Work and Development Permit (WDP) Scheme
PCLC has received funding from the Victorian Legal Services Board to integrate the Work and Development Permit (WDP) Scheme across Melbourne’s Southern region.
The Work and Development Permit (WDP) Scheme allows eligible people to ‘work off’ their unpaid fines by engaging with a range of health, educational and other pro-social activities. A health practitioner or an organisation can become an accredited ‘sponsor’ in the WDP Scheme and provide access to it for the people connected to their services. A sponsor can provide treatment, courses or other activities so that the time a client spends engaged in a sponsor’s service counts towards clearing this debt. Sponsor applications are made through Fines Victoria.
Our WDP Project team work proactively with health and community services providers across multiple sectors to provide assistance in understanding how the initiative can be adapted in their organisations. Through this collaborative work, PCLC has established a number of health-justice relationships with agencies who support vulnerable community members. These relationships build the capacity of these organisations to identify and respond to the legal issues experienced by people connected to their services and to work effectively with our legal practitioners.
Contact the WDP Project Team at PCLC on 9783 3600 or pclc@pclc.org.au if you are interested in knowing more about the WDP scheme.
