obvious.The aim of a quality mark is sensible, but having only one mark for services ranging from providing a few leaflets and a directory to those providing specialist legal advice may be counter-productive.

There is a risk that consumers will be misled into believing that the holder of the logo will be the service provider when, in many cases, it might only be the gateway.The partnerships could eventually have a positive impact: leading to a better understanding of the vital roles that each element of the Community Legal Service plays -- lawyers, advice workers and local authorities; directing clients to the type of advice they really need; providing a forum for sharing expertise; developing and improving services; and monitoring what is happening locally.But to do this properly, more resources are needed than even this week's £46 million.

So the Government's announcement of -- at long last -- some increases in hourly rates and improved cash flow may be the first recognition of the 'watershed factor' that the Law Society has been warning about -- meaning that the thousands of committed community law (formerly legal aid) solicitors must be shown incentives to stay in this area of work.The third strand of the Community Legal Service is its Web site (www.justask.org.uk).

Like all Web sites, it must be properly promoted, and it must ensure that the information it contains can be understood when accessed.As research has shown, the same socially-excluded group that has problems with access to justice is also the least likely to have access to the Internet.

The Government will urgently need to develop other strategies to reach those who cannot or will not use the Internet and not rely on the Web site as its main information tool.The other area for confusion is that the CLS means not only the partnership network described above, but it also describes the new funding organisation that replaces legal aid.

The public and practitioners will need to make the distinction between the CLS (partnership networks) and the CLSF (the funding scheme) now operated by the legal services commission.Aside from the removal of funding for most civil claims, including personal injury, the CLS network has the potential to be a positive product of the access to justice and legal aid reforms, building on services already provided by solicitors and the not-for-profit sector.

But it must be backed with real resources if clients are to rec eive quality service.