In last year’s Annual Report Ballarat & Grampians Community Legal Service expressly looked forward to 2019-2020 as a year of growth and sustainability. Both objectives were achieved, a credit to all staff and volunteers of the Service, in light of the disruption caused by COVID-19 to the world, and more specifically, the people of Victoria. From March this has meant a rapid process of adaption to remote working and delivering legal services primarily via phone. All the staff have risen to the challenges well and provided effective services in a safe manner.
The impact of the pandemic has again highlighted the immense value of Community Legal Services in providing advice, case work and referral services for people experiencing the effects of family violence, family law, employment issues and other diverse issues known to have been exacerbated by the pandemic. Legal services are increasingly unaffordable to large cohorts of the population and substantially increased funding from the Victorian Attorney General’s office and Victoria Legal Aid received during the year is an acknowledgement of this. Our increasing capacity to better assist those who cannot personally fund their own legal services is the most significant achievement of the year. BGCLS has seen its premises at 5 Chancery Lane, Ballarat Central slowly fill as staffing has increased with a greater number of lawyers and higher administrative capacity. The expansion of the Family Violence Duty Lawyer Service in Ballarat is a sad reflection of the endemic problem of violence primarily towards women and children – the increased commitment of lawyers to that Service being one contribution to eliminating this problem.
During 2019/2020 we welcomed the employment of Wendy Chennell and Alexander Stewart and the return of the vastly experienced Glen Ludbrook to the fold. We saw the departures of Bronte Maddaford following the end of the funded Health Justice Partnership with Grampians Community Health, of lawyer Melanie Wyatt and administration trainee Oskar Sewell-Lane. The BGCLS Committee of Management also saw the departure of long term Committee Member and legal volunteer Dianne Hadden after many years of passionate service.
In a period of rapid change and active restrictions the Service has not been able to run its volunteer clinics or conduct community legal education in the ways that it would wish to but there is considerable scope for their return as the more dramatic effects of the virus ease.
Foreseeing what 2020/2021 may bring is difficult but the Service is working towards opening an office in the Horsham region and increased funding in other areas will support expanded services in all the areas of law in which we work. The Executive Officer of the Service, Lisa Buckland and Principal Lawyer Toni Thomas both deserve credit for their efforts in sustaining and growing the service – ambitions which will again be important in the year to come.
The impact of the pandemic has again highlighted the immense value of Community Legal Services in providing advice, case work and referral services for people experiencing the effects of family violence, family law, employment issues and other diverse issues known to have been exacerbated by the pandemic. Legal services are increasingly unaffordable to large cohorts of the population and substantially increased funding from the Victorian Attorney General’s office and Victoria Legal Aid received during the year is an acknowledgement of this. Our increasing capacity to better assist those who cannot personally fund their own legal services is the most significant achievement of the year. BGCLS has seen its premises at 5 Chancery Lane, Ballarat Central slowly fill as staffing has increased with a greater number of lawyers and higher administrative capacity. The expansion of the Family Violence Duty Lawyer Service in Ballarat is a sad reflection of the endemic problem of violence primarily towards women and children – the increased commitment of lawyers to that Service being one contribution to eliminating this problem.
During 2019/2020 we welcomed the employment of Wendy Chennell and Alexander Stewart and the return of the vastly experienced Glen Ludbrook to the fold. We saw the departures of Bronte Maddaford following the end of the funded Health Justice Partnership with Grampians Community Health, of lawyer Melanie Wyatt and administration trainee Oskar Sewell-Lane. The BGCLS Committee of Management also saw the departure of long term Committee Member and legal volunteer Dianne Hadden after many years of passionate service.
In a period of rapid change and active restrictions the Service has not been able to run its volunteer clinics or conduct community legal education in the ways that it would wish to but there is considerable scope for their return as the more dramatic effects of the virus ease.
Foreseeing what 2020/2021 may bring is difficult but the Service is working towards opening an office in the Horsham region and increased funding in other areas will support expanded services in all the areas of law in which we work. The Executive Officer of the Service, Lisa Buckland and Principal Lawyer Toni Thomas both deserve credit for their efforts in sustaining and growing the service – ambitions which will again be important in the year to come.
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To find out more about the service please follow this link: About Us
BGCLS Acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the region we service, their diversity, histories and knowledge and their continuing connection to land, water and community. We pay our respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, their Elders past present and emerging.
To find out more about the service please follow this link: About Us
BGCLS Acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the region we service, their diversity, histories and knowledge and their continuing connection to land, water and community. We pay our respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, their Elders past present and emerging.
Many images of Ballarat and surrounds by photographer, Andrew Thomas. Visit Andrew's website to see more of his beautiful images - http://www.andrewthomasphotographer.com/