You don't need a solicitor for the small claims court, in fact it is set up especialy for the individual to deal with things themselves. you just walk into the local county court and fill in the forms. It only costs a few quid, and this is added on to the claim. if you push, it all happens fairly quickly. you don't just leave it to them though, you need to keep an eye on the progress and as soon as one time limit has expired, you need to ask them to move quickly to the next stage. Also, when you win judgement, ask asap for them to send a bailif to collect.
Good luck.