Our Relationships

Community Relationships

We are highly engaged with our local community and participated in the following networks:

  • Aboriginal Action Group;
  • Bayside Peninsula Integrated Family Violence Partnership;
  • City of Casey Collaborative Services Network;
  • Collaborative Support Group (Federal Circuit Court, Dandenong);
  • Critical Linkages (Casey / Cardinia Family Violence Network);
  • Dandenong Rooming House Network;
  • Family Relationship Services Community Reference Group;
  • Federal Circuit Court Duty Lawyer Meetings;
  • Frankston City Council, Safer Cities Committee;
  • Frankston Homelessness Network;
  • Frankston Emergency Relief Providers Network;
  • Frankston & Mornington Peninsula Family Violence Network;
  • Frankston Magistrates’ Family Violence Court Users Meeting;
  • Frankston North Collaborative Partnership;
  • Inner South Rooming House Network;
  • Mornington Peninsula Combined Service Provider Network;
  • Outer South Integrated Family Violence Partnership.

Collaborating with other legal assistance providers is an important strategy in identifying and responding to legal needs within our community. We have been pleased to participate in the following initiatives over this period.

Regional

  • South East Region Legal Assistance Network;
  • Informal meetings with Victoria Legal Aid (Peninsula & Dandenong Regional Offices).

Victorian

  • Applicant Lawyers Group;
  • CLC Managers Network;
  • Community Development and Community Legal Education Working Group;
  • Federation CLC’s Outcomes & Measurement Steering Committee;
  • Infringements Working Group;
  • Integrated Legal & Social Support Network;
  • Joint CLE Infringements Project Group;
  • Management Committee of Federation of CLCs;
  • Principal Lawyers’ Network;
  • Streamline Fines/Toll System Project Working Group ;
  • Tenancy Working Group;
  • VCAT Residential Tenancies Users Group;
  • VLA Evaluation Project;
  • VLA/Federation Sector Planning Family Violence;
  • VLF Wills Publication Reference Group.

National

  • National Association of CLCs Advisory Committee;
  • Community Legal Education and Community Development Network of CLCs;
  • CLC representative on National Legal Aid Community Legal Education Working Group.

Our Community Partners

We value our relationships with community partners who enable us to proactively engage and respond to the legal needs of our priority client groups.   

Health Justice Partnerships

Peninsula Health

PCLC and Peninsula Health are working together to strengthen the local communities service response to victims of Family Violence. A PCLC lawyer is located within Peninsula Health’s Social Work Department providing legal consultation with referred and eligible clients at either Rosebud Hospital or Frankston Hospital.

Outstanding Fines and related legal issues have also been identified as an issue in our community by our Health Justice partner. PCLC provides a weekly visiting service to Peninsula Health’s Integrated Health Centre providing free legal services, it is proposed to expand this service across all Hospital departments.

Mind Australia Ltd

PCLC and Mind Australia Ltd a leading community managed mental health service provider have teamed up to participate in the Justice in Mind Project. The project recognizes that HJP’s have proven effective in reaching clients who would not ordinarily seek legal help.   PCLC  visits  Mind Australia’s YPARC facility in Frankston fortnightly to conduct a legal clinic.

Health Justice Partnerships (HJP’s) are a holistic model of service delivery which sees free legal services integrated into public health-care settings.

Education Justice Partnerships

Our school lawyer project is a partnership with the three schools in the suburb of Frankston North. Frankston North has long been identified in the top four of disadvantaged suburbs in Victoria. The project partners Monterey Secondary College, Mahogany Rise Primary School, Aldercourt Primary School and PCLC are working together to strengthen and build capacity within the community to identify and respond to legal problems. PCLC provides a weekly legal clinic at the two primary schools and community legal education and professional development at the Secondary School.

Local Government Partnerships

City of Glen Eira

The Glen Eira Mums Project (GEMS) is an initiative with the City of Glen Eira to undertake legal clinics and a secondary consult service at the Glenhuntly Maternal & Child Health Centre, targeting those experiencing family violence.

Mornington Peninsula Shire

Elder Abuse is the priority client group in our partnership with the Mornington Peninsula Shire. The partnership has enhanced the Centre’s capacity to provide legal services to older people who are at risk of or are experiencing elder abuse along with the provision of public forums and professional development to people working in the aged and related sectors.

Community Partnerships

Family Life

Our partnership with Family Life helps ensure that separating parents at the Frankston Relationship Centre have access to timely legal information and advice.

FMC Mediation and Counselling Services.

PCLC and FMC service response relationship has been strengthened with the provision of Financial Counselling Services primarily to PCLC clients at its Frankston Office, four days per week.


PCLC – Annual Report