The Chartered Institute of Patent Agents hold regular clinics at a number of sites around the United Kingdom giving free basic advice to innovators who are at the early stages of developing an idea. Below are listed the current sites for clinics and contact details for arranging an appointment. Many firms of patent agents will also offer the first consultation free of charge, so if there is not a clinic listed locally, you could contact local firms of agents, a geographically-sorted list appearing here . Alongside these clinics the Leeds Patent Information Unit is providing demonstrations of patent searching. Due to the popularity of these clinics, they are only open to companies and individuals within the Yorkshire and Humber Region.
Some libraries offer basic patent advice, mostly on searching.