knowmore Legal Service

knowmore is deeply concerned that the Northern Territory Government is going backwards on the minimum age of criminal responsibility, rejecting evidence-based approaches to community safety and making the Territory less safe for children.   The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse found that youth prisons were especially high-risk environments for child sexual abuse. knowmore assists many survivors who experienced child sexual abuse in youth prisons.   Lowering the minimum age of criminal responsibility from 12 to 10 is exposing more children to harm. We urge the Northern Territory Government to reverse this disastrous decision and put child safety first by investing in services that support children to remain safely with their families and communities.   https://lnkd.in/gQQBznzg

All survivors must have equal access to redress, including survivors in prison.   We assist many survivors in prison who experience significant barriers to accessing redress and support. As a result, many survivors do not receive the full redress they are entitled to and experience retraumatisation.   knowmore shares the concerns about access to justice identified by this article.    https://lnkd.in/gAUsbXKX

It’s wonderful to have Community Legal Centres from across Victoria at Parliament House this week participating in an expo coordinated by the Federation of Community Legal Centres Victoria. #communitylegalcentres #victoria #regionalvictoria #melbourne #parliament

Director of Client Services, Amanda Whelan shares why mental health at work is so important.

Today, knowmore CEO Jackie Mead and Amanda Whelan joined others at the National Press Club to hear from National Children’s Commissioner Anne Hollands about transforming child justice for improved safety and wellbeing. At knowmore, we support policies that protect the human rights of children. We recognise that criminalising youth only increases their risk and fails to protect our communities. As Commissioner Hollonds highlighted, “Evidence shows the younger you lock up a kid, the more likely they will go on to commit more crime, causing greater damage.” We believe in the need for intensive support and access to justice to prevent criminal behaviour. Together, we can work towards a safer future for all children. 

knowmore welcomes today’s changes to the National Redress Scheme, which better recognise that child sexual abuse impacts the life of every survivor.   Today’s changes implement a recommendation to improve the National Redress Scheme, combining the recognition of sexual abuse payment and the impact of sexual abuse payment. Previously, survivors were required to demonstrate that sexual abuse had impacted their wellbeing – an unnecessary and offensive requirement.   knowmore advocated for today’s changes and will continue to advocate for further improvements to the National Redress Scheme. 

We had a fabulous time at Brisbane Pride on Saturday! For the very first time, community legal centres marched together in solidarity, joined by representatives from some of our pro bono partner firms. We were also thrilled to be joined by Attorney-General Yvette D'ATH who has been an incredible supporter of Queensland community legal centres and a strong ally to the LGBTIQA+ community. As one of the smallest CLCs in Queensland, and supporting a community that faces significant access to justice gaps, LGBTI Legal Service Inc. relies on a strong network of allied CLCs and pro bono partners to connect LGBTIQA+ clients with timely expert help. So many CLC workers are also part of the community (almost 20% of Queensland CLC sector workers identify as LGBTIQA!) so it was a great today to celebrate with our friends and family in the CLC sector. Saturday was a beautiful visual demonstration of the shared love, support and solidarity we see every day in our sector. Thanks friends and see you next year! Caxton Community Legal Centre Basic Rights Queensland Youth Advocacy Centre (YAC) Tenants Queensland knowmore Legal Service LawRight QLD Clayton Utz MinterEllison Evolve Legal

knowmore commends the South Australian Government for introducing a bill to address claim farming to the parliament today. We thank the Attorney-General of South Australia, the Hon. Kyam Maher MLC, for working with knowmore on this issue. knowmore assists many survivors of child abuse who have been impacted by claim farming, an exploitative business practice where 'claim farmers' contact survivors without their permission and sell their personal information to law firms. We have long advocated for nation-wide laws and policies to address claim farming. The introduction of a bill in South Australia today brings us one step closer to a solution. 

National Child Protection Week is an important opportunity to raise awareness and renew efforts to work toward positive change. This an excellent and useful resources from National Centre for Action on Child Sexual Abuse that you can use any time of the year! #hereforchange #ncpw2024 #everyconvesationmatters

It is great to see lots of purple in our offices today. As well as looking great, it is an important way that our team can unite to show allyship, support, love and acceptance for LGBTIQA+ youth. We will share lunch and have a special inter-offices Jeopardy battle (with all questions related to LGBTIQ+ issues and history) to prompt discussion, raise awareness and show support! (It's also a great opportunity to share this fab artwork by Nicky Tsekouras!) #WearItPurple #WearItPurpleDay #WiPD #WearItPurple2024 #YourPassionYourPride