Birmingham Law Centre closes

Birmingham Law Centre has closed, as a direct result of the legal aid cuts.

Chief executive Pete Lowen told Solicitors Journal in January that the law centre might be forced to close after losing half its legal work as a result of LASPO.

The centre was never funded by Birmingham City Council, though it was understood the council offered it a loan earlier this year. It employed four solicitors, four caseworkers and eight support staff.

A message on the home page of the law centre's website reads: "It is with regret that we have to advise you that Birmingham Law Centre has now closed down.

"If you are a creditor, you will be receiving a letter from the Insolvency Service. If you are a client of the Law Centre you will receive a letter explaining what will happen to your file."

Steve Hynes, director of the Legal Action Group, said the closure was "a dramatic example of what is happening across the country."

He went on: "Surprisingly for such a large area, and a second city, it was already not particularly well served by the not-for-profit sector, and the poor and disadvantaged will suffer disproportionately.

"Many law centres have had to downsize very quickly. Those with a high dependency on legal aid income are finding it hardest.

"Large local authorities like Birmingham have big problems because of the cuts they are having to make as a result of reductions in central government funding.

"It's a great shame for the staff, who were very committed."

Labour peer Lord Philip Hunt, who lobbied the city council to save the law centre, said earlier this year: "It is almost impossible to contemplate the demise of an organisation that is so important to so many people in their fight to lift themselves out of poverty, debt and homelessness.

"We are working hard to try and secure sustainable funding, but the cuts to legal support for some of our most vulnerable clients are proving exceptionally challenging."