Access to justice
Avon & Bristol Law Centre (ABLC) provides free legal advice and representation to disadvantaged people on a range of ‘social welfare’ legal areas. Our areas of expertise reflect the needs of our community and include housing, employment, welfare, immigration, community care, discrimination and mental health.
Our aim is to help the poorest, most vulnerable and those with the most complex needs. Our small team, and growing numbers of volunteers, respond to over 5,000 enquiries every year and we work closely with more than 2,000 local men, women and children.
These are just a few areas where access to justice can make a world of difference:
- helpingpeople who are at risk of losing their homes avoid eviction
- securing support for people who are experiencing age-related problems which helps them maintain their independence and reduce isolation
- working with young people leaving full-time care to help them access education and support to reach their potential
- standing up for people who have been discriminated against or are victims of hate crimes
- gaining the correct level of support for families living in poverty
- offering expert and sensitive services to refugees and asylum seekers and people who have been trafficked to the UK.
Each case is unique but everyone who to turns to us for help is struggling to gain access to the justice that they are entitled to.
Poverty is a huge obstacle, particularly since changes to Legal Aid came into force in 2013. Debilitating mental health also significantly contributes to the majority of crises that our beneficiaries experience.
A beacon for Bristol
Bristol MIND recently described the Law Centre as “a beacon for Bristol” - an acknowledgement of the charity’s direct support to individuals, and the support provided to other local organisations.
The charity has been supporting the local community since 1984 and has built an excellent track record of working in partnership with other local charities and services; legal professionals and Bristol’s university faculties.
Changes and challenges
We are in the midst of the most significant welfare reforms for 40 years. Around 50,000 people in the Bristol area face the transition from the Disability Living Allowance to the new Personal Independent Payment (PIP) by the end of the year.
“A large number of [benefit tribunal] decisions are wrong. The internal mechanism for correcting it is almost impossible. If your benefits are taken away it’s a really serious issue.”
Former Director of Public Prosecutions Sir KeirStarmer
Laws around immigration have also seen rapid change with 7 new laws in the past 8 years and 45,000 changes to the immigration regulations since 2010[1].
Meeting the rising demand for support that these changes result in is a challenge for our legal teams.
The challenge is magnified by recent cuts to legal aid. Withdrawal of legal aid in some areas has disproportionately impacted on the vulnerable. Reductions in funding for early access to specialist legal advice means that people need to reach crisis points before they are eligible for help.
Many Law Centres and services that provide free legal advice to disadvantaged people have closed, leaving large areas of the country, including the south west, without access to justice.
Everyone deserves access to justice
We are responding to the challenges through innovation so that we can continue to help the ever increasing number of people who seek help.
We have developed award-winning, volunteer-led projects in Bristol that have national significance such as the Legal Advocacy and Support Project (LASP).Volunteering through LASP gives law students sought after and invaluable practical experience which supports their career development. The project directly benefits people with disabilities, poor mental health and debilitating, long-term health conditions.
“You made a huge impact, believing in my medical conditions. You helped me feel real again and made me feel like someone who has a place in society” Projectbeneficiary
Registered Charity Number 1059022
[1]As per the research of Lib Dem spokesman Alistair Carmichael