The 1960’s

Citizens’ Advice Bureaus in Victoria had their origins in the work of another community organisation, the Victorian Family Council. In May 1960 the Council held a seminar, and resolved that there was a need for comprehensive advisory centres where people could be directed to appropriate sources of help. In the municipal area of Nunawading there was interest in establishing such a centre, and in 1962 a pilot service was established with the assistance of the Council.

In 1966, the Victorian Family Council and the Victorian Council of Social Service commenced a pilot Citizens’ Advice Bureau project in Flinders Street, Melbourne. A secretary was appointed, and volunteers recruited and trained, and in 1968 the Bureau was opened, under the chairmanship of the President of the Victorian Family Council, Mrs Marie Breen.

In November 1969, Mrs Breen convened a meeting with a view to forming an association of advice bureaus, and an interim committee was established to draw up a constitution.

1970

On 5 October 1970, the constitution of the Association was adopted, and the first meeting of the Victorian Association of Citizens’ Advice Bureaus (VACAB) was held on 4 November 1970, and delegates from 10 Citizens’ Advice Bureaus attended.

Foundation bureaus were Box Hill, Caulfield, Dandenong, Doncaster, Essendon, Frankston, Melbourne, Ringwood, Waverley and PEAS.  The first President was Mrs Marie Breen, and one of the first activities of the Committee was to convene a training course for volunteers.

1971-72

The first Annual report of the Victorian Association of Citizens’ Advice Bureaus was tabled in August 1971. In 1971-72, new CABs were opened in Heidelberg, Kew, Malvern, and Diamond Valley-Eltham, and 210 people attended the training course.

1972-73

The number of agencies increased to 25, and an emergency aid fund was established, with the State Government providing $2000 for that purpose. New agencies opening during the year were Bendigo, Brighton, Corio, Geelong, Hawthorn, Mildura, Moorabbin, and Sherbrooke. 384 people attended the training course. The Australian Association of Citizens’ Advice and Aid Bureaux was formed in September 1972, and Mrs Breen was elected President of the national association.

1973-74

32 agencies were members of the Association, and the number of volunteers undertaking the training course was 1066. New agencies were opened at Coburg, Mordialloc, Preston, Sunshine, and Shepparton.

1974-75

State government funding of $10,000 was granted for the establishment of a Secretariat at 107 Russell Street, Melbourne. The number of agencies increased to 38, with new bureaus opening at Ballarat, Kyneton, Oakleigh, Shepparton, Sunbury, Wangaratta and Brunswick. The total number of volunteers was 1392, and there were approximately 43,000 inquiries.

1975-76

The number of bureaus was 42, there were 1494 volunteers, and the total number of inquiries was 55,000.

1976-77

There were 46 bureaus, the number of volunteers was 1474, and the total number of  inquiries was 75,500. The State Government provided a grant of $15,000 for the employment of a Co-ordinator for the Association.

1977-78

New members were Chelsea, Maryborough, Healesville, Wimmera, and Morwell. Metropolitan regions were established, each with their own committee. A number of Sub-Committees were also established, including a Training Sub-Committee. The State Government made new office space available in the Community Services Centre, 356 Collins Street. The number of agencies was 53, total volunteer staff 1540, and the total number of inquiries approximately 100,000.

Mrs Marie Breen retired as President in September 1978, and was awarded Honorary Life Membership of the Association. She was made Companion of the British Empire in the Queen’s Birthday Honour List of that year.

In 1978-79, Mr Peter Arbon was the new President of the Association. Regional Committees were established in every metropolitan region, and in 3 country regions. 35 per cent of agencies had paid staff, and there were 58 member agencies. New members were Swan Hill, Hastings, Latrobe Valley, South Barwon, and Cranbourne. Total inquiries were 104,000, and there were 1650 volunteers.

1979-80

The new President was Mrs Judy McMillan, and there were 56 agencies. There were 123,000 inquiries, and 1460 volunteers.

