The Justice and Community Safety (JACS) Directorate engages with the community using a variety of strategies and tools depending upon the type of consultation being undertaken.
Project | Summary |
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Liquor Advisory Board | The Liquor Advisory Board (LAB) is made up of:
The statutory responsibility of the LAB is to advise the Minister about matters associated with the operation and effectiveness of the Liquor Act 2010 and measures, including legislative measures that support the harm minimisation and community safety principles. The LAB membership was amended through the Justice and Community Safety Legislation Amendment Act 2017 (No 3) to broaden representation from a member representing ClubsACT to representing club licensees, and a change from a member representing the Australian Hotels Association (ACT branch) to representing on-licensees, more broadly. The LAB met twice during the reporting period in November 2017 and May 2018, at which implementation of 2017 liquor reforms were discussed, along with harm minimisation initiatives including the CBR NightCrew and Driving Change Project. |
Joint Racing Industry and Government Committee | The Joint Racing Industry and Government Committee was established in 2018 for members to participate in the development and sustainability of racing in the ACT and provide input to Government on related policy development. Membership of the Committee is made up of representatives and secretariat support from Legislation Policy and Programs, the Chairman of the Canberra Racing Club and the Chairman of the Canberra Harness Racing Club. Other stakeholders may be invited to attend meetings as relevant, including representatives of Animal Welfare, Transport Canberra and City Services, Economic and Financial Analysis, and CMTEDD. The Committee is established to:
In 2018 the Committee met two times, and will continue to meet regularly moving forward. |
Casino Bet Limits | In 2017 the ACT Government introduced new legislation that provides a framework for the casino licensee to acquire gaming machine authorisations from the operators of current gaming machine venues (clubs and hotels) and allows the casino to operate gaming machines after a number of requirements have been met. To inform the Government’s decision making in relation to appropriate maximum bet limits for casino gaming machines the Government sought community feedback through the YourSay website, and invited leading academics on gambling harm to form a panel of experts to provide advice on the matter. The expert panel examined and reported to the Attorney-General on:
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Reducing to 4,000 Gaming Machine Authorisations | During 2017-18 financial year the ACT Government consulted extensively in relation to the Parliamentary Agreement to reduce the maximum number of gaming machine authorisation in the ACT to 4,000 by 1 July 2020. Community consultation was held from 17 August to 18 September 2017 seeking feedback on options for implementing the Government commitment to reduce gaming machine authorisations. Feedback was sought through multiple mediums such as the YourSay website, the JACS website, and direct consultation with gaming machine licensees and club industry peak bodies. The ACT Government also engaged with an independent expert to undertake a Club Industry Diversification Support Analysis. The Analysis provided recommendations on measures to incentivise clubs to surrender authorisations that aim to support clubs in reducing their reliance on gaming machine revenue, while strengthening and expanding the support services, and recreation options that clubs offer to their community. This report will inform Government decision-making about supporting clubs to diversify their revenue streams as the number of gaming machine authorisations in the ACT reduces to 4,000 by 2020. |
Development of the ACT Justice Reinvestment Strategy | Over 30 government, community sector, and representatives from academia participated in development of the Justice Reinvestment Strategy. The agencies represented include JACS, CSD, ACT Policing, Legal Aid, Director of Public Prosecutions, ACT Courts, ACT Human Rights Commission, Sentence Administration Board, CMTEDD, Health Directorate, Education Directorate, Victim Support ACT, Public Advocate, Australian National University, University of Canberra, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body, ACT Council of Social Services, Australian Institute of Criminology, Youth Coalition, Aboriginal Legal Service (ACT/NSW), Alcohol and Other Drugs Association, Menslink, Justice Reform Group (formerly known as Community Integration Governance Group), ACT Indigenous Elected Body, Children and Young People Commissioner, Winnunga Nimmityjah Aboriginal Health Service, Gugan Gulwan, Police Community Youth Club (PCYC), Reclink and Red Cross. Key deliverables that underpin the development of the ACT Justice Reinvestment Strategy supported by this group and approved by the Minister for Justice, Consumer Affairs and Road Safety include:
