On 16th March 2021 the Westminster Policy Forum held a conference titled ‘Next steps for Legal Aid in England and Wales – funding, quality, access to justice and alternative sources of advice’.

Dr Emma Marshall, Research Fellow at Public Law Project attended as a keynote speaker to present findings from our reports ‘Improving Exceptional Case Funding: Providers’ Perspectives’ (available here https://publiclawproject.org.uk/uncategorized/improving-exceptional-case-funding-providers-perspectives/) and  ‘Improving Exceptional Case Funding: Responding to Covid-19’ (available here https://publiclawproject.org.uk/resources/improving-exceptional-case-funding-covid/).

At the conference, the low level of legal aid rates for providers was raised by participants. For those who missed attending due to the attendance fee, Westminster Policy Forum offers a post-event publication that can be ordered at a concessionary rate or as a complimentary copy (available here https://www.westminsterforumprojects.co.uk/order/Next-steps-for-Legal-Aid-in-England-and-Wales-2021)).

The slides from Public Law Project’s presentation at the event is available for free download here.