Citizens Advice held its social policy law conference this month in London. The theme of the conference was 'Tackling poverty - taking action now', but one of the undercurrents in the conference was the controversy over Community Legal Advice Centres (CLACs)- the Legal Services Commission's tenders designed to tackle clusters of problems or to undermine the not-for-profit (NFP) sector depending on your point of view.
Guest speaker Lisa Harker, co-director of the Institute of Public Policy Research, asserted that '[Citizens Advice Bureaux (CABx)] were one stop shops before the government started thinking about one stop shops.' Perhaps she was trying to stir up some controversy as the founder and chairperson of A4e, Emma Harrison, was also a speaker.
A4e was established in 1986 by Harrison in Sheffield to provide employment training to the unemployed. The now internationally successful company recently won the tender to run the Hull CLAC at the expense of Hull CAB. Harrison deftly avoided any discussion of CLACs by saying that she did not want to be drawn into a discussion on running advice services as 'much smarter people than I work on that'. Her main message seemed to be that A4e wanted to make it 'a cool thing to seek advice, glamorous, even sexy'. She said: 'Too often people see advice as a last resort rather than a first port of call.'
In a bout of what may be described as CLAC shadow boxing, Teresa Perchard, director of public policy at Citizens Advice, put questions to Harrison on 'persuading local councils to fund advice'. Harrison parried these by criticising the sector: 'I saw an advice centre the other day at which the first four people waiting outside were let in and the rest were sent away. Wrong, wrong, wrong.' Harrison also castigated centres for 'not even having nice chairs for people to sit on', adding that, 'the new advice centre in Hull will be the new way for advice to be offered'.
While delegates seemed annoyed by Harrison's comments, debate rightly swung back to the issue of poverty and the difficulties CABx clients are facing. Harrison's main experience is in employment training and so maybe the NFP advice world is a bit of a culture shock to her, but as for A4e making advice 'glamorous' or even 'sexy', it is hardly something you could accuse employment training of being. Harrison's story of only four people being let into an advice centre does have a ring of familiarity - such rationing of advice services is usually forced on providers through lack of resources rather than any lack of commitment to serving clients though. What would A4e do if the money is insufficient to provide a decent service or any new chairs for that matter, when the Hull CLAC is up for tender again?
Too often NFP advice services have proved their commitment to their clients by struggling on in such circumstances, not very good from a business point of view, but then people tend to work in advice services because they are motivated by more than just making a profit.
Showing posts with label A4E. Show all posts
Showing posts with label A4E. Show all posts
Tuesday, 17 February 2009
Monday, 7 July 2008
Supermarket sweep
Where does publicly-funded law fit into the new world of ‘Tesco law’? The expectation is that big business will storm the aisles like a deranged contestant on Supermarket Sweep throwing all the money-making stuff – personal injury, conveyancing etc – into its trolley and leaving non-remunerative, publicly funded law to gather dust on the shelf.
The likes of the Co-Op, the AA, after-the-event insurer DAS and most recently the consumer group Which? have all announced an intention to take advantage of the Legal Services Act. Alternative business structures (ABSs), which will enable firms to be partly owned by non-lawyers, are expected to arrive around 2011. The worst fear of legal aid lawyers is that this relaxation will prompt a bout of asset-stripping on the High Street.
In the July issue of Legal Action, we ask big business what are its intentions (if any) for social welfare law. Would, for example, the Co-Op move into legal aid? ‘It depends on demand and it also depends on how the membership might view it,’ replies Eddie Ryan, managing director of the Co-operative Legal Services. Ryan reckons it isn’t a huge stretch of the imagination for them to do so but draws the line at ‘certain actions that are socially unacceptable’ (such as representing drink-driving Co-Op members).
It is easy to see the provision of ‘access to justice’ fitting into the retail giant’s ‘ethical’ corporate agenda. They are already talking the talk. Ryan describes the Co-Op’s relationship with its members as ‘wrapping our arms about people who need our help’. The Co-Op has already set up its own legal services in anticipation of the liberalisation. The rhetoric at the moment outstrips reality but the potential is huge. It is already available to four million members, plus 1.5 million policy holders who have legal expenses insurance (LEI) attached to motor and household insurance.
