Tony WrightTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will list the local, sub-regional and regional partnerships, boards of zones and other cross-sectoral bodies supported by his Department; how many of each there are; and with which funding streams they are associated. [144438]
§ Mr. LockThis information is not held centrally. In delivering its objectives, the Lord Chancellor's Department works in partnership with a range of organisations both formally and informally. For example, there are 153 Community Legal Service Partnerships (CLSPs) in England and Wales. The Legal Services Commission is a key member on each of the CLSPs and it takes account of the CLSP strategic plan when determining its local expenditure from the CLS Fund. The CLSPs provide the forum for the LSC to co-ordinate its local expenditure with other funders of local legal services, such as local authorities, the National Lottery Charities Board, and charitable trusts. There are also 12 Regional Legal Service Committees (RLSC). The RLSCs are responsible for advising the LSC on its expenditure from the CLS Fund.
The Lord Chancellor's Department also contributes to the secretariat support for a number of other committees in the criminal justice system, both at a national and local level. Some examples include the Criminal Justice Consultative Council, the Area Criminal Justice Strategy Committees and national Trials Issues Group which comprise senior representatives of the various criminal justice agencies and services.
There is a network of Family Court Business Committees and Family Court Fora across the country which monitor the operation of the Children Act. There is one Family Court Business Committee for each care centre in the country (48). The same arrangements apply for Fora but these have been merged with Family Court Business Committees in some areas. These are not funded centrally but the Court Service pays for the administration.