Equal Justice for a Strong, Healthy and Resilient Latrobe Valley
February 2019 Equal justice for a strong, healthy and resilient Latrobe Valley Acknowledgement of country The Gippsland Legal Assistance Forum proudly acknowledges the Traditional Owners and custodians of the land on which we are fortunate to live and work, the Gunaikurnai people, and we acknowledge the Boon Wurrung people of the Kulin nation. We pay our respects to Elders past and present, and emerging leaders. We acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded and recognise the ongoing resistance, strength, and resilience of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Victoria and Australia. © 2019 Gippsland Legal Assistance Forum. Reproduction without express written permission is prohibited. Written requests should be directed to Victoria Legal Aid, Corporate Aff airs, Level 9, 570 Bourke Street, Melbourne Vic 3000. Contents About us 4 Executive summary 8 Summary of recommendations 10 Introduction 11 Access to justice and legal need in the Latrobe Valley 13 Legal services in the Latrobe Valley 14 Legal need in the Latrobe Valley 15 Regional priorities 21 Looking forward 21 Investing in community services to strengthen family and community wellbeing 23 Increasing demand 23 Limited access to services 24 Looking forward 26 Responding to family violence 27 Current response 28 Looking forward 28 Supporting access to safe, aff ordable, quality housing 30 Limited access to social and quality housing 30 Protecting tenants’ rights 31 Looking forward 32 Improving timely access to the courts 34 Insuffi cient resourcing and poor infrastructure 34 Impact of delays and current listing practices on clients 35 Looking forward 37 Contact details 39 Use of client stories We use client stories throughout this report to demonstrate the key issues the community is facing.
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