The Law Centre's primary aim is the relief of poverty in the London Boroughs of Southwark, Lewisham,Bromley and Croydon by provision of legal advice, representation and education.
The Law Centre works towards achieving this by prioritising cased involving the prevention of homelessness, the provision of immigration and employment advice to those who could not otherwise afford to receive legal services and the increase of benefits.
Given the ongoing cuts in legal aid and other assistance to those in need, the work of the Law Centre is even more vital to ensure that justice is done to the most marginalised people in society and trustees are required to help steer the ship through these choppy waters.
The Law Centre provides high quality legal advice and litigation in the areas of immigration, housing, employment and welfare benefits as well as working jointly with and providing training to other local organisations to try and reach as many people as possible.
Legal advice is given over the telephone and in person to try and resolve issues quickly and effectively but, where this is not possible and where a caseworker believes that somebody's case is strong enough, the Law Centre will undertake litigation to try and ensure that the client's case is dealt with in the appropriate legal forum to achieve the best possible outcome for them.
In respect of immigration , this can often mean that a client is able to remain in the country and not be deported back to a country where they do not believe they are safe and, in respect of housing, this can mean that a homeless client is accommodated by the local authority.