By The London Legal Support Trust
Over 8,500 walkers were welcomed to the heart of Legal London for The London Legal Walk on Monday 18 October, organised by the London Legal Support Trust (LLST). The long-awaited return of the event has so far raised over £550,000 for frontline free legal advice charities in London and the South East.
With an extended registration time, an extra walking route and plenty of space to meet with team members, colleagues and peers, the legal community were in high spirits and did not let the autumnal weather get in the way of their sponsored 10k walk.
Over 100 frontline free legal advice centres have been forced to close their doors since the pandemic as a result of increased demand and decreased funding. Many people have found themselves in a vulnerable position for the first time and have faced job loss, health problems and domestic abuse, but do not have the means to pay for good quality legal advice. Frontline free legal advice clinics offer support with these issues and desperately need additional funding in order to remain open.
Bob Nightingale MBE, founder of LLST commented, ‘After months of planning and anticipation, we have been so pleased to see our brilliant teams, sponsors and supporters. The amount raised by the legal community will help give a lifeline to many vulnerable people in our society. Thank you to everyone who walked, ran and had fun while raising these vital funds – even in the rain!’
Teams were treated to a street party after their walk with a steel band, stilt walkers and street food. There were some walkers unable to get to central London for the event. So they walked remotely, one particularly dedicated walker completed a 10k walk near his home in Texas, USA!
There is still time to support the teams and the London Legal Walk, fundraising pages will stay open until the end of November and every penny really does count. With winter approaching, and after an extremely tough 20 months, additional support is needed now more than ever.