Government announces more than £5m of new funding to support social welfare law advice sector in England and Wales during the COVID-19 pandemic

Advice sector plays a vital role in helping people access justice and resolve their legal problems, and should be supported to continue to operate safely and effectively, says Justice Minister

The government has announced more than £5m of new funding to support the not-for-profit social welfare law advice sector in England and Wales during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Further to the Chancellor's announcement last month of £750m funding for frontline charities to 'ensure they can continue their vital work during the coronavirus outbreak', the government has today said that it will be allocating £5.4m to a new Community Justice Fund, to be administered by the Access to Justice Foundation, with the Law Centres Network overseeing £3m of the funding that has been earmarked for law centres.

Justice Minister Alex Chalk said today -

'Law Centres and charities in the advice sector play a vital role in helping people access justice and resolve their legal problems. That is why they should be supported to continue to operate safely and effectively during the Covid-19 pandemic.

This additional £5.4 million support fund will help do just that – giving providers the support they need to boost remote capability and help as many people as possible during these challenging times.'

NB - the government says that the new funding is in addition to a recently signed grant agreement to provide more than £3.1m to organisations that support litigants in person.

For more information, see £5.4 million to support legal advice sector during the COVID-19 pandemic from gov.uk