Legal presentation at Fairfield Conversations

Our legal and DFV teams recently participated in the bi-annual Fairfield Conversations on May 7, an event organised by Fairfield City Council for local community service providers to come together, reflect on shared experiences, and address the needs of communities in Fairfield. In January we submitted an expression of interest to talk about our Legal Needs and Service Mapping Report. We were notified in March that we had been successful, and we were one of eight presentations on the day about key social issues impacting Fairfield residents. 

 

Our Head Solicitor, Liz Simpson gave a presentation on behalf of the Legal Team to a record crowd of 130 participants at the Hub@Bonnyrigg. Liz shared some of our preliminary findings, including the disproportionate and intersectional disadvantage experienced by our clients from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds as well as some of the strategies we have been developing including the strengthening local partnerships and leveraging effective models such as a new Fairfield Family Law outreach in partnerships with Fairfield’s Women’s Health Service in Cabramatta and Uniting FRC in Fairfield.   

 

We also heard from other service providers including Bonnie Support Services, South West Sydney Local Health District, Woodville Alliance, Uniting Fairfield Family Relationship Centre about some other research projects and pilots such as 2024 School Expos. 

 

Following the speakers presentations we all participated in workshops to discuss emerging challenges, strengths and opportunities to address these issues. The event was a great opportunity for us to strengthen our partnerships and referral pathways. Many service providers were eager to hear about our work and shared their observations on the legal and non-legal issues their clients are presenting with. We also encouraged attendees to complete our Community Workers Survey to have a direct say about the legal issues their Fairfield clients face accessing legal services. 

 

The papers from the event have been published in a dedicated magazine including a JSC legal article written by Martin Ha. 

 

This community engagement will continue to guide our commitment to identifying the unique barriers experienced by our clients and how we can work towards creating a more responsive and culturally sensitive community service.