What is the Neighbourhood Justice Centre?

There are many different people and organisations that make up Victoria’s legal sector, working together to provide a fair and accessible justice system for all Victorians. We sat down with some representatives from the Neighbourhood Justice Centre to learn about their unique model of community justice.

The Neighbourhood Justice Centre (NJC) is Australia's first and only community justice centre, located in the City of Yarra.

As well as containing a court, the Neighbourhood Justice Centre combines a range of services to address all factors that may lead to a person entering the justice system, such as homelessness, mental health, or drug or alcohol issues. By offering all of these services under the same roof, clients are able to easily navigate these sectors and get the support they need.

NJC Client Services Manager Dr Cameron Wallace explains, 'service sectors can be hard, they can be hard to approach and they can be hard to navigate. So the model provides the access for somebody to be able to make significant change. It's about the provision of access to things that people might find it difficult to navigate themselves.'

This holistic approach has been proven over the NJC's years of operation to have reduced recidivism in their community.

Watch our interviews with the representatives from the Neighbourhood Justice Centre below.

https://youtu.be/qq2JsLg1B7E

Find out more about the Neighbourhood Justice Centre on their website.

Learning about the Neighbourhood Justice Centre is part of the VCE Legal Studies curriculum. As well as the above video, we have consolidated over 250 resources that support teachers in their Legal Studies and Civics classes. Check out the Legal Studies Resources database.