Which? recently announced the expansion of its legal service in anticipation of the new regime. Subscribers pay £51 a year and last year it provided up to 60,000 pieces of advice last year. Which? (like the Co-Op) defines its service in access to justice terms. ‘Lots of the cases that we do would probably fall under the radar of a typical high-street law firm,’ says Which?’s head of legal Gordon Wilson says. ‘People don’t know where else to go, they aren’t sure what their rights are and how to exercise them.’
The Legal Services Act will re-energise the legal expenses industry. ABSs mean that insurers will be able to streamline their business model by dispensing with cumbersome law firm panels. Coverage is already huge and the insurer DAS reckons that there are 10 UK million policy holders. For Kathryn Mortimer, its head of legal services, the relationship between LEI and publicly-funded advice is clear. ‘It is an alternative to legal aid,’ she says. Insurers are hoping for a more sympathetic environment for their businesses - in particular, a lifting of the restriction of the right of policy holders to choose their own lawyers. ‘The government needs to watch very carefully that they don’t alienate the LEI market because we’re picking up the tab for clinical negligence, personal injury, contract and property disputes which the Legal Services Commission doesn’t cover.’
As Which?, a long-time advocate for LEI, noted in 2001 one of its deficiencies of legal insurance products was that cover was heavily prescribed and policy-holders if they knew they had LEI at all (many were oblivious) didn’t know what exactly is covered. The pressure is on to develop wide-ranging services to offer members total legal protection. The ‘demand and appetite from members is for full-service’, Which?’s Gordon Wilson acknowledges. So will it take advantage of the forthcoming liberalisation and set up or take over a firm which covers everything including legal aid? ‘I would not want to answer that at the moment,’ he replies.
Not everyone is waiting for the arrival of ABSs. Sheffield-based A4E, through its partnership with the legal aid firm Howells, has scored a notable hat-trick: winning tenders for Community Legal Advice, the Leicester CLAC (community legal advice centre) and is now preferred bidder in Hull CLAC.
The provision of high quality legal advice for those who can’t afford to pay privately is critical. When it comes to tenders, one hopes that the lure of new private sector interest shouldn’t take precedence over the committed but beleaguered network of private practice firms and advisers. LAG recently learnt A4E will pull out a year early from a contract to provide training schemes for offenders in eight prisons in Kent. According to the Universities and Colleges Union, A4e has announced it is unable to run the Offenders’ Learning and Skills Services for the third year because it stands to make a loss of £892,000. If A4E wins the Hull CLAC tender, it looks as though that will be at the expense of the 70 year old citizen’s advice bureau which will be forced to close. Let’s hope the powers-that-be in Hull are confident that A4E is in it for the long-term.
A version of this article was in the New Law Journal, June 27
The likes of the Co-Op, the AA, after-the-event insurer DAS and most recently the consumer group Which? have all announced an intention to take advantage of the Legal Services Act. Alternative business structures (ABSs), which will enable firms to be partly owned by non-lawyers, are expected to arrive around 2011. The worst fear of legal aid lawyers is that this relaxation will prompt a bout of asset-stripping on the High Street.
In the July issue of Legal Action, we ask big business what are its intentions (if any) for social welfare law. Would, for example, the Co-Op move into legal aid? ‘It depends on demand and it also depends on how the membership might view it,’ replies Eddie Ryan, managing director of the Co-operative Legal Services. Ryan reckons it isn’t a huge stretch of the imagination for them to do so but draws the line at ‘certain actions that are socially unacceptable’ (such as representing drink-driving Co-Op members).
It is easy to see the provision of ‘access to justice’ fitting into the retail giant’s ‘ethical’ corporate agenda. They are already talking the talk. Ryan describes the Co-Op’s relationship with its members as ‘wrapping our arms about people who need our help’. The Co-Op has already set up its own legal services in anticipation of the liberalisation. The rhetoric at the moment outstrips reality but the potential is huge. It is already available to four million members, plus 1.5 million policy holders who have legal expenses insurance (LEI) attached to motor and household insurance.
