Post by nickd on Mar 5, 2011 9:56:35 GMT 1
My legal is a public forum which keeps you up to date with what's going on in the world of advice, it's the key site where you can read through hundreds of posts on all manner of related subjects. You can browse to your heart's content, but better still why not register? - it's really easy and only takes a few seconds, we don't ask lots of questions and you can use any name you like - nor do we bombard you with endless emails. We just ask you to follow a few basic rules and to keep your posts clean, if you've got something humourous to say, we welcome a bit of light relief, it's what keeps us going at times!
Here's a reminder of our current focus....
(A) Mylegal continues as an invaluable public forum for you to post your views on anything connected with the legal advice sector, we predominantly focus on the key areas of social welfare law and advice given in the main by law centres, citizens advice bureau and solictor agencies who deal in this area. Social welfare law is all about advice on debt, benefits, housing, employment, family and housing, there are also others areas such as mental health, community care, consumer rights and education. These are the key areas which matter most to those seeking advice. We're all about promoting the importance of making sure people can continue to access justice by promoting the value of social welfare advice. Sometimes criminal law comes into it too, say where someone needs advice on disputing an allegation that they have frauduently claimed benefits, criminal lawyers often turn to benefits advisers for advice on this often complicated area of law.
The forum is open to all and we welcome posts not just from those who provide the advice, but also from those who've needed it themselves. We don't give advice on here, we just collect the views on what's happening out there so that we can do our bit to make sure access to proper advice is maintained. So please feel free to have your say, make Mylegal -'your' legal.
(B) We really want to keep hearing from all of you who have a story about how you've helped someone with a problem requiring advice, there's lots of stories on here already but we could do with more. It would be really good to hear from those who have received help themselves, we welcome views good or bad, we just want to get a good picture of how it's working out there and the views of those we help are just as important as our own, - so have your say.
(C) The current government reforms and spending cuts are a major concern to us at Mylegal. We are therefore trying to build a picture of the number of agencies who are:
(1) Facing difficulty, perhaps even closure or those who have already had to shut down, these are posted on our frontline section. If you know of any news of cuts in one particular area, let's hear about it so we can build a good national picture.
(2) We are going to start a new thread (watch this space) on any new agencies who offer advice services. These may start up where others have shut down. Our focus is to ensure that new agencies are accessible and offering the right kind of advice. We need to know of the experiences people have had with these agencies and whether any of them are making a charge for their services. It would also be good to build a picture of where they are located and who they are operated by. We already know of some agencies which have already started - it helps to know who they are and whether they are recruiting paid of voluntary staff with the right level of competence needed to help people with their problems. We need to keep track of new advice facilities and learn of how they are being funded. If you know of a new agency in your area then let us know on here.
(D) Mylegal keeps you up to date with views and articles on the current advice arena. There's so much debate and reform going on at the moment and differing political views - it's difficult to keep track. We're not politcial on Mylegal, but we are not afraid to say what we think about any political action which jeopardizes the rights of individuals who should continue to be protected by proper and accessible social welfare law. We appreciate views differ widely and therefore welcome your views, it helps guage the way people feel about all of this.
We remain optmistic that we can and will help make a difference to what happens in the world of advice, a lot is going on at the moment, you'd be very surprised at the exposure Mylegal gets elsewhere, it's out there on lots of Twitter and Facebook sites, but most importantly it's being talked about, more than many of you realize. Keep watching as Mylegal increases its profile, we've only been going a short time and interest in this site grows on a daily basis. It's communication which makes all the difference, especially at a time when we are all facing huge challenges and find it hard to find the time to write letters, or to speak to people. Make Mylegal - 'Your' Legal.
If anyone has an idea on what else they think Mylegal could be doing, let's hear it, better still tell us how you are going to help make your idea happen.
Here's a reminder of our current focus....
(A) Mylegal continues as an invaluable public forum for you to post your views on anything connected with the legal advice sector, we predominantly focus on the key areas of social welfare law and advice given in the main by law centres, citizens advice bureau and solictor agencies who deal in this area. Social welfare law is all about advice on debt, benefits, housing, employment, family and housing, there are also others areas such as mental health, community care, consumer rights and education. These are the key areas which matter most to those seeking advice. We're all about promoting the importance of making sure people can continue to access justice by promoting the value of social welfare advice. Sometimes criminal law comes into it too, say where someone needs advice on disputing an allegation that they have frauduently claimed benefits, criminal lawyers often turn to benefits advisers for advice on this often complicated area of law.
The forum is open to all and we welcome posts not just from those who provide the advice, but also from those who've needed it themselves. We don't give advice on here, we just collect the views on what's happening out there so that we can do our bit to make sure access to proper advice is maintained. So please feel free to have your say, make Mylegal -'your' legal.
(B) We really want to keep hearing from all of you who have a story about how you've helped someone with a problem requiring advice, there's lots of stories on here already but we could do with more. It would be really good to hear from those who have received help themselves, we welcome views good or bad, we just want to get a good picture of how it's working out there and the views of those we help are just as important as our own, - so have your say.
(C) The current government reforms and spending cuts are a major concern to us at Mylegal. We are therefore trying to build a picture of the number of agencies who are:
(1) Facing difficulty, perhaps even closure or those who have already had to shut down, these are posted on our frontline section. If you know of any news of cuts in one particular area, let's hear about it so we can build a good national picture.
(2) We are going to start a new thread (watch this space) on any new agencies who offer advice services. These may start up where others have shut down. Our focus is to ensure that new agencies are accessible and offering the right kind of advice. We need to know of the experiences people have had with these agencies and whether any of them are making a charge for their services. It would also be good to build a picture of where they are located and who they are operated by. We already know of some agencies which have already started - it helps to know who they are and whether they are recruiting paid of voluntary staff with the right level of competence needed to help people with their problems. We need to keep track of new advice facilities and learn of how they are being funded. If you know of a new agency in your area then let us know on here.
(D) Mylegal keeps you up to date with views and articles on the current advice arena. There's so much debate and reform going on at the moment and differing political views - it's difficult to keep track. We're not politcial on Mylegal, but we are not afraid to say what we think about any political action which jeopardizes the rights of individuals who should continue to be protected by proper and accessible social welfare law. We appreciate views differ widely and therefore welcome your views, it helps guage the way people feel about all of this.
We remain optmistic that we can and will help make a difference to what happens in the world of advice, a lot is going on at the moment, you'd be very surprised at the exposure Mylegal gets elsewhere, it's out there on lots of Twitter and Facebook sites, but most importantly it's being talked about, more than many of you realize. Keep watching as Mylegal increases its profile, we've only been going a short time and interest in this site grows on a daily basis. It's communication which makes all the difference, especially at a time when we are all facing huge challenges and find it hard to find the time to write letters, or to speak to people. Make Mylegal - 'Your' Legal.
If anyone has an idea on what else they think Mylegal could be doing, let's hear it, better still tell us how you are going to help make your idea happen.