The Community Legal Service in York aims to improve access to good quality advice so you can find the advice you need, when and where you need it.

Many of the advice agencies in York have agreed to work together as York Community Legal Advice Service Partnership (York CLASP). We will do our best to make sure that you can find the best advice agency to help with your particular issue – so that if the first agency you approach cannot help they will direct you to another advice agency that can.

What sort of issues can I get advice on?

Advice is available locally on a wide range of issues including:

• Family law (including relationship breakdown, care of children and domestic violence)
• Benefits and tax credits
• Debt
• Consumer advice
• Housing and homelessness
• Community care and health
• Mental health
• Employment rights

(These are sometimes referred to as different 'categories of law').

Where can I get advice?

You can get advice from solicitors, voluntary organisations and public agencies including some of our own council services.

You can also access free advice and information from Community Legal Service Direct, a national service, which covers all categories of law, except criminal law. For more information see the Community Legal Service Direct website.

Do I have to pay?

Voluntary and public bodies can provide free advice.

You may qualify for legal aid to pay for or towards the cost of advice from a solicitor. The Community Legal Service Direct website includes an online calculator to help you find out if you might qualify for legal aid. This will depend on the issue you need advice about as well as your financial situation.

Even if you are not eligible for legal aid some solicitors will provide you with one free interview to help you decide how to proceed. Ask your local solicitor if they can help in this way.

Free advice and information is available from a number of public and voluntary bodies in York, including York and District Citizen’s Advice Bureau (CAB) which operates from a city centre office and a number of outreaches across the city. York CAB can provide advice and information on a range of issues to any member of the public. See the York CAB website for more details.

Some other services are aimed at particular groups or issues - for example, advice and information for older people or advice on housing issues. The Community Legal Service Direct website allows you to search by group and issue as well as by location.