1980-81

There were 1600 volunteers, and 140,000 inquiries. The first Annual State Conference was held in October 1980, and at the conference, standards for all bureaus were approved. A Training Co-ordinator was also employed for 20 hours per week, and the position of Voluntary Country Liaison Officer was created. Metal logo signs were developed for the first time and made available to agencies.

The bi-annual meeting of the Australian Association of Citizens’ Advice Bureaus and Information Centres was held to coincide with the State Conference, and it was attended by representatives from New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania, Queensland, Northern Territory, Australian Capital Territory, and Victoria.

1981-82

Sonya Sicree from Prahran was elected President, and the VACAB Handbook was published. The Annual Conference was conducted, and 5 new bureaus opened, at Colac, Cobram, Altona, Echuca, and Lilydale, increasing the number of bureaus to 64, with 1860 volunteers and 161,000 inquiries.

1982-83

A Grant-in-aid worker was appointed to work with migrant communities, and a standard approach to collecting statistics was developed. Most CABs were funded under the Family and Community Services Program of the State Government’s Department of Community Welfare Services. The maximum amount available under the grant was $3000 ($2000 from the Department, and $1000 from the local Council). Over half of the CABs received the full amount, and others received a part allocation. Volunteers undertook a 14 session training program. There were 186,000 inquiries.

1983-84

Margaret Norton was President, and there were new offices at 176 Wellington Parade, East Melbourne. The Association became incorporated on August 24 1984. The Community Information Workers Course (CIWC) was developed, and later accredited by the TAFE Board in 1985, in association with a number of TAFE colleges. There were 65 agencies, and 202,000 inquiries.

1984-85

A total of 210,000 inquiries were received, and there were 63 agencies. The VACAB contributed to the development of a Statewide community information policy for Victoria.

1985-86

State Government Information and Coordination grants ceased to exist on 1 September 1985, which placed the bureaus under major financial constraints. The Grant-in-aid funding was discontinued. An interstate conference on Community Information was convened with the State Library of Victoria. Warrandyte joined the Association, bringing the total number of agencies to 64. CAB Week was held for the first time in March 1986. There were a total of 229,000 inquiries.

1987

Gwyneth Terry became President of the Association. The Ministry of Consumer Affairs provided a grant of $40,000 for a project officer to enhance consumer advice service provision to the community. The biennial conference was held in October 1986, and CAB week was held in March 1987. The second country meeting of agencies was held. The Basic Training Course of 3 days was modified to a 1 day Basic Training Day. In October 1987, VACAB became a designated TAFE provider. The Training Handbook was published. A slogan for CABs “Informing Victoria” was developed. The 65 CABs received a total of 236,000 inquiries.

1988

There were 67 agencies, and VACAB negotiated a 3-year service agreement with Community Services Victoria, as opposed to the previous annual funding agreements. Two new bureaus opened, Seymour and Alexandra. The Buckland Foundation provided a grant for a joint project with Lifeline Melbourne to establish a database of Statewide community information for bureaus.

Ministry of Consumer Affairs funding was received for the second year, from the Myer Foundation for a bureau self-evaluation kit, from the Reichstein Foundation for the rewriting of the CIWC presenters manual, and from the Victorian Health Promotion Foundation for a drug services information and training project.

The Victorian Community Information Network was formed in March 1988, in consultation with the Municipal Association of Victoria, the State Library of Victoria, the Council of Adult Education, and other major information providers. Seymour and Warrandyte commenced operations as full members. A Working Party was convened to update the McIntyre Thesaurus, and the 4^th edition of the Thesaurus was published and distributed by VACAB in 1989. In1988 there were 256,000 inquiries.

1989

Alexandra and Bacchus Marsh opened, and Kyneton and Sunshine closed. There were 268,000 inquiries, and CAB Week was held in October. The biennial conference was held in November 1989. A Consumer Affairs kit was developed with funding from the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, and a drug and alcohol project worker was employed with funding from the Victorian Health Promotion Foundation.

