In the second edition of our quarterly 'Be heard!' newsletter, we continue to bring our 2018-2021 Plan of Action to life with stories about how we achieve our vision of:

We believe this vision is achievable and that it starts at the local level. Fair and thriving local communities are the foundation of a just society.

Nothing supports our local community to be fair and thrive more than housing. By providing free accessible legal help for people with tenancy problems, delivering legal education to inform local residents about their housing rights, and challenging unfair housing laws and policies through law reform and advocacy, we strive to ensure people in our area have a secure, safe and comfortable home.
THE VOICES OF OUR CLIENTS
 


“This is the first time I’ve had anything to do with VCAT. I’m very nervous about it actually [because] I’m not a big complainer… but having cockroaches on your bed when you’re lying on your bed … that’s a bit much, that’s something to complain about,” says Jack.
 
Helping people achieve fairer legal outcomes is one of our core organisational impacts. Read about how Jack's challenging his community housing provider for his right to have a safe and comfortable home so that he can live in dignity and have a greater sense of wellbeing. This is his story, in his words. Read it here.

OUR PARTNERSHIPS


 
Providing free accessible individual legal help to people like Jack and his co-residents through information, advice, casework and representation is a core part of our tenancy practice.
 
Also central to the way we work are partnerships. Our Senior Lawyer Louisa, who specialises in tenancy law, was able to connect with Jack through a referral from another community organisation based within his accommodation. We didn’t expect Jack to know he had a problem with a legal solution and that we could help him use the law, or expect that he’d know how to find us. Instead, we’ve been working with closely with workers in local agencies to equip them with the knowledge to identify legal problems and refer people to our service. In Jack’s case, his workers let us know he had a problem. And then Louisa went to him.
 
Read more about the targeted tenancy services we provide, the places we go to and the other organisations we partner with to reach people in need here.

SUPPORTING LOCAL RESIDENTS: ADVOCATING TO GROW PUBLIC HOUSING & STRENGTHEN COMMUNITY HOUSING 
 


Whilst our tenancy case work produces positive results for individuals like Jack, it also allows us to identify unfair housing laws and policies that negatively affect many people like him within our target communities. 

To maximise our impact we use law reform and advocacy to challenge and change underlying frameworks. That way we create better housing outcomes for many more people in our area than just the ones we meet. 

Read here about the State Government’s transfer of public housing to community housing providers and private developers and our efforts through policy advocacy to ensure resident rights aren’t eroded.
 
IN THE NEWS
 
We’ve been in the news to raise awareness of the Public Housing Redevelopment Program (PHRP) and voice the perspective of affected residents.  You can read about our client Les in The Age here and listen to our Senior Lawyer Molly Williams on the Law Report here and on Done by Law here 

SUPPORT US THIS EOFY

 
You can help us provide legal help and resource us to continue our advocacy to grow public housing and strengthen community housing by donating here. You may donate online or email us at donate@imcl.org.au for a donation form or to be called back to make a phone donation.

Like most small for-purpose organisations, we simply can't meet existing legal needs or advocate for change without your help.
Stay tuned for our next quarterly instalment! You can read our First Edition here. 
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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© 2021 Inner Melbourne Community Legal Inc. Registration Number: A0014248J

Australian Aboriginal flag Torres Straight Islanders flagInner 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.

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