From a solid foundation – strengthening our engagement with community legal centres

We are developing new opportunities for collaboration through data sharing and formalised referral processes, in response to the latest feedback from community legal centres (CLCs) and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services.

We have also reaffirmed our commitment to sharing resources and organisational strategies to support our CLC colleagues, along with on-going work to develop First Nations data sovereignty principles and a governance framework.

‘The CLC Engagement Survey is our way of gauging the health of our relationship with CLCs, understanding their experiences of working with us and the challenges that they are facing,’ said Zione Walker-Nthenda, Director, Client Services and Sector Engagement.

‘We are pleased with the results which show that overall satisfaction with Victoria Legal Aid remains high, increasing to 7.5 out of 10, from 7.1 previously.’

This is the second time we have conducted the CLC Engagement Survey. The first was a baseline survey held in 2021.

‘It is encouraging when we can see that our efforts to illuminate how and by whom funding decisions are made has moved the dial in a positive direction compared to the 2021 baseline,’ said Zione.

‘But we also know where we need to do better and that is work that we continue to engage with our partners day-to-day.’

The survey feedback

Transparency remains the lowest scoring key engagement measure from the baseline survey, with a satisfaction rating of 35 per cent (up from 34 per cent in 2021).

We scored poorly for collaboration which dropped from 70 to 57 per cent, particularly in sub-factors related to collaborative service planning and delivery, as well as joint advocacy.

‘We do need to understand these shifts better and the survey results give us another springboard to have deeper conversations with our CLC colleagues about what will work best for them moving forward,’ said Zione.

The summary includes quotes from CLCs about what was working well, with many providing positive feedback on our CLC Funding and Development Program team and the support they provide.

‘DL (Duty lawyer) relationship is strong and clear.’

‘At an individual level, the management staff and lawyers at VLA are very good to deal with and have a strong alignment of values with the CLC sector.’

‘We value our close, longstanding partnership with VLA, including the CLC Funding and Development Program team and service delivery and advocacy-focused teams.’

The team is the contact point for CLCs that have a funding relationship with us.

That includes 38 CLCs, Djirra, the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS) and the Federation of Community Legal Centres (FCLC).

Responding and taking action

Our responses include:

• continuing development of our strategic communications plan to clarify when funding decisions are made by governments or made by us
• continuing to share and collaborate on community legal information
• increasing the promotion of CLC initiatives for our staff
• continuing to share updates from our program areas, including projects and key staff, through our quarterly CLC newsletter
• pursuing the development and implementation of our own First Nations data sovereignty principles and a governance framework, in consultation with Djirra, VALS and FCLC
• increasing data sharing through the existing Data and Digital Information Strategy, and
• the re-establishment of the Better Referrals Network.

Zione said the survey was also a critical tool in understanding the opportunities and challenges we face together as a sector.

‘Our relationship is key to most effectively meeting legal need in the community and making sure we remain responsive to on-going challenges,’ she said.

‘We commit to actions that will further strengthen our connections and create opportunities to improve transparency, while continuing to perform our sector coordination role.’

More information

For more information about the survey and our response, email clcfd@vla.vic.gov.au to reach the CLC Funding and Development team.

Read more about community legal centres.