A bit pedantic (since my wife is in IP), but you don't need a patent attorney for most patent things, you just need a patent agent. (Who may also be an attorney.) Non-attorney patent agents can handle basically everything related to patents other than litigation.

To be even more pedantic :)

Since we are talking about the UK not the US

“patent attorney” vs “patent agent” is a US distinction. In the UK, “patent attorney” is the standard term for what is called “patent agent” in the US - someone who can appear before the patent office, but cannot (in general) practice law. [0] Now, unlike US patent agents, UK patent attorneys can actually appear in court for patent litigation (they all get some limited rights to do so, and can gain additional rights by undertaking advanced training) - however, in practice, you’d use an IP solicitor/barrister for any high value patent litigation, it is mainly at the low end that UK patent attorneys handle litigation independently of a solicitor or barrister. A solicitor or barrister who specialises in patent law doesn’t have to be qualified as a patent attorney, and although it is technically possible to do so, few actually are.

[0] Technically, the UK classifies patent attorneys as legal professionals-in popular parlance, “lawyers”-but unlike solicitors and barristers, who are generalist legal professionals permitted (in principle) to practice in any legal area, a patent attorney is a specialist legal profession whose scope of legal practice is officially restricted to intellectual property (they are allowed to advise on non-patent IP law matters such as copyrights, and also related commercial law matters such as IP contracts, but not on legal matters which have no connection with IP)