The SQM is a quality assurance standard for organisations:
- delivering complex legal help
- providing a full range of legal services, including representation in court (where appropriate)
Holding either SQM or Lexcel is a contractual requirement for LAA providers, with SQM being the Legal Aid Agency’s own quality assurance standard.
This short survey asks about your experience of the SQM, including what works well and where improvements could be made.
Your feedback will help us build a clearer understanding of how the SQM operates in practice.
Following previous updates and ongoing development such as the change to the audit cycle, we are inviting feedback from providers, representative bodies, auditors and others with an interest in legal aid quality assurance.
Further information
The survey can be found here: LAA SQM (Specialist Quality Mark) Survey June 2026 – Fill in form
The survey will open on Monday 8 June and close at midnight on Monday 22 June.