What is the Quality Mark?

The Quality Mark is part of the Community Legal Service (CLS), a government initiative launched in April 2000.

The aim of the CLS is to improve access, for the public, to quality information, advice and legal services through local networks of services supported by co-ordinated funding and based on an assessment of local needs.The Quality Mark is the quality standard that will underpin all CLS services, so that members of the public who need legal information, advice and other help can rely on receiving a quality assured service.To be awarded the Quality Mark and be able to display the Quality Mark logo organisations will need to demonstrate that they meet the standard required for the type of service being delivered.

The 3 Quality Mark standards are:

• Information
•  General Help
•  Specialist Help

There are three standards within the Quality Mark, and sub-divisions within two of them.

Information Services
These services will provide information in written or oral form. Where they provide an assisted information service, they will also have someone on hand to direct clients to the right source of information and to deal with enquiries about advice services in the locality.

Neither type of information service will be involved in diagnosing the client's problem in terms of providing advice as to further action that the client should take.

Self-help Information
This level is for services that rely on the public accessing information themselves. The service may include leaflets, directories, websites or other computer-based systems, or other published materials, where there is little or no interaction with the public.

Assisted Information
This is for organisations that have a dedicated information service, although this does not have to be the sole purpose of the organisation. There should be staff that are able to help clients access information, to identify where a client needs further information or advice and help clients select an appropriate service where they will be able to receive this

General Help Services
The standards for general help services are sub-divided into two levels:

General help
The Community Legal Service defines you as giving General Help if you provide a service that includes :

• diagnosing clients' problems;giving information and explaining options;
• identifying further action the client can take; and
• giving basic assistance, e.g. filling in forms, contacting third parties to seek information.
  This will generally be done in one interview although there may be some follow up work. The client then retains responsibility for further action

General Help including casework
The organisation may also be providing a casework service, i.e. taking action on behalf of clients in order to move the case on. This may include negotiation and advocacy on the clients' behalf to third parties on the telephone, by letter or face-to-face.

By definition, most cases will involve follow-up work with the provider retaining responsibility for this. You will need to apply for the General Help with Casework level in particular categories. These are currently:

Subject-based: welfare benefits; housing; debt; consumer/general contract; employment; immigration and nationality.
Client-based: disability; younger people; older people; race equality; asylum seekers and refugees.
There is also a requirement that organisations certified to the Casework level should have at least one person working in the relevant category for at least 12 hours per week.

This means that, for example, if you wanted a General Help Quality Mark with Casework in housing, debt and welfare benefits, you would need someone who worked in each of those subject areas for at least 12 hours per week. The 12 hours can include supervision, training and updating in the subject area, in addition to undertaking interviews and follow up work.

Specialist Help Services
Specialist help services will provide advice and legal help on complex matters in specific areas of law and will carry out the full range of legal services including representation where this is permitted (some representation can only be undertaken by qualified lawyers or individuals acting under their supervision).

Organisations that apply at the Specialist level will not automatically receive a legal help contract from the Legal Services Commission although licensed work contracts may be available. You cannot receive money from the Community Legal Service or Criminal Defence Service Funds if the organisation does not hold the Specialist Help Quality Mark.

Other Quality Marks

• Quality Mark for the Bar
• Mediation Quality Mark
• Quality Mark for Websites
• Telephone Standards
• Specialist Support
  

Where can I obtain further information?
 For further information visit the legal Services commission website.

Please contact the Legal Services Commission Supplier Development Group at LSC Head Office, 85 Gray's Inn Road, London WC1X 8TX, or telephone 020 7759 0000 for further details or visit the legal Services Commission website.