TAC L2P Program
The Department of Transport and Planning’s (DTP) TAC L2P Program supports all Victorian learner drivers to complete the mandatory 120 hours of supervised driving required to qualify for a driver’s licence (DTP: $8.64m in 2022–23). Local councils and not-for-profit community agencies deliver the program. In 2022–23 the program supported 50 women from culturally diverse backgrounds over the age of 23 through the WomenCan initiative to get a driver’s licence. Community organisations across metropolitan and regional local government areas also actively promoted the TAC L2P Program within their networks. For example, the City of Casey held an L2P presentation at the general meeting of the Sri Lankan Elders Welfare Association and displayed L2P flyers in simple English at council-managed community centres.
South Sudanese Australian Youth Justice Expert Working Group
The South Sudanese Australian Youth Justice Expert Working Group was established to address the over-representation of young South Sudanese Australians in the Victorian youth justice system (DJCS: $1.66m in 2022–23). Prominent South Sudanese Australian community leader Dr Santino A Deng was appointed chair of the Expert Working Group in September 2022. The project was run in partnership with the Commission for Children and Young People. In 2022–23 the project:
- established an advisory group with community and expert representatives to support the Expert Working Group
- consulted with South Sudanese Australian community members, including children and young people, about challenges facing the community
- developed a quantitative evidence base on the experiences of South Sudanese Australians in the Victorian criminal justice system
- reviewed case files of African Australians under youth justice supervision to understand the drivers of contact with the system, identify protective factors and determine prevention and early intervention opportunities
- funded community-led projects aimed at supporting South Sudanese Australian children and young people.
Springvale Snow Fest
Staff from the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action’s (DEECA) Port Phillip Forest and Fire Planning Unit attended the Springvale Snow Fest community event in Springvale to engage the local community in ways to manage bushfires and forests (DEECA: $0.03m in 2022–23). The unit organised bilingual speakers from within the department to attend and offered a forest values survey to better understand the community’s needs. Before the event, translators prepared the survey in a range of languages. Of the 156 surveys completed, 24 were completed in Chinese, Vietnamese, Hindi, or Khmer.
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