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Service Planning for the Legal Assistance Sector | Legislation, Policy and Programs (LPP) represents the JACS as the chair of the ACT Legal Assistance Forum (ACTLAF). ACTLAF consists of representatives from legal assistance organisations in the ACT including Legal Aid ACT and the ACT’s community legal centres including Canberra Community Law, the Women’s Legal Centre, the Tenants’ Union, the Environmental Defenders’ Office and the Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT). Other participants in the ACT’s legal sector, such as the ACT Law Society and the Bar Association of the ACT are also members. ACTLAF meets four times a year to share information, promote referral pathways and to coordinate legal assistance service provision in the ACT region. ACTLAF also has a number of associated working groups including the Service Planning Working Group, the Community Legal Education Working Group and the Care and Protection Working Group. The Service Planning Working Group, also chaired by LPP, is required by the National Partnership Agreement on Legal Assistance Services. This Working Group focuses on strategies so that legal assistance services are collaborative, appropriate, proportionate, tailored, helpful, timely and empowering. The Service Planning Working Group also meets four times a year. |
ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Justice Partnership | The ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Caucus was established in November 2016 and has been a vital part of the ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Justice Partnership framework. The Caucus is made up of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff from justice-related agencies and community organisations who monitor progress under the Justice Partnership from their community and frontline experience. The Caucus met every three months during the 2017-2018 period. |
JACS Reconciliation Action Plan | The JACS Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) Working Group was established in December 2011, and since then it has been involved in launching two further RAPs, including the current ‘stretch’ RAP. In 2019, the RAP Working Group will be launching JACS’ fourth RAP, and we look forward to reporting the outcomes JACS has made in the past eight years. JACS has committed to developing and delivering measurable outcomes to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community. Throughout the business units of JACS we have seen a demonstrated achievement in which they actively achieve this commitment and measurable and symbolic achievements to share a vision for reconciliation. This year the RAP working group hosted three morning teas to celebration Reconciliation Week. The morning teas were situated at 12 Moore Street, 2 Commonwealth Avenue, and the ESA headquarters, with the goal being to encourage greater participation of JACS staff in the RAP and in events on the ACT’s first Reconciliation Day Public Holiday. The RAP working group also participated in the first ACT Reconciliation Week public holiday by providing a JACS information stall at the All of Government Reconciliation Family Day held at Glebe Park. |
Child Abuse Royal Commission – Criminal Justice Reform | On 15 June 2018, the ACT Government announced its response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse Final Report, which was released in December 2017. In that response, the ACT Government addressed the 85 criminal justice recommendations made by the Commission. Those recommendations propose legislative and non-legislative reforms across the criminal justice system to better prevent and protect from child sexual abuse, as well to improve access to justice for victims. The recommendations include new offences around the protection of children from abuse, changes to sentencing processes and evidence laws, and the improvement of measures designed to mitigate trauma in child sexual abuse proceedings – including the introduction of an intermediaries scheme. The ACT Government undertook consultation with the community in the first half of 2018, and received responses from a range of individuals and agencies in the Canberra community, including community organisations, religious groups, justice agencies and survivors. The Sexual Assault Reform Program, made up of representatives of relevant justice and other Canberra agencies, has reconvened and acts in an advisory capacity to the ACT Government in the progression of the Criminal Justice recommendations. With ongoing consultation, the implementation of the Criminal Justice recommendations will continue into 2019. |
Motorcycle Lane Filtering Trial | The two year motorcycle lane filtering trial commenced in February 2015 and formally ended on 31 January 2017. Lane filtering continues you to be allowed in the ACT pending completion of the evaluation of the trial. Sunshine Coast University. A telephone survey of 400 people from the ACT community was conducted pre-trial and again post-trial in 2017. Sunshine Coast University was engaged to provide an evaluation report. A working group was also established, combining representatives from the Motorcycle Riders’ Association of the ACT, Stay Upright ACT, Living Streets, NRMA Motoring and Services, government representatives and ACT Policing. The working group provided input into the evaluation and recommendations to the Minister for Road Safety. The evaluation report will be published on the Directorate’s website. |
