Hodge Jones & Allen

London lawyers team up with Just for Kids Law charity

14 February 2012

A new venture is announced between Hodge Jones & Allen’s criminal defence team and Just for Kids Law. From February 2012, the charity has opened a new office inside Hodge Jones & Allen’s building in North London, replicating the presence it already has in West London. This will mean more young people can be helped out of the criminal justice system.

JfK Law was established in 2006 to help children and young people in difficulty.  The charity’s founders, Shauneen Lambe and Aika Stephenson, are legal aid lawyers.  They identified that the young people they represented often had a wide range of problems that weren’t being addressed in the criminal justice system.  Exclusion from school, unstable housing, and mental health problems remained unresolved long after criminal cases ended.  Just for Kids Law is unique in taking a holistic approach to clients, thus ensuring these young people are less likely to get in trouble in the future.

The charity provides a tailored open-door service on a long term basis.  It also trains legal practitioners in how to deal with young people and lobbies to improve the youth justice system.  It is the combination of professional expertise and practical help that makes the charity so effective.

Recent analysis of the service offered by JfK Law shows the most prevalent and urgent issues faced by our young people are to do with lack of suitable education & training and housing/homelessness. 59% are aged between 15 and 18 years, 47% have a physical and/or learning disability and a further 9% have a long term health problem, 17% of young people have a parent with mental health or substance misuse problems and 9% have experienced domestic violence.

Five years after its start, JfK Law has become a well regarded institution, funded by charitable donations.  Working with Hodge Jones & Allen means the charity can grow by replicating its award winning West London model in Lawrence & Co Solicitors, in new areas of London improving the reach and impact of its services.

Sandra Paul, a partner in the criminal defence team at Hodge Jones & Allen, comments: “This fantastic opportunity for Hodge Jones & Allen to work with Just for Kids Law allows us to work closely with an organisation that complements our legal services with the care and support that our youth clients need.”

“The founding partners set up Hodge Jones & Allen with the aim of providing justice for all and over the last 30+ years, the firm has established a tradition of supporting the local community beyond simply the provision of excellent legal services.  This collaboration furthers those aims. We look forward to working with JfK Law for the benefit of our community.”

Shauneen Lambe, Founder and Executive Director of Just for Kids Law, said: “We are very pleased to be opening our North London Just for Kids Law office in conjunction with Hodge, Jones & Allen, who have a long history of fighting injustice. Their philosophy of providing access to justice to those who may not otherwise have access ties in directly with the work that we do at Just for Kids Law. In partnership we can provide the most vulnerable North London children with the help needed to live a more fulfilling life.”

Just for Kids Law Case Studies

Names have been changed to protect identities

Tracy (16) had been on the Child Protection Register for many years having suffered physical abuse at the hands of her elder brother and stepfather. Her relationship with her stepfather grew so bad that the police were called numerous times. Eventually her mother threw her out.  Tracy then slept rough, or at friends’ houses and sometimes with men who offered her a bed for the night in exchange for sex. As winter came she was hospitalised for a chest infection, malnutrition and hypothermia. Her Local Authority refused to provide her with accommodation and her mother would not allow her back into the house for a coat. She contacted JfK and we threatened to issue an urgent Judicial Review unless the Social Services provided her with supported accommodation. Within two days she had a place in supported accommodation. She is now attending College and engaging with Connexions.

Maria (14) came into contact with JfK Law’s Youth Advocate soon after she had been charged with grievous bodily harm. Maria was very distressed about the criminal proceedings. JfK’s Youth Advocate mentored Maria on a weekly basis. JfK Law arranged for Maria to attend anger management and counselling services within her area and for Maria to attend youth run Live magazine where Maria was trained by a BAFTA award winning film producer. Maria began to contribute to the magazine on a regular basis with new articles, interviews and graphic design ideas. Six months later, Maria went on to produce a film about young people in the criminal justice system, which was shown at the BAFTAs. Maria is now in full-time education and is expected to obtain her GCSEs.

For further information please contact Shauneen Lambe, Executive Director, Just for Kids Law

07958 437713 or visit the website here.

Background information

JfK Law won at the Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards 2010 for best not-for-profit organisation and in November 2010 it was Highly Commended by the Longford Prize.  The judges stated the award was “in recognition of the outstanding potential in this young community-based charity, which supports children in trouble. We were particularly impressed by its holistic approach, working across traditional boundaries, to provide youngsters with both legal representation and support in accessing the sort of social care and education support that will help them steer clear of the criminal justice system in the future”.

Baroness Helena Kennedy QC said “I think JfK Law is a most remarkable new kid on the block, an inspirational social invention in the law where innovation is rare.”

A team from JfK Law has moved in to dedicated office space at Hodge Jones & Allen’s building, at 180 North Gower Street, near to Euston Station.