'Step forward' as legal advice centre moves to new home

Simon Bristow

A COMMUNITY legal advice centre in Beverley has moved to new premises.

Residents got their first look around the new home of the East Riding Community Legal Advice Network office in Lairgate yesterday, after the centre moved from its temporary base in Morley’s Yard.

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Funded by the Legal Services Commission and East Riding Council, the network will receive 1.89m over three years and is run by East Yorkshire Citizens Advice Bureau and Yorkshire solicitors Switalskis.

It offers legal help and advice, from basic information to representation at court, from its three permanent sites in Beverley, Goole and Bridlington.

Advice is also provided from 10 outreach locations.

Coun Jonathan Owen, deputy leader of East Riding Council, said: “This service represents a significant step forward in the way advice is made available to residents. For the first time people can get support on a whole range of issues in the same place.

“By joining up funding from the council and the Legal Service Commission, and by delivering the service through organisations with the experience and reputation of the Citizens Advice Bureau and Switalskis, we have a service that is of great benefit to all residents of the East Riding.

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“It is a great example of how public and voluntary sector organisations can work together to deliver services.”

Since the spring, more than 3,000 people have contacted the network for help on a range of issues such as debt, welfare benefits, housing, community care and employment.

The council said the service had managed more than 5m of debt for clients, and seen an extra 150,000 claimed in welfare benefits.

“The opening of a centre in Beverley is a major milestone,” said bureau chief executive Lesley Thornley.

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“For some time the town has had the benefits of advice from the Cherry Tree Centre, but this new service is different in two ways.

“Firstly, it can offer a wider range of specialist and general advice, and secondly, it enables us to extend our services across Beverley and the surrounding area.”

The centre is open on Tuesdays and Fridays between 10am and 4pm.

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