About Us

Name: Community Legal Centres Queensland
Address: 87 Wickham Tce, Spring Hill, Queensland, 4000, Australia
Telephone: (07) 3392 0092

Community Legal Centres Queensland provides support and advocacy for 32 independent, community-led community legal centres operating across Queensland.

Queensland’s community legal centres provide free information, legal assistance and referral, representation and casework, community education and advocacy for vulnerable clients and communities facing legal problems.

Objectives

Community Legal Centres Queensland works towards the following objectives:

Work with Queensland community legal centres (CLCs) to continually improve organisational sustainability and service quality
Work with Queensland CLCs to increase the accessibility, profile and resourcing of the sector
Work with Queensland CLCs to unite around common objectives to bring about change

Services

Community Legal Centres Queensland is an incorporated association which operates through a small staff team along with the volunteered time and energy of Queensland CLC workers to provide:

representation for all members in relation to funding program and law reform issues;
coordination of the state administration of the national professional indemnity insurance scheme;
member support services including the coordination of an annual state conference, training on relevant issues and regular bulletins about matters of interest to CLC staff, volunteers and management committees;
encouraging community participation, to make the legal system more equitable and accessible; and
encouraging community participation in the work and management of community legal centres.

Click here to download a copy of our 2024-25 Strategic Plan.

Publications

Community Legal Centres Queensland reports annually to its stakeholders, including government funding bodies, the National Association of Independent Legal Centres and Community Legal Centres Queensland member organisations across the state.

Cultural Safety

Community Legal Centres Queensland acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the original inhabitants of Australia and the traditional custodians of the continent, whose cultures are among the oldest living cultures in the world.

We pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present, and particularly pay deep respect to the Turrbal and Jagera peoples, traditional custodians of the lands around Brisbane, on which the Community Legal Centres Queensland office is located.

We recognise the role and accept the responsibility that Community Legal Centres Queensland has in advancing and respecting the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, including by:

being guided by the experiences and perspectives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, including our colleagues within the sector in Queensland and across the nation
demonstrating, living and leading reconciliation in our organisational culture, attitudes, structures, policies and activities
proactively undertaking and supporting advocacy and initiatives that promote and advance the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and communities
strengthening and maintaining collaborative partnerships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community controlled organisations, and
supporting our members and community legal centres to provide Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with equitable access to culturally safe legal services.

Community Legal Centres Queensland works with our member centres throughout Queensland to provide support, training, coaching and resources so that centres can continue to build their capacity to be culturally safe and accessible workplaces and services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees, volunteers, clients and community members.

See also

Awards and Scholarships

The Australian Charity Awards 2020

Outstanding Achievement winner 2020

Lawyers Weekly Women in Law Awards 2019

Not for Profit Lawyer Finalist

Governance

Read Community Legal Centres Queensland Strategic Plan or view a copy of the Community Legal Centres Queensland constitution to learn more about the organisation.

We are a registered charity

Spokespeople

Community Legal Centres Queensland spokespeople are available for interview over the phone or in person.

Our staff can provide comment to the media on a range of issues and provide insight into legal issues being addressed by the community. These issues range from access to justice, funding for community legal centres, elder abuse, domestic and family violence, housing, mental health through to human rights.

We can also arrange for you to speak to staff working in our member centres who can provide expert comment on specific legal issues.

To find out more contact Leah Lane, Communications & Events Coordinator via email or on (07) 3392 0092.

To keep up to date with our work follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn or visit the news section of our website.

Volunteer

CLC Volunteers is a national database of community legal centres with information about current volunteering opportunities.

Find out more about volunteering at community legal centres on What to expect as a CLC volunteer (FAQs), or search the database for centres seeking volunteers.

For volunteering opportunities go here

Keep safe - content warning

Community Legal Centres Queensland wants to ensure that community legal centre (CLC) workers and others accessing this website feel safe, and are able to access appropriate and timely help and support.

CLCs provide important support and assistance to people who have experienced violence and trauma, and CLC workers and volunteers necessarily undertake training and reading in these areas as part of their professional development requirements.

As such, some of the training materials and webinars on this website may be disturbing, upsetting or trigger strong/negative emotions for victims and survivors of violence and trauma, and others.

Even if you have not directly experienced trauma, it is important to be aware of the effects that working with clients who have experienced trauma can have on your own emotional and mental wellbeing (this is known as vicarious trauma).

Community Legal Centres Queensland respects your autonomy. If you feel triggered or upset by any of the content or materials provided here, we would encourage you to use your discretion as to whether you should continue reading, watching or listening to the material.

You may also wish to access more information and resources, as well as professional support or advice from one of the free and confidential organisations listed below.

Our Staff

Director: Rosslyn Monro

Capacity Building Lead: Penny Sullivan

Capacity Building Lead: Sammy Cooper

Capacity Building Coordinator: Kate Scanlon

Capacity Building Coordinator: Nate de Valois

Communications and Events Coordinator: Leah Lane

Operations Coordinator: Ange Hale

Management Committee

The Community Legal Centres Queensland Management Committee includes highly committed individuals who are representative of the Community Legal Centres Queensland membership.

The committee includes representatives from regional and metropolitan centres, generalist and specialist centres, and well-funded and poorly-funded centres.

The committee comprises the President, Secretary (currently the Community Legal Centres Queensland Director), Treasurer and up to six general members.

2024-25 Management Committee

President: Amanda Whelan (knowmore)
Treasurer: James Farrell (Basic Rights Queensland)
Committee Members: Liz Behrend (Cairns Community Legal Centre), Megan Inglis (TASC) Serrina Kenny (First Nations Women’s Legal Service), Ben Tuckett (LawRight) Helen Wallace (Caxton Community Legal Centre), Alex Whitney (Townsville Community Law).

Acknowledgement

Community Legal Centres Queensland pay our deepest respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the traditional custodians of the land in Australia, and recognise their continuing connection to land, water and culture.

We pay respect to Elders past, present and emerging.

We acknowledge the stories, traditions and living cultures of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and commit to fostering a culture of learning from and working with First Nations peoples in the spirit of reconciliation and access to justice.