Knowmore Legal Service travels to Bunbury to raise awareness about National Redress Scheme for child abuse

A nationwide legal service travelled to Bunbury last week to raise awareness about the National Redress Scheme for child abuse survivors. The scheme was created in response to recommendations by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse and offers redress payment and support for child abuse survivors. The Knowmore Legal Service, an independent service which gives free legal advice and support to survivors of child abuse, had members of its legal team and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Engagement team travel to Bunbury from August 8 to 11 to meet with survivors and services. The service said they were trying to raise awareness about the National Redress Scheme and let the community know there is help available for survivors of child abuse. Knowmore chief executive Warren Strange said the service acknowledged the difficulty of recalling distressing events and had specialist social workers and counsellors to assist people with accessing the legal advice. “Knowmore aims to support survivors all over Australia. We are committed to listening to their experiences with respect and acting in their best interests,” he said. The service said it started offering legal advice in 2018 and had helped more than 11,000 people and answered over 68,000 calls to their 1800 number.