Program Manager

Westjustice is a community organisation that provides free legal help to people in the Western suburbs of Melbourne. Westjustice can help with a broad range of everyday legal problems including consumer disputes, credit and debt, family law and family violence, fines, motor vehicle accidents, tenancy, youth criminal law and more. Westjustice’s purpose is to deliver targeted services and drive meaningful change. Benefits & Culture Be a part of an organisation where 98% of our team are proud to work for We pay 3% above the SCHADS award Strong focus on wellbeing Strongly committed to being a diverse and inclusive organisation Flexible working conditions Gifted additional paid leave over the summer holiday period The Role Westjustice's tenancy team is an experienced, multidisciplinary group of practitioners who assist, advise and represent renters in Melbourne's Western Suburbs with residential tenancy matters including possession proceedings, family violence matters, urgent applications for repairs and compliance, and systemic litigation on key questions of law. Our lawyers appear in VCAT and the Magistrates' Court regularly, and a social worker assists renters with more complex needs to obtain just housing outcomes. Due to the opening of the new Wyndham Law Courts, Westjustice is seeking to employ an experienced Program Manager to join our Economic & Housing Rights Program on an ongoing contract. Responsibilities Leading a small team to provide quality legal advice via a client centred, trauma informed and multi-disciplinary approach and undertaking case work as required Providing strategic and expert advice and working collaboratively with others to achieve the organisation's goals Developing and implementing the Program’s work and action plans Managing existing partnerships to deepen and grow the Program Skills Required Senior legal expertise and highly developed court representation skills Leadership and management skills to make reasoned strategic decisions in a collaborative manner Experience in supervision, mentoring and training of junior lawyers, students and volunteers Strong understanding of the social context of the law and familiarity with legal and social issues faced by vulnerable and/or disadvantaged communities Demonstrated knowledge of Victoria’s justice system Strategic thinker with proven highly developed interpersonal and influencing skills that enables effective collaboration with both internal and external stakeholders Excellent communication skills including written communication (work plans, reports, funding submissions/tenders and business cases) This position will be primarily based at our Werribee office but may be required to work from our other Westjustice offices and our partnered sites. The successful applicant will require a current Working with Children’s Check and a Police Check or be prepared to apply for both. People with lived experience of the justice system are encouraged to apply. A police check result does not automatically disqualify an application, which will be individually assessed for the relevant role. Applicants must possess the right to work in Australia. For enquiries, call Jennifer Jones on 7*** for a confidential discussion. To apply, please send your resume together with a concise cover letter demonstrating your skills and experience via this portal. We will be interviewing candidates as applications are received, so don’t wait to apply. Westjustice is committed to building a diverse workforce. We strongly encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people living with a disability, people from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds, mature age workers and LGBTIQA+-identifying people. A police check result will be individually assessed for the relevant role. Please ensure that you let us know, in advance, of any reasonable adjustment you may require during any part of the recruitment process including application and interview by contacting Ellen Flint via *****@westjustice.org.au. Any information disclosed will be held in the strictest of confidence. #J-18808-Ljbffr