Legal services helpline "another hurdle" for vulnerable

A proposed legal services helpline may not offer the support vulnerable individuals need, it has been claimed, suggesting the "single gateway" might reduce access to free legal help.

Extending a facility set up by the Legal Services Commission in 2004, the advice portal is intended to benefit those who cannot travel to a Citizens Advice bureau, but the Guardian warns some worry it will "[become] another hurdle effectively excluding even more people from a diminished scheme".

Costing around 45 per cent less than offering free legal help in person, the Ministry of Justice hopes to save as much as £60 million a year with the scheme, but a recent survey by the Legal Action Group indicates those at whom the programme is aimed are the least likely to use telephone support services.

In a report, the group showed the most common reasons individuals use legal solicitors on a state-funded basis include issues with personal finance and housing.

Published by Tessa Jones