Funding extension for CIJ-LACW integrated practice partnership
A CIJ partnership with the Law and Advocacy Centre for Women is providing pathways out of the justice system for vulnerable women.
The CIJ is pleased to announce that our integrated practice partnership with the Law and Advocacy Centre for Women has been extended for another year to December 2020, thanks to funding from the Federation of Community Legal Centres. The Federation’s Integrated Services Fund will continue to allow a social worker and a lawyer to be employed at LACW to deliver a service that provides pathways out of the justice system for vulnerable women. The funding builds on an initial grant that was received in late 2018.
The service is delivered through specialist, gender-informed legal advice and representation provided by a solicitor, alongside case management and support from an experienced social worker to address the non-legal issues underlying clients’ legal problems. Intensive case management is provided to women who may experience barriers such as unstable housing; family violence; substance addiction; ongoing mental health concerns; and difficulty accessing the NDIS.
This funding also allows RMIT law and social work students to be offered clinical placements within LACW to build the capacity of the integrated services and provide students with unique learning opportunities.
The CIJ is looking forward to continuing our LACW partnership to provide quality services to socially and economically disadvantaged women, to further explore opportunities for research collaboration in our new co-located premises and to give our students life changing clinical experiences.