One in four live in legal aid deserts

New research from LexisNexis® Legal & Professional has discovered that a staggering 14.49 million people in England and Wales, representing 23.4% of the population, reside in areas designated as legal aid deserts. The Legal Aid Deserts report highlights concerning geographic disparities in access to legal support, with smaller, rural, and coastal communities bearing the brunt of this inequality.

The report utilises the latest public data to assess legal need against the capacity of legal aid providers across five critical areas: housing, family, crime, immigration, and employment. It reveals that 91 local authorities qualify as legal aid deserts in at least one of these areas. Among these authorities, 37 have a combined population of 5.38 million and have scored low in two or more areas of legal aid provision. Alarmingly, eight local authorities—Babergh, Breckland, Derbyshire Dales, East Cambridgeshire, East Devon, Rutland, South Norfolk, and West Berkshire—are identified as suffering significant shortages across four or more practice areas.

In practice, residing in a legal aid desert means individuals face challenges in accessing essential legal support. This can lead to dire consequences, such as a tenant confronting unlawful eviction without legal representation, a parent involved in a custody dispute lacking guidance, or an employee wrongfully dismissed without avenues for redress. For many, the alternative to legal aid often translates to no legal help whatsoever.

The report specifies that approximately 6.6 million individuals live in housing legal aid deserts, while 4.2 million are located in family legal aid deserts. The numbers extend to 3.6 million in crime deserts, 4.6 million in immigration deserts, and 4.1 million living in employment legal aid deserts. The data exhibits that access disparities are particularly acute in smaller, rural, and coastal areas, particularly stressed in regions like the East of England, East Midlands, and parts of the South East.

Commenting on the need for accessible legal aid, Kirsty Brimelow KC, Chair of the Bar Council of England and Wales, stated that “Legal aid is a vital part of the justice system, meant to ensure that everyone receives the support they need to access justice, regardless of their financial situation.” She added that “Legal aid deserts reduce access to good quality legal advice at the early stages of proceedings” resulting in detrimental effects on case management.

Jasmine Basran, Head of Policy and Campaigns at the charity Crisis, echoed these sentiments, declaring, "Being able to access housing legal aid can be the turning point that helps someone out of homelessness or helps them avoid it altogether." She cautioned that without early legal advice, problems could escalate, driving individuals into homelessness.

In closing, Josh Giddens, Executive Sponsor of Rule of Law at LexisNexis, remarked that “Access to legal representation shouldn't depend on where you live, how much you earn, or how far you can travel to find help.” He stressed that persistent access gaps threaten the integrity of the Rule of Law itself.

The methodology of the analysis involved examining public data regarding legal aid provider locations, local geography, and area-specific indicators for legal need in the aforementioned practice areas. Local authorities ranking in the bottom 10% of the access measure were classified as legal aid deserts, raising fundamental questions about equality and justice in England and Wales.