9 - The English settlements, the Poor Man’s Lawyer and social work, circa 1890–1939

Summary

The Poor Man's Lawyer evenings that were offered by settlement houses from the 1890s were a means by which men were afforded an opportunity to ‘respectably’ undertake a form of social work. With women excluded from the legal profession until the 1920s, those men engaged in social work at settlements or other charities required either access to those with the professional training to directly advise their clients, or reliable and appropriate training or resources on the law in relation to social work. Through Frank Tillyard, the Poor Man's Lawyer and settlement houses had a key role to play in the formalisation of social work training in England, through their expectation that social workers would ‘do law’ in the course of their professional work. This also went the other way, with Poor Man's Lawyer work enabling lawyers to ‘do social work’. The embedding of Poor Man's Lawyer work in the burgeoning social work and activism networks between the First and Second World Wars allowed for campaigning around the key issues brought to legal advice evenings – and, in due course for concrete results. The spread of the Settlement Movement enabled this, and the idea of offering legal advice as a public good became more entrenched.

Examining pro bono legal services at settlement houses offers insight into the shifts in the relationship between individuals and the state over time. Prior to the Legal Aid and Advice Act 1949, individuals on low incomes were reliant on charitable or mutual aid schemes for legal advice and aid in the lower courts (Bradley, 2019). However, the later 19th century was a period in which there were major shifts in both the administration and the scope of the law. Some of this was a shift to rules-based welfare. As Hurren (2007), King and Jones (2016) and Jones and Carter (2019) demonstrate, those denied welfare under the Poor Laws were able to challenge decisions by asking those in good standing in the community to write letters on their behalf. As the 19th century progressed, ideas about systematically organising welfare emerged in reformist circles, being put into practice by the Charity Organisation Society (COS), and with it, a shift to rules-based welfare.