Which? recently announced the expansion of its legal service in anticipation of the new regime. Subscribers pay £51 a year and last year it provided up to 60,000 pieces of advice last year. Which? (like the Co-Op) defines its service in access to justice terms. ‘Lots of the cases that we do would probably fall under the radar of a typical high-street law firm,’ says Which?’s head of legal Gordon Wilson says. ‘People don’t know where else to go, they aren’t sure what their rights are and how to exercise them.’
The Legal Services Act will re-energise the legal expenses industry. ABSs mean that insurers will be able to streamline their business model by dispensing with cumbersome law firm panels. Coverage is already huge and the insurer DAS reckons that there are 10 UK million policy holders. For Kathryn Mortimer, its head of legal services, the relationship between LEI and publicly-funded advice is clear. ‘It is an alternative to legal aid,’ she says. Insurers are hoping for a more sympathetic environment for their businesses - in particular, a lifting of the restriction of the right of policy holders to choose their own lawyers. ‘The government needs to watch very carefully that they don’t alienate the LEI market because we’re picking up the tab for clinical negligence, personal injury, contract and property disputes which the Legal Services Commission doesn’t cover.’
As Which?, a long-time advocate for LEI, noted in 2001 one of its deficiencies of legal insurance products was that cover was heavily prescribed and policy-holders if they knew they had LEI at all (many were oblivious) didn’t know what exactly is covered. The pressure is on to develop wide-ranging services to offer members total legal protection. The ‘demand and appetite from members is for full-service’, Which?’s Gordon Wilson acknowledges. So will it take advantage of the forthcoming liberalisation and set up or take over a firm which covers everything including legal aid? ‘I would not want to answer that at the moment,’ he replies.
Not everyone is waiting for the arrival of ABSs. Sheffield-based A4E, through its partnership with the legal aid firm Howells, has scored a notable hat-trick: winning tenders for Community Legal Advice, the Leicester CLAC (community legal advice centre) and is now preferred bidder in Hull CLAC.
The provision of high quality legal advice for those who can’t afford to pay privately is critical. When it comes to tenders, one hopes that the lure of new private sector interest shouldn’t take precedence over the committed but beleaguered network of private practice firms and advisers. LAG recently learnt A4E will pull out a year early from a contract to provide training schemes for offenders in eight prisons in Kent. According to the Universities and Colleges Union, A4e has announced it is unable to run the Offenders’ Learning and Skills Services for the third year because it stands to make a loss of £892,000. If A4E wins the Hull CLAC tender, it looks as though that will be at the expense of the 70 year old citizen’s advice bureau which will be forced to close. Let’s hope the powers-that-be in Hull are confident that A4E is in it for the long-term.
A version of this article was in the New Law Journal, June 27
Tuesday, 20 May 2008
Watch out for footloose predators
David Harker, chief executive of Citizens Advice, responds to last week’s posting by Crispin Passmore, director of the Community Legal Service
Whilst I admire the passion with which Crispin pursues a strategy of improving access to advice by means of a winner takes all bidding exercise, I think it’s misconceived and, combined with the impact of the new LSC contract, may wreak havoc across the advice sector in England and Wales. The possible closure of Hull CAB, with its 70-year history of serving its community, and the financial instability of some law centres following the introduction of the fixed fee regime, may be the start of the destruction of much valuable social infrastructure.
Frustration with the failures of Community Legal Service Partnerships, combined with an unquestioning belief in the power of contestable markets, has led to an error of judgement. Wishing to see ‘three, four five or more top quality bids’ in each area, favours footloose predators with the resources to bid and to take the occasional loss without damage not evolving cash strapped community agencies for whom failure may spell disaster.
The solutions which Crispin and the LSC have adopted may be wrong but the underlying analysis is correct. What he describes as ‘fragmented services presenting an un-navigable advice maze to clients faced with domestic violence, illegal eviction and poverty’ does need to change. That’s recognised by Citizens Advice and our bureaux across the country. To make his point, he exaggerates the degree of fragmentation in Hull, where the CAB had developed new specialist quality marked services in employment and immigration, to fill the gap left by the withdrawal of solicitors from LSC contracts.
Across the country here is an immense amount of fantastic work being done by some amazingly committed and dedicated people, many of them volunteers. The question is how to build on that to achieve improved access for more people. The answer is not to do what may well happen in Hull and to destroy existing institutions in pursuit of an unproven contention that new providers to the area can do it better.
