Developing your funding application

1. Developing your funding application Queensland and Commonwealth legal assistance service delivery funding: 2017 - 20 October 2016

2. Background • Queensland Government will allocate $50.7 million of Queensland and Commonwealth funding for the delivery of legal assistance services in Queensland between 2017 – 2020through a tender application process. • Tender is a new process in the history of the Queensland legal assistance sector • Opportunity for: • Evidence based approach to the allocation of funding • Transparent decision making • Collaborative service planning • Maximising accessibility of services Developing your funding application

3. Background • The Commonwealth funding available to be allocated has been reduced by $1.8 million less in 2017 – 2018, compared with 2015-2016. • The Commonwealth funding is provided to Queensland under the National Partnership Agreement on Legal Assistance (NPA). Developing your funding application

4. Background – Key dates Developing your funding application

5. Funding Application Documents • Application Form • Application Guidelines • Community Legal Centres Queensland Application Resource Guide • Resource Guide provides analysis of the theoretical concepts on the application form and some examples of practical application • Examples are not the “perfect response” • CLCQ is not part of the evaluation process of applications so guidance is based on an analysis of the legal assistance literature Developing your funding application

6. Mandatory Evaluation Criteria • Quality Standards – meets or complies with a quality standard eg. NAS certification, HSFQ self assessment • Eligibility – currently provides services to vulnerable and disadvantaged Queensland (legal, court/tribunal support and advocacy) • Other requirements – audited financial statement and 2015 – 2016 financial statements Developing your funding application

7. Description of Services - WHAT • Geographic regions – where service delivery will be focussed • Location of Services – office and outreach locations • Client Groups – groups on which service delivery will be focused • Priority client groups under the NPA • Financially disadvantaged people Developing your funding application

8. Description of Services - WHAT • Overview of organisation – demonstrating that your organisation has viability in the area/s that funding is sought: • Mission and history • Focus meets needs in the community • Staff and expertise – legal and non-legal • Resource base – financial and non-financial Half one page Developing your funding application

9. Description of Services - WHAT • Overview of services - summary of the services for which you are seeking funding • Target clients • Areas of law • Locations • Types of services - information, referral, advice, casework etc. • Key relationships and partnership Word limit - Half one page Developing your funding application

10. Quality Evaluation Criteria – the WHY and HOW • Based on National Strategic Framework for Legal Assistance 2015 – 2020 Principles • Overlap between principles so some repetition may be required, but with a slightly different focus. Developing your funding application

11. Quality Evaluation Criteria – the WHY and HOW • Describe why your organisation delivers Services to the client groups in the geographical regions identified in Question 1 -3 • Evidence of legal need • Demographic information about the client groups and geographic location • Reference the sources of legal need eg. Updated Evidence Guide, organisational data, academic and other research • Link services to the analysed legal need Developing your funding application

12. Evidence Base • Data Sources • Community Legal Centres Queensland Updated evidence and analysis of legal need • Local Government data • Court data • Your organisation’s data • Academic or related research • Community trends Using the evidence base to support your funding application

13. Community Legal Centres Queensland updated evidence and analysis of legal need • Find on : • Community Legal Centres Queensland website or • Queensland Government Legal Assistance Strategy and Funding Publications website • Summarises evidence of legal need in Queensland (using demographic information as a proxy for legal need) • Indicates the number and proportion of Queensland population that fits into the NPA priority client groups across 13 Queensland regions. Using the evidence base to support your funding application

14. Community Legal Centres Queensland updated evidence and analysis of legal need - Priority Client Groups • Uses a range of different data sources to summarise the legal need of a priority client group across Queensland: • Queensland CLC data; • Population data such as percentage of priority group in a particular region of Queensland; • Institutional data such as information from courts and tribunal, other government services; • Other academic research. • Strategies and recommendations about for legal services to be appropriate and accessible for the client group Using the evidence base to support your funding application

15. Community Legal Centres Queensland updated evidence and analysis of legal need - Geographic Regions • The information about geographic regions summarises the legal services available in each region, including access to Statewide services. • Using demographic data and an overlay of priority client group data, legal need and gaps are identified for each region. Using the evidence base to support your funding application

16. Generalist/Specialist • Generalist services will be able to review the data for their catchment level and identify which priority groups are overrepresented in their catchment area. • Specialist services will be able to review the data to identify regions where their assistance is more likely to be needed, the strategies that will ensure that services are appropriate and accessible. • Note that the recommendations and summaries about service delivery (grey boxes) should be factored into any models of service delivery for which funding is being sought. Using the evidence base to support your funding application

17. Local Government data Information about: • Demography • Community trends • Future plans for community infrastructure • Future projections may highlight emerging legal needs Using the evidence base to support your funding application

18. Court or Tribunal data • Information about volume and trends of matters heard in a particular court or tribunal • Numbers of matters in regions Using the evidence base to support your funding application