Graduated Licensing Scheme (GLS) Review | Young, less experienced drivers are more vulnerable to being involved in a serious road crash. There is an over-representation of these drivers in serious injury crashes, with many of those sustaining life changing injuries. The current ACT GLS has limited staged restrictions on learner and provisional drivers such as zero blood alcohol, and restrictions on towing capacity. The proposed reform of the ACT’s Graduated Licensing Scheme involves a staged approach to driver licensing with restrictions and sanctions that are reduced as experience is gained. Evidence supports this approach in addressing major crash factors such as age, inexperience and risk taking. A public consultation was held via the YourSay website over April and May 2018, with 4,339 responses received. Over 37 per cent of responses were from teenagers between 16-19 years old. The purpose of the survey was to; inform the timing of reforms, consider the appropriate staging of restrictions, whether they should apply to P1 or P2 drivers and for how long the development, design and application of any exemptions to minimise hardship on members of our community. |
ACT Road Safety Forum | The ACT Road Safety Action Plan 2016-20 includes a commitment to hold an annual road safety forum. The 2017 forum was held at the ACT Legislative Assembly and focussed on ways to achieve the Vision Zero goal in the ACT, through the latest research and engineering developments on the ‘safe system’ approach to road network planning, design and maintenance. Approximately 50 people attended the forum from community, private sector and government organisations. |
Drug Driving Working Group | Following the 2016 ACT Road Safety Forum on drug driving, a working group was established to discuss and provide advice to the Minister about ways to support improved road safety outcomes relating to drug driving. The working group has been four times and consists of members from community, private and government sectors, including the Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs Association ACT, ACT Policing and the Health Directorate. The Directorate is currently collating the information obtained from the working group to inform development of a drug driving strategy for the ACT that will focus on education and communication, data requirements and potential future regulatory reform. |
Victims Advisory Board | The Victims Advisory Board (VAB) is made up of the:
The statutory responsibility of the VAB is to advise the Minster on policies, priorities and strategies for the acknowledgment, protection and promotion of the interests of victims in the administration of justice. The VAB met three times during the reporting period on 21 September 2017, 8 December 2017, and 22 June 2018. |
Charter of Rights for Victims of Crime | A six week public consultation period on the options for a Charter of Rights for Victim of Crime was launched by Minister Rattenbury on 22 June 2018. This consultation involved both targeted community consultations, such as co-hosting forums with community organisations representing specific interest groups, as well as separate online ‘survey monkey’ surveys for community members and justice agencies, and ‘YourSay’ pages hosting the options paper, consultation information, FAQs and links to support services. Key target groups for engagement included:
Feedback from the consultation will inform recommendations for the final Charter of Rights. |
Retirement Villages | JACS has continued to engage with key stakeholders on retirement villages policy. During the 2015-2016 review of the Retirement Villages Act 2012, the then-Minister for Justice convened a Review Advisory Group of key stakeholders representing residents and operators or retirement villages, advocacy groups and other relevant bodies. Organisations represented on the review advisory group included the ACT Retirement Village Residents Committee, ACT Property Council Retirement Living Committee, ACT Law Society Elder Law Committee, the ACT Human Rights Commission and Council on the Ageing (COTA) ACT. The 2016 report on the review of the Retirement Villages Act made first and second tranche recommendations. The Retirement Villages Amendment Act 2016 gave effect to the first tranche recommendations. During 2017-2018, the Review Advisory Group has continued to meet to consider the second tranche recommendations of the review report. A review advisory sub-group of residents and operators of unit titled retirement villages has also been convened to consider legal policy issues relevant to unit titled retirement villages. |
