Volunteer staff fear for law centre’s future

A LAW centre which has provided free legal advice for Oldhamers for almost a quarter of a century is under serious threat of closure, staff fear.

Remaining Oldham Law Centre employees say they have not been paid a monthly wage since October.

The centre offers advice and representation on a wide range of areas — including immigration, housing and employment issues.

After losing out on a bidding war for a council contract to the Citizens Advice Bureau, law centre staff are worried that the doors could soon close for the final time.

In June, CAB received the remaining funding for the council’s provision for legal and advice services.

The law centre, based in Bridge Street, pleaded with the local authority to stop an extension of the current arrangement going ahead before last Wednesday’s budget announcement for 2012-13. The extension was granted and will take effect from April.

Paul Johnson, the law centre’s supervising solicitor, said: “We are not against the delivery of basic advice at local access points, but the removal of funding from the provision of services for complex cases — involving the need for advice, preparation and representation at court and tribunal hearings — is not a sensible way to fund it.

“It is like putting triage nurses in the community and closing down the hospital to fund it.”

“We have struggled to survive following the loss of funding.”

The five-strong work force has been working without pay in the past few months, the Chronicle understands, with the centre’s fate to be decided soon.

Council leader Jim McMahon said the budget for legal and advice provision has been reduced, as have many other services funded by the council, whose budget was set last week to save £24million in the coming financial year. He said: “We feel it is right to provide support and funding so that residents continue to have access to free legal and advice services, especially given the current economic climate.

“While I respect the work that Oldham Law Centre has previously done, it is frankly misleading and alarmist to claim that residents will now have no access to representation or support.

“The Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) has actually been delivering this service since June, 2011. It has already delivered a more efficient service and one that is now operating across all six of our district partnerships.

“We will, of course, continue to monitor this service to ensure these arrangements are offering effective support to residents.”