Our Community Connections opens its doors
On 1 June 2026, the doors of Wyndham Law Courts’ innovative Community Connections opened. It’s the first initiative of its kind in a Victorian court and tribunal setting, and Court Network is proud to have helped bring it to life alongside Court Services Victoria, the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria, the Children’s Court of Victoria, VCAT, and a growing network of local service agencies.
“What makes this pilot project so important is that it meets people where they are. Court can be overwhelming, and for many people their legal issue is only one part of what they are dealing with. Community Connections gives us a practical way to listen, understand what else is happening in someone’s life, and connect them with the right local support before they even leave the building,” Natalie, Court Network’s Community Connections Coordinator said.
For the people coming to Wyndham Law Courts, Community Connections is a welcoming place to “drop-in”. Anyone attending court, whether for a hearing, a tribunal matter, or simply trying to understand a process, has been able to access brief interventions and support with the option of warm referrals, and direct connections to local support services.
At the heart of the day-to-day operation is Natalie, who has been triaging referrals, coordinating participating agencies, and supporting the people who walk through the door.
“We’re seeing the difference in real time. Court users often walk in with uncertainty and leave with a clearer next step, whether that’s a referral, a conversation with a service, or simply someone helping them make sense of the process. For the court, having those supports onsite means staff are not carrying those complex needs alone – there is a coordinated pathway to help people get the right support at the right time,” Natalie said.
Many footprints, one path to justice
Five locally based agencies have begun offering onsite, referral-based support across the week: Salvation Army Doorways Wyndham and Djirra leading into the early week (with the former now available on Fridays too), the Gordon Skills & Jobs Centre and Uniting Vic.Tas on Wednesdays, and Anglicare providing financial support on Thursdays. Behind them sits an even wider web of warm referral pathways, reaching organisations like Unison Housing, Wyndham City Council’s Community Connectors, Mental Health & Wellbeing Local –Wyndham run by Cohealth, GenWest, VACCA, the RSL Justice Support Program, Youth Junction, Odyssey and many more. Together, they address the priority areas that often intersect with a person’s experience of the justice system: financial and material aid, housing and homelessness, family violence support, mental health, multicultural and community services, youth services, and alcohol and other drug support.
The new connection point carries a name with significant meaning. Developed in close collaboration with the Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation, Community Connections took its Boonwurrung name from “barring buluk,” meaning many footprints. It’s a fitting image for a space built on the understanding that navigating the court system can be a lonely process, and the path through it is made easier when many different agencies, services, and supporters walk it together.
