Existing Statelessness determination procedure An example of legal aid provision - Liverpool Law Clinic In October 2013, within six months of the establishment of the United Kingdom’s new SDP, the Liverpool Law Clinic (part of the Law Department at the University of Liverpool) launched a project to advise and represent stateless persons in relation to their applications for a residence permit, and for stateless children to register as British citizens. Since then it has offered a free service nationwide service to stateless clients. The Clinic is run by specialist lawyers assisted by law students. There is very limited, exceptional legal aid funding in England and Wales for advice and representation in relation to a statelessness application. Clients are referred by organizations such as the Red Cross and UNHCR, or they find the Clinic through an internet research or word of mouth. Most of the clients would not be able to pay for a private lawyer to represent them. Though the clinic deals with a relatively small number of clients, it quickly established its expertise. It has secured some significant changes of approach by the Home Office by making strategic applications and innovative arguments, to ensure the United Kingdom follows best practice as closely as possible. Two staff members authored a Best Practice Guide for legal representatives who advised on the statelessness leave procedure and provided legal training throughout the United Kingdom. The clinic’s lawyers support other legal representatives making statelessness applications on behalf of their clients, foster contacts with many partners in this field and participate in international meetings to exchange experiences and encourage best practice. The lawyers, together with legal representatives from other organizations, push for policy change through regular meetings with the Home Office. Through their involvement in the work of the clinic, some 350 University of Liverpool students have developed in-depth, practical knowledge about the situation of stateless people, encouraging them to specialize in this field. From June 2016, the clinic received funding for a project to develop its strategic legal work on statelessness, initially focused on vulnerable young stateless migrants aged 25 and under. The clinic hosted an international 18 U N H C R > G P P AC T I O N 6 : E S TA B L I S H I N G S TAT E L E S S N E S S D E T E R M I N AT I O N P R O C E D U R E S