19. Organisational Data • Paints the picture of legal need that is currently being met by your organisation • Best analysed over an extended period eg. 3 years • Useful data: • Service activities (eg. number of advices and cases) • Information about client profile or attributes (eg. ages, gender, ethnicity) • Types of legal problems about how they are being addressed (eg. family law matters mostly addressed through advices) • Any other data about the kinds of client or problems you haven’t been able to assist which can highlight a gap eg. information about “turn-aways” Using the evidence base to support your funding application

20. Academic or other research • Information about incidence and risks for a client group or locality • Academic reports • Reports commissioned by government Using the evidence base to support your funding application

21. Community Trends • Information gathered through networks and collaborations • Service experience about emerging issues Using the evidence base to support your funding application

22. Example response Local Council Data Regional City Community Legal Centre (RCCLC) has been providing free legal services to people in the Regional City area for over 20 years. The population of Regional City is currently 1 million. A recent analysis of Regional City Council local data indicated that the region is likely to experience population growth of over 2%, a rate of growth that is higher than any other regional local authority across Queensland.   The Community Legal Centres Qld Updated Evidence and Analysis of Legal Need found that Regional City has a higher than average number of low income and CALD residents in addition to a larger than average population aged over 65 years. As a result, the population of Regional City is more likely to experience legal needs in the area of social security, tenancy and other minor civil law legal problems.   CLCQ Updated Evidence and Analysis Using the evidence base to support your funding application

23. Example response CLC Data RCCLC’s data has indicated that over the last 3 years that the top 3 matters in which Regional City  community members are seeking assistance include: • Tenancy • Social Security • Family Law. In the last 12 months, RCCLC has collected data on the types of matters that we could not provide assistance due to limited capacity (turnaways). There were a total of 400 turnaways. 20% of turnaways were seeking assistance for tenancy; and 18% were seeking assistance in the area of social security. This is confirmed by our involvement in the Regional City network of community service providers that have  been working together to address the increasing demand on services for housing and addressing the risks of homelessness. Network information Using the evidence base to support your funding application

24. Example response Research A Very Important Government Report  indicated that Regional City is a hotspot for housing stress for people who are newly arrived in the community. This application for funding seeks to prioritise legal services in social security and tenancy law with a targeted focus on culturally and linguistically diverse communities and people aged over 65 years.  Service conclusions based on evidence Using the evidence base to support your funding application

25. Quality Evaluation Criteria – the WHY and HOW Describe how the Services focus on, and are accessible to, people facing vulnerability and disadvantage • Targeting of Legal Need • Barriers experienced by client groups • Strategies to best target services to the client groups • Show that service delivery models overcome the barriers eg. telephone or skype services overcome barriers of distance Developing your funding application

26. Quality Evaluation Criteria – the WHY and HOW Describe how the Services are appropriate, proportionate, client-focused and tailored to people’s legal needs and capabilities • Models of service delivery are suitable • What are the client needs and capabilities • How are the client needs and capabilities met by the types of service delivery • Link service models with the capabilities of the client target group/s • Link the level of legal assistance is suitable for the client target group/s given the available resources Developing your funding application

27. Quality Evaluation Criteria – the WHY and HOW Describe how the Services are collaborative with government services and other services to provide joined-up services to address people’s legal an other problems • Integration of legal services with other services • How the service system fits together • Referral pathways into and out of the legal service • Integration with non-legal service providers • Relationship with other services across the service system Developing your funding application

28. Quality Evaluation Criteria – the WHY and HOW Describe how the Service identify and resolve legal problems in a timely manner before they escalate • Timely resolution of legal problems • Early intervention and prevention strategies • “Client-centred” timeliness • Systemic prevention strategies Developing your funding application

29. Quality Evaluation Criteria – the WHY and HOW Describe how the Services empower people to understand and assert their legal rights and responsibilities and to address, or prevent, legal problems • Empowerment through understanding of legal rights and responsibilities • How information about rights and options are provided to the target client groups • How information is tailored to the needs of client groups • How information will build the capacity to identify and resolve future legal problems Developing your funding application

30. Deliverables • Realistic service numbers that take into account possible disruptions to service continuity – staff leave, staff turnover, reflect on previous agreement targets • Legal Task – discrete piece of legal work to assist a service user to resolve a problem or a particular stage of a problem… (National Legal Assistance Data Standards Manual) • NPA requirement – 90% of Representation Services must be delivered to people experiencing financial disadvantage Developing your funding application

31. Funding • Status Quo funding – core funding • Itemise – new services or extension to temporary or one-off funding • “One-off” funding primarily refers to services funded by additional, temporary funding under the National Partnership Agreement • Break down of total funding - budget Developing your funding application

32. Value for money • Level of funding sought is appropriate to the nature or context of services • Types and numbers of services • Cost of geographic coverage and size of catchment • Operating cost ratios • NOT the cheapest services • Any “value adds” • Volunteers • Pro bono • Shared operational costs • Funding diversification Developing your funding application

33. Community Legal Centres Queensland Support Application Resource Guide Webinars Sector Sustainability Coordinator – Rosslyn Monro Developing your funding application

34. Questions Developing your funding application

35. Developing your funding application