Occupancy agreements | Occupancy agreements were identified as a major issue in the 2016 report on the review of the Residential Tenancies Act 1997. Occupancy agreements are a less formal accommodation agreement under the Residential Tenancies Act, and cover a wide range of accommodation including caravan and manufactured home parks, student accommodation and crisis accommodation. The report on the review recommended that consideration be given to establishing a working group of key stakeholders to examine issues relating to occupancy agreements. On 19 July 2017, JACS hosted an occupancy agreements discussion forum with independent facilitator Design Managers Australia. During the forum, key stakeholders identified important issues relating to occupancy agreements. Forum attendees included grantors and occupants of different kinds of occupancy accommodation, advocacy groups and representatives of associations for students and occupants of residential parks. Based on the discussions in the forum JACS established working groups focussing on different types of occupancy accommodation. The following working groups were formed:
The working groups first met in October 2017 and are continuing to consider issues relating to occupancy agreements. |
Patient satisfaction Survey | Annual survey to engage with people who’ve used ambulance services over a 12 month period. Responses are used to assess patient satisfaction and inform ongoing service development and planning. Approximately 1300 surveys were mailed out, with approximately 400 returned (figures as at 17.07.18). |
ACTESA Website Survey | In 2018, the ACT ESA commenced a review of its public website and content management systems. The body of work, being undertaken by a local firm, Adelphi Digital Consulting, also includes the redesign of a number of websites hosted by the wider JACS. The development of the information architecture that will underpin the commencement of future website design and useability, has been informed via strong engagement with our local community and workforce. A survey developed with Adelphi and released by ESA Digital Services, recently attracted 289 responses. 66 per cent of responses came in from members of the ACT community. These responses, and those from our workforce members will all help in the design of future public and workforce information available via our website platform. |
Moss Review | In May 2017 the Minister appointed an Independent Chair to oversee the Moss Implantation Steering Committee. The Committee is made up of community members and senior government official. The purpose of the Steering Committee was to successfully deliver long term implementation of the agreed recommendations of the Independent Inquiry into the Treatment in Custody of Steven Freeman. The Steering Committee met monthly during the financial year and was informed by an Inter-Directorate Project Team, providing reports on progress of the implementation of the recommendations. The Minister for Corrections provided a Ministerial statement and tabled an annual report on the progress of the implementation of the Moss Review recommendations, in the ACT Legislative Assembly in February 2018. The annual report was published on the JACS website. An information brochure was also developed providing information in a format that was easily accessible to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community and detainees. This was distributed to key organisations, and visitors and detainees at the Alexander Maconochie Centre. The Steering Committee was chaired by an Independent Chair who represented the community on the Ministers behalf. The members were the Directors-General JACS, Health Directorate and CSD and community representatives from Winnunga Nimmityjah Aboriginal Health and Community Service, Aboriginal Legal Service and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body. On 20 June 2017 the Steering Committee closed the Moss Review Implementation project. |
Legal Aid
Legal Aid has engaged with the community to understand key issues for vulnerable Canberrans.
Project | Summary |
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Elder Law & Abuse | The increase in numbers of older people experiencing elder abuse has meant Legal Aid (LA) has increased our community engagement and education in this area. This year LA has undertaken a regular outreach at COTA and every Tuesday we are seeing people at Canberra Hospital. We attended the Elder Abuse conference in February, we are part of the ACT Elder Abuse Prevention network, we held an information stall at the Seniors Weeks Expo, we delivered a number of talks on elder abuse to doctors, social workers, community sector workers and to residents of a rehabilitation service. We produced a book mark on elder abuse, which was delivered through the Libraries ACT home library service and we have produced 6 fact sheets on elder abuse. |
Destitution and Need in Migrant Communities | Conversations with key agencies who work with clients from a migrant or refugee background clearly shows there is a gap in services for newly arrived people to Canberra. One hundred people attended this forum to look at the problems faced by migrant and refugee people, the existing services and what could be done to fill the gaps within current resources The outcome was a report that covered all aspects of the forum and ideas of what more could be done in this area. This report was sent to participants to implement what was flagged as action items by participants. We organised and held this forum with Red Cross. |