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Joining the Family Dispute Resolution Service chairperson and child consultant panels

We are looking for Family Dispute Resolution Practitioners and child consultants to join our team at our Family Dispute Resolution Service.

Published:
Wednesday, 9 February 2022 at 3:17 pm

We are inviting expressions of interest from appropriately qualified Family Dispute Resolution Practitioners (FDRPs) and child consultants interested in providing family dispute resolution and child consultant services to clients at Victoria Legal Aid's Family Dispute Resolution Service (FDRS).

FDRS is seeking to engage up to four chairpersons to provide family dispute resolution services and between two to four child consultants to provide Kids Talk services, from March 2022.

For the Chairperson Panel, FDRS seeks applicants who:

  • are accredited as a FDRP with the Practitioner Registration Unit of the Federal Government Attorney-General’s Department

  • hold a degree in law, social work, or psychology (or equivalent qualification)

  • have substantial practice experience in their field, or otherwise have significant relevant experience in mediation.

For the Child Consultant Panel, FDRS seeks applicants who:

  • are experienced in working with children and families

  • have a social science degree or relevant post-graduate tertiary qualifications

  • have substantial experience in psychology, family therapy and family dispute resolution or other significant relevant experience in counselling or otherwise working with families.

FDRS will consider applications from those seeking to join either or both panels.

Experience working with separated families experiencing family violence and with other complex needs, in a trauma-informed way, is an advantage.

We encourage applications from many people, including those who can bring lived experience of issues commonly confronting VLA clients, and/or who identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, are from a newly arrived community, and/or live with disability.

Applications for each panel will be assessed by an evaluation panel which will be made up of representatives from VLA and an external stakeholder.

Any successful applicant will enter a service agreement with VLA to deliver FDR services and/or child consultant services to clients in conferences at the FDRS.

Briefing sessions (voluntary and recorded) will be held on Monday, 14 February 2022 (child consultants at 10.00 am, chairpersons at 11.30 am).

Applicants must register as suppliers with, and upload Expressions of Interest to, the Buying for Victoria Tenders Portal by 2 pm, Wednesday 23 February 2022.

You can download the Expression of Interest form for the Chairperson Panel and the Expression of Interest form for the Child Consultant Panel.

Expression of Interest form for the Chairperson Panel
Word 218.74 KB
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Expression of Interest form for the Child Consultant Panel
Word 226.59 KB
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About Family Dispute Resolution Service

FDRS helps people resolve family law disputes through a lawyer-assisted model of family dispute resolution.

We help with a range of disputes, including parenting issues, division of property, spousal maintenance, adult child maintenance and international child abduction cases.

We also offer a child-inclusive Kids Talk program, which allows the child’s voice to be heard as part of the decision-making process.

As a state-wide service, FDRS conferences can be offered by phone or video, or (where safe and appropriate) in person, in regional or metropolitan areas, either as joint or shuttle conferences.

Shuttle conferences are common, given the large proportion of cases involving family violence and high levels of conflict.

For Kids Talk, meetings with children can be in person, by video or phone, with parent feedback sessions generally by phone.

More information

Apply for the Chairperson Panel at the Buying for Victoria Tenders Portal.

Apply for the Child Consultant Panel at the Buying for Victoria Tenders Portal.

Read more about FDRS.

Learn more about Kids Talk.

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