• Posted on 27 Sep 2021
  • 2-minute read

Last year a group of UTS Socially Responsive Design students worked with not-for-profit organisation Economic Justice Australia (EJA) to help them better promote their services to the public.

EJA is the peak organisation for community legal centres in Australia, providing specialist advice to people on social security issues and their rights.

Through the UTS Shopfront Community Program, students developed a series of clever marketing materials to help EJA better inform the public about social security. The work would build on a major rebrand undertaken by the organisation – also completed with help from UTS Shopfront students in a previous semester.

The students created an animated video highlighting two key areas of concern for EJA: The disability support pension, and how to appeal a Centrelink decision.

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Descriptive transcript

Balancing rent, bills, work, relationships and family responsibilities is difficult. Receiving a Centrelink debt notice can be catastrophic, but it can happen to anyone, even if you've been doing your best to keep up to date reporting your income. When starting the appeals process, Centrelink often asks for extra documents, like payslips from years ago, that most people wouldn't have thought to keep. Appealing a debt can seem overwhelming. It's easy to lose faith in the process, to feel helpless and trapped. But it's important to remember that help is out there and you have the right to appeal any decisions Centrelink makes.

Did you know that there are community legal centres that can help with complex Centrelink problems such as debt? Economic Justice Australia is the national peak organisation for community legal centres specialising in Centrelink issues. Their community legal centres have lawyers and caseworkers who can unravel the issues, provide expert advice and assist with reviews and appeals for free.

EJA also has resources on their website that can equip you with the knowledge you need to navigate the appeals process and help get your life back in balance. Visit the EJA website today for self-help resources, to assist with Centrelink appeals and links to local specialist community legal centres.

Centrelink appeals. You don't need to go it alone.

The team also developed marketing templates for the organisation to use and adapt as required.

Leanne Ho, Executive Officer, EJA, said the students were very professional.

‘It was great because if we ever do this sort of thing again with a paid agency, we’ll have so much more knowledge about what to do and what we need to bring to the table,’ she said.

‘The students had so much creative energy and were so genuine in wanting to help us get our message to the public. It was really refreshing to have that experience.’

Leanne said she would recommend participating in the program to other organisations.

‘It’s all extremely positive. I really encourage all people in my networks to make use of this program. I've been encouraging other organisations to use this because it’s been so fantastic for us.’

Shopfront links the community sector to university expertise through pro bono projects completed by students as part of their studies, supervised by academic experts in their field. We aim to create mutual value, supporting community organisations while engaging students in important social justice issues. Find out more.

Byline: Amy Grady, External Communication Coordinator, Centre for Social Justice & Inclusion

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