Our impact during Covid

Central England Law Centre has been providing legal support and advice to improve the lives of people and local communities in Coventry since 1976.  We believe that by activating and embedding rights in communities we can change the cultures, systems and behaviours that reinforce unfairness, disadvantage and inequality, and ensure early and preventative action is taken to protect the rights of socially and economically disadvantaged individuals and communities.

Covid-19 had a disproportionate effect on people who were already vulnerable in Coventry but the effect of the pandemic was also to force even more people into hardship, resulting in an increase in demand for the services the Law Centre provides to the community.

In response to this surge in demand from people most in need and the changes to the way our organisation and others was able to operate in times of Covid we sought new ways of working; developing new collaborations; building on existing, well-established and strong community partnerships; and innovating in key areas.  

During the pandemic we helped more than double the number of people we would usually support during the same time period and continued to find new ways to help the most disadvantaged and socially excluded people in our local communities.  

Some of the ways that we responded:

• Produced and distributed a weekly legal information pack containing all the latest Covid-19 information, in response to an increase in enquiries from public- and voluntary-sector partner organisations, who have struggled to keep abreast of rapidly changing Government policy.  The pack (also available on our website here) reaches over 1,000 frontline staff in other organisations and is a key part of our work to ensure partners are better equipped to provide answers for their service users or make early referrals to the Law Centre.
• Launched a Covid-19 helpline for partner organisations so they can have direct access to our expertise and, where possible, we can equip them with the information they need to resolve problems themselves.
• Produced a series of leaflets providing up-to-date and vital information about rights and entitlements for people who are struggling financially; those with long-term conditions who are shielding; people who have been bereaved; those who need advice on benefit claims, housing rights and immigration status; and the position of carers. The leaflets have been used by food bank, schools, domestic violence agencies, and a range of other partners.
• Arranged and operated weekly ‘Covid-19 clinics’ with staff from some of the organisations we work most closely with. The focus of these has been the impact of the Care Act easements but they have covered a range of other issues.
• Ran citizenship awareness and legal clinics within schools to engage and support hard-to-reach families across Coventry and Birmingham and continue to educate individuals and communities about their legal rights.
• Boosted the capacity of our employment team by partnering with Allen and Overy and two chambers in Birmingham who took referrals from us for pro-bono advice to meet the surge in demand for legal advice and case work concerning employment rights.

The pack has helped equip our team with the information and knowledge needed to act early when solving issues for the people we support, which is even more urgent given the impact of Covid in the local community.

Clare Wightman, Chief Executive, Grapevine Coventry and Warwickshire

We've found the pack comprehensive and a vital source of knowledge which we often refer to during the course of conversations with families to ensure they are aware of their legal rights.

Christine McNaught, CEO, Foleshill Women's Training

The pack takes complicated information and makes it clear and easy to understand.  It not only helps to bring us up to speed with the latest changes in people's legal rights during Covid, it has also helped as a directory to enable effective signposting to other organisations in the city to ensure better outcomes for families.

Rebecca Wilshire, Strategic Lead - Help and Protection, Coventry City Council