Annual Report 11-12 - Fitzroy Legal Service

A Busy and Rewarding Year
for FLS Volunteers
Julie Fletcher – Volunteer Coordinator
Another very busy
year since the last
AGM with continued
excellence provided by
our wonderful day and
night volunteers.
FLS has had an extremely busy
year particularly at the Night Service,
which is still coordinated by
the very talented Adrian Snodgrass,
Peter Cotter and Mark Rawlings.
The Night Service has continued
to provide much needed free legal
advice to the community, with
the numbers of clients sometimes
reaching record heights this year.
Volunteers continue to give their
time and expertise even during
heavy exam schedules and workloads,
without complaint. It is this
dedication and generosity that is so
appreciated by all of us.
On May 19, 2012 all of our day
and Night Service Volunteers were
recognised at the Yarra Volunteering
event, which was held at the
Fitzroy Town Hall. Julie Fletcher
(FLS Volunteer Coordinator) gave
a presentation on the function and
activities of FLS and Ella Crotty
(Night Service volunteer) gave an
insight into volunteering at the FLS
Night Service and the areas that she
enjoyed the most. It was a fabulous
evening with some great entertainment
provided by Local Dance
Troupe. Mayor Geoff Barbour
presented Ella with certificates for
all of our volunteers.
During the last twelve months, we
have held a number of CPD training
sessions on various legal areas
relevant to the Night Service. These
included sessions on Family law,
Infringments, VOCAT, MVA/Third
Party issues and Employment Law.
All sessions were well attended
and the volunteer feedback was
very positive.
Four induction sessions have
been held in under twelve months,
with many new legal and paralegal
volunteers joining the FLS team.
All new volunteers have reported
being made to feel very welcome by
existing volunteers and staff, with
the well known collaborative approach
continuing to be a successful
ingredient in the FLS culture.
The Day Service has utilised the
talents of volunteers to carry out a
wide range of activities this year.
Assistance has been provided to
the Social Action Team, the Community
Development Officer, the
FLS volunteer Ella Crotty and
Volunteer Coordinator Julie
Fletcher at the City of Yarra
Volunteering Event
criminal lawyers, family lawyer and
publications department. Volunteers
have offered invaluable help to the
administration officer with large
scale file culls and other areas of
record management.
So once again, a great year of
service by our volunteers – we hope
that the sense of achievement felt
by volunteers is equal to the appreciation
FLS holds for all their hard
work and commitment.
City of Yarra Mayor Geoff Barbour with FLS volunteer Ella Crotty at
the City of Yarra Volunteering Event
4