That’s why there’s been such a fierce reaction by local people, community leaders and the media to the announcement that the partnership between a private sector company, A4E, and a regional firm of solicitors Howells is the preferred bidder. It’s not that the CAB is a bad loser but it’s the genuine reaction of a community that fears it might lose a valued and trusted service.
The two principle funders of local Citizens Advice Bureaux in England and Wales are local authorities, which last year provided £66 million (46%), and the Legal Services Commission which provided £30 million (20%). These are very different institutions with differing objectives. The LSC’s objectives are narrow, whilst those of local authorities are wider and embrace the concept of community well being. Pooling these two sources of funding and devising a tender specification which adequately captured both sets of objectives is a major challenge which hasn’t been done successfully. The result is that insufficient value is placed on the role of CAB and others in creating viable and cohesive communities, using volunteers (some of whom may have previously been clients) acting as a centre for the development of new national and local initiatives like financial education, credit unions, and using client evidence locally, regionally and nationally to change policies. Destroying these institutions impoverishes the lives of the communities they serve. I suspect that this dawning realisation is leading councillors in Hull to think again and causing many local authorities to think long and hard before joining the world of CLACs and CLANs. Perhaps it will also lead national government to reflect upon the contradiction between its policies for strengthening communities and the marketisation of legal aid.
Whilst I admire the passion with which Crispin pursues a strategy of improving access to advice by means of a winner takes all bidding exercise, I think it’s misconceived and, combined with the impact of the new LSC contract, may wreak havoc across the advice sector in England and Wales. The possible closure of Hull CAB, with its 70-year history of serving its community, and the financial instability of some law centres following the introduction of the fixed fee regime, may be the start of the destruction of much valuable social infrastructure.
Frustration with the failures of Community Legal Service Partnerships, combined with an unquestioning belief in the power of contestable markets, has led to an error of judgement. Wishing to see ‘three, four five or more top quality bids’ in each area, favours footloose predators with the resources to bid and to take the occasional loss without damage not evolving cash strapped community agencies for whom failure may spell disaster.
The solutions which Crispin and the LSC have adopted may be wrong but the underlying analysis is correct. What he describes as ‘fragmented services presenting an un-navigable advice maze to clients faced with domestic violence, illegal eviction and poverty’ does need to change. That’s recognised by Citizens Advice and our bureaux across the country. To make his point, he exaggerates the degree of fragmentation in Hull, where the CAB had developed new specialist quality marked services in employment and immigration, to fill the gap left by the withdrawal of solicitors from LSC contracts.
Across the country here is an immense amount of fantastic work being done by some amazingly committed and dedicated people, many of them volunteers. The question is how to build on that to achieve improved access for more people. The answer is not to do what may well happen in Hull and to destroy existing institutions in pursuit of an unproven contention that new providers to the area can do it better.
That’s why there’s been such a fierce reaction by local people, community leaders and the media to the announcement that the partnership between a private sector company, A4E, and a regional firm of solicitors Howells is the preferred bidder. It’s not that the CAB is a bad loser but it’s the genuine reaction of a community that fears it might lose a valued and trusted service.
The two principle funders of local Citizens Advice Bureaux in England and Wales are local authorities, which last year provided £66 million (46%), and the Legal Services Commission which provided £30 million (20%). These are very different institutions with differing objectives. The LSC’s objectives are narrow, whilst those of local authorities are wider and embrace the concept of community well being. Pooling these two sources of funding and devising a tender specification which adequately captured both sets of objectives is a major challenge which hasn’t been done successfully. The result is that insufficient value is placed on the role of CAB and others in creating viable and cohesive communities, using volunteers (some of whom may have previously been clients) acting as a centre for the development of new national and local initiatives like financial education, credit unions, and using client evidence locally, regionally and nationally to change policies. Destroying these institutions impoverishes the lives of the communities they serve. I suspect that this dawning realisation is leading councillors in Hull to think again and causing many local authorities to think long and hard before joining the world of CLACs and CLANs. Perhaps it will also lead national government to reflect upon the contradiction between its policies for strengthening communities and the marketisation of legal aid.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)