As always, our office was bursting with activity with a vast of range of activities including client services, volunteer and student placements, community legal education activities, training and many staff and network meetings.
During the 2015-2016 the Centre has seen 2,059 clients with an extensive range of legal problems. These clients come from all walks of life, some of which are demographically isolated, financially disadvantaged or for many other reasons have been unable to gain access to legal services.
The diversity of our client base has seen us assisting a 12 year old for Victims Compensation to a 95 year old for a Will. This is a remarkable achievement for an organisation of our size and demonstrates the value for money CHCLC achieve on behalf of our funders and the clear benefits provided to our community. This report will highlight projects and partnerships in which innovation and collaborative practices have helped the Centre work towards achieving positive outcomes for clients.
Quite often overlooked in an Annual Report are the Administrative and Project Staff. I would sincerely like to acknowledge and thank our Administrative team, for their contributions to the smooth functioning of the Centre. The teamwork and level of professionalism displayed by our administrative staff in a very busy and often emotion charged environment is a key component in the Centre’s ability to ensure people receive the right service to meet their needs. Our Administrative staff are the first point of contact for people approaching the Centre. In addition, they ensure our client database is kept up to date which is essential to being able to report on our Centre’s achievements to our funding bodies, members and the wider community.