IMCL's Quarterly Newsletter Be Heard! | Inner Melbourne Community Legal

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In the fourth edition of our quarterly 'Be heard!' newsletter for 2021, we bring our 2018-2021 Plan of Action to a close with stories about how we achieve our vision of:

Join us in taking a look at our Annual Report to reflect on the year that was and look forward with optimism towards 2022.

Who We Helped in 2020-21

At a time when our local community was facing social isolation, dislocation from services and entrenched disadvantage due to COVID-19, we knew it was more important than ever to reach those facing barriers to accessing legal help.

This year, we overcame these barriers to provide holistic legal assistance to 965 people on issues including family relationship breakdown, child arrangements, family violence, housing problems, fines and interactions with the criminal justice system.

One of those people was Hakim, a public housing resident who was violently tackled to the ground and issued with a $1600 COVID-19 fine while out for a walk.

Our work also meant a world of difference to clients like Amina, who was living with her 7 children in a mould-ridden two-bedroom apartment in public housing. It was making her and her kids sick. We helped Amina access a safe and healthy home through the public housing relocation program.

You can read more about who we helped in our 2020-21 Annual Report.

How We Helped

Our clinics and integrated practice with hospitals, schools and homelessness support organisations ensure that we reach those who need it most, like those experiencing family violence or housing insecurity during the pandemic.

Read our Annual Report to learn more about our integrated practice and clients like Emma, who we met after she escaped a violent relationship and was referred by her nurse at the Royal Women's Hospital.

Law Reform and Advocacy

In the past year, we mobilised our law reform and advocacy efforts to protect the legal rights of our local community during a period of increased hardship and uncertainty.

Public housing lockdown: we worked with local organisations and volunteers to ensure the protection of residents' rights, and their access to food, medicine and other essentials
Fines: we argued for a public health approach to COVID-19 compliance over a punitive fines-based approach, and ensured that the correct procedures were applied to children in the fines system
Tenancy: recognising the emerging need among private tenants at risk of eviction at the beginning of the pandemic, we quickly pivoted our advocacy efforts to help prevent a wave of homelessness
Social housing advocacy: we continued to call for the increased growth of public housing stock, and development of consistent and transparent community housing policies so that everyone has a safe, suitable, secure and affordable home and a place where they can thrive.

Read our Annual Report to learn more about our law reform and advocacy activities during COVID-19.

Stay tuned for our next quarterly instalment! You can read previous editions on our website.

You are receiving this email because you are connected to the work of Inner Melbourne Community Legal (formerly North Melbourne Legal Service) as an industry colleague, partner organisation, donor, general supporter.

Our mailing address is:
Inner Melbourne Community Legal Centre
2/508 Queensberry St
North Melbourne, Victoria 3051
Australia

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Inner Melbourne Community Legal acknowledges the traditional owners of the land on which we work, the Boon wurrung and Wurundjeri peoples of the Kulin nation. We recognise that sovereignty was never ceded and pay our respects to their cultures and Elders past and present. This always was and always will be Aboriginal Land.

Everyone is welcome at Inner Melbourne Community Legal, regardless of race, religion, gender or sexuality.