What is the need?

Community Legal Advice Centres and Networks (CLACs and CLANs) were commissioned with the aim of providing an integrated and seamless social welfare law service by integrating legal advice services in particular localities. They were intended to meet legal needs from diagnosis and information, through to advice, assistance and legal representation in complex court proceedings, by integrating a range of legal advice services available in a local area. CLACs and CLANs were jointly commissioned and funded by the Legal Services Commission and local authorities. The programme was set up specifically to pilot a range of approaches and therefore the evaluation was a crucial element of the overall programme.

What are we doing?

PERU led the national evaluation of CLACS and CLANs. This was a process evaluation and involved in-depth interviews with 140 commissioners and service providers across 8 sites. Data was analysed using a qualitative data analysis software package and an extensive report published.

What are the outcomes?

A report was published that informed debate and decision-making about the future of the programme.

You can access the full report here.

A journal article was also produced, which is available here.