June 18, 2026 | Ben Jessup
Despite the state’s network of community legal centres providing free, quality legal services to more than 75,000 Victorians each year, the increasing need for help means many more are missing out on potentially life-changing support.
Community legal centres are on the frontline of responding to the growing cost-of-living crisis, and provide a critical service to Victorians experiencing a range of challenging situations such as housing stress and family violence or those recovering from disasters.
The mounting community need is leaving community legal centres with the capacity to only provide legal services to one out of every three Victorians who actively seek help from them.
Victoria’s 50 community legal centres have launched the sector’s 2026 election campaign, Community Legal – We’ve Got Your Back, with a call to all political parties to commit to investing an additional $120 million over the next term of parliament to help give 120,000 more Victorians the help they need.
The campaign is also seeking five-year funding agreements for all existing community legal programs to ensure certainty for providers and help deliver consistent, accessible services across the state.
Read more about the campaign at https://www.fclc.org.au/gotyourback
At a launch event hosted at Parliament House on Thursday 17 June, Federation of Community Legal Centres CEO Lousia Gibbs, along with representatives from across the sector and partner organisations, outlined how this funding investment will help reduce unnecessary personal and community harm, save costs across the justice system and make the Victorian community safer.
Also at the event, MPs and other attendees heard from four former community legal centre clients who shared their own personal stories about how community legal centres provided crucial free support when they were facing significant legal challenges in the areas of family violence, workplace harassment and housing insecurity.
Quotes attributable to Federation of Community Legal Centres CEO Louisa Gibbs:
“Last year, community legal centres helped more than 75,000 Victorians with over 170,000 legal problems.
“However, growing demand means that many more Victorians are unable to access this life-changing support, with community legal centres being forced to turn away two out of every three people who come to us seeking our help.
“When things go wrong, we all need somewhere to turn, and community legal centres resolve the kind of life and legal challenges all of us can face from time to time.
“Often people faced with a legal issue don’t know where to even start looking for help, and the 50 community legal centres across the state have the incredible ability to prevent small problems from spiralling into grave situations.
“Investing in community-based legal assistance is one of the most powerful and cost-effective ways to make our community safer and our legal system work better for all of us.”
Media contact: Ben Jessup 0410 632 123 or [email protected]