1990

Bettie Kornhauser became President. Project workers funded by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs and by the Federal Department of Immigration, Local Government and Ethnic Affairs were employed. An accountancy advice service was piloted in cooperation with the Australian Society of Certified Practising Accountants. The Keilor and Numurkah agencies closed, and there were 63 agencies, and 251,000 total inquiries. The VACAB/Lifeline database software was piloted at 2 agencies.

1991

There were 62 members, and 1900 volunteers, 1500 of whom were accredited CAB workers. There were 245,000 inquiries. In July, Mrs Hazel Hawke launched the CPA Accountancy Advisory Service, and the Financial Information Service was piloted in consultation with the Department of Social Security. 19 bureaus had computers. The monitoring program, which commenced at the end of 1990, continued. In December, Information Provision to Newly Arrived Migrants: Strategies for Information Services was published.

1992

The CIWC was reaccredited for 5 years, and extended from 48 to 72 hours. There were 63 members, 6 of whom were Associate members. Wodonga opened in June, and Knox in July. In the period, 1988-1992, requests for emergency relief increased from 30,000 to 80,000, and 40 agencies were distributing emergency relief. 51 bureaus received Community Support and Development Grants from Community Services Victoria to provide a community information service. There were 2000 volunteers. VACAB entered into a 3-year service agreement with Community Services Victoria.

A conference was held in November after an interval of 3 years. 27 bureaus had computers, and 15 of them used the computers for a community information database. A standard version of the database management software was released in December. VACAB received a grant from 1990-92 from the Department of Immigration to assist Whittlesea CAB in providing services to people from Non-English Speaking Backgrounds, and the grant was continued in 1992. In 1992, VACAB received a 2-year grant from the Department to encourage contact between bureaus and ethnic communities.

1993

Margory Lapworth was President. Dame Marie Breen, the founder of the movement, died on 18 June 1993, at the age of 90. During 1993 and 1994, the State Government defunded the majority of the CABs, and Swan Hill and Seymour closed.

Funding to VACAB was cut by one third, and staff numbers were reduced. 48 agencies received grants from local government, and agencies were informed that State Government grants would cease at the end of 1993. 332,000 clients used CABs in 1993, compared with 318,000 in 1992 and 286,000 in 1991. 2000 volunteers, 1600 of whom were accredited, staffed the bureaus and 24 of the 60 agencies employed paid staff. A new edition of the VACAB Handbook was published in May, to replace the 1981 edition.

1994-95

VACAB became the Victorian Association of Community Information Centres Inc (VACIC) in November 1994, and Gwyneth Terry was President. The office premises were relocated from Wellington Parade to136 Exhibition Street in August 1994. Funding from the Department of Health and Community Services was broadened, and VACIC no longer provided its services exclusively to its member agencies, but resourced other community organisations, with regard to information management and provision.

The Associate Membership category was created for organisations that provided community information as part of their service. In November 1994, the National Community Information Network was formed, and VACIC was the Victorian representative on the committee. In May 1995, the bi-annual State Conference was held. In September 1994, there was 3 year funding from the Department of Immigration and Ethnic Affairs, which continued the funding from mid 1992, for a project about access and equity issues for people from Non-English Speaking Backgrounds.

1995-96

The Statewide database was established using Infocom as the software platform, and VACIC had its first Internet site.

1996-97

There were 57 members and 12 Associate members. In May 1997 the Werribee agency closed, and in August the Benalla agency also closed. Two Community Networking forums were held in September 1996 and March 1997, and in October 1996, VACIC hosted the National Conference of the Community Information Network of Australia.

1997-98

A Communities Networking conference was held, 195,000 people contacted a community information centre, and there were 1300 trained agency staff. The organisation changed its name to Community Information Victoria Inc. (CIVic).

1998-99

CIVic was involved in the distribution of the Gas Crisis Emergency Fund, and there were 57 member agencies. A new edition of the Community Information Thesaurus was published, updating the previous version that was produced in 1989. A total of 330,000 inquiries were received.

2000- In progress