Family Relationship Centres
The first Family Relationship Centres (FRCs) opened in 2006 with Hobart in the first 15 as it rolled out nationally as part of the reforms to the family law system.
The Launceston office was opened in 2007 and the Family Law Act changed to include measures to encourage separating parents to try to resolve disagreements without needing to access the court System. Many more Family Relationship Centres were established across Australia, including the Launceston and Devonport FRCs. The initial focus was to create a ‘one stop’ support Centre for separating parents, with the primary objectives of the Family Relationship Services Programme ‘to improve the wellbeing of Australian families, particularly families with children, who are at risk of separating, or who have separated‘. 1
Fifteen years on and Family Relationship Centres have become a valued and integral part of the family law system.
Fifteen years on and Family Relationship Centres have become a valued and integral part of the family law system. The Family Relationship Centres operated by RA Tas provide services to approximately 2,000 Tasmanians every year as well as referring individuals and families to other services. The FRC remains a source of information for separating parents.
During 2020 -21 the services provided by FRCs expanded to include property dispute resolution for individuals on low incomes. While this is relatively new for FRCs it is not new to RA Tas and we have been able to leverage the skills from staff who are experienced in property Family Dispute Resolution (FDR) to train staff from FRCs via co-mediation. In 2021 RA Tas arranged online training on Property FDR for all FRC staff and developed our own, easy to use, Property FDR spreadsheet for use with separated families.