Ross Mckeown
Ross's page
Fundraising for Free Representation Unit
Story
I am so grateful to be given the opportunity to run the London Marathon for the FRU.
Legal Aid is on it's last legs. In 2013, the legal aid budget was slashed by £350m a year. All the while, local councils squeezed by austerity began pulling funding from welfare rights services, debt and housing advice centres. I saw the intense pressure on resources at one of the remaining centres first-hand, when volunteering at a legal advice clinic in Croydon in 2015. The whole team there worked tirelessly to help the 15 year-old boy who had travelled thousands of miles from Central Asia in search of a better life or the middle-aged, single mum who ended up in mountains of debt, terrified about how she was going to heat her house for her kids that week.
My journey into law so far has shone a light on the need for equal access to justice. That's where the FRU come in. Clients who come to the FRU do so as they could not otherwise get any legal support. The service trains volunteer law students and legal professionals in the skills required to give confident and competent support to protect the rights of others. Having someone there who can at least speak English or understand the tribunal process really gives these stories a fighting chance.
This is my first marathon after a terrible half-marathon experience in 2015! Let's hope this time is better and please sponsor me to help get through the pain.
Legal Aid is on it's last legs. In 2013, the legal aid budget was slashed by £350m a year. All the while, local councils squeezed by austerity began pulling funding from welfare rights services, debt and housing advice centres. I saw the intense pressure on resources at one of the remaining centres first-hand, when volunteering at a legal advice clinic in Croydon in 2015. The whole team there worked tirelessly to help the 15 year-old boy who had travelled thousands of miles from Central Asia in search of a better life or the middle-aged, single mum who ended up in mountains of debt, terrified about how she was going to heat her house for her kids that week.
My journey into law so far has shone a light on the need for equal access to justice. That's where the FRU come in. Clients who come to the FRU do so as they could not otherwise get any legal support. The service trains volunteer law students and legal professionals in the skills required to give confident and competent support to protect the rights of others. Having someone there who can at least speak English or understand the tribunal process really gives these stories a fighting chance.
This is my first marathon after a terrible half-marathon experience in 2015! Let's hope this time is better and please sponsor me to help get through the pain.