VLA’s mid-year report projected increasing losses – including an $8 million deficit this year – at a time when an increasing number of people who are homeless, unemployed, Indigenous or have psychiatric conditions are finding themselves in the legal system.

In the six months from July last year, 1337 people in the Bendigo region received services from Legal Aid. The figure increased by 28 per cent from 2012 to 2015.

There was also a 22 per cent increase in the number of Legal Aid grants provided in Bendigo compared with the same time the previous year. Duty lawyer services increase 3 per cent.

The report placed the reason for the increase on additional police and child protection workers, more reporting of family violence, and increased penalties for breaching orders.

But the VLA report found the increased focus on policing is outstripping legal resources available for the disadvantaged.

“Demand for our services is growing faster than anticipated,” the report reads.

“These increases highlight that the gap between community need and Victoria Legal Aid’s capacity to respond continues to grow.

“The downstream impact on the delivery of legal assistance is significant and as additional police are recruited in future years, further pressure will be added.”

The Victorian Access to Justice Review, released in October, found publicly-funded legal assistance is a “crucial safety net for the most disadvantaged members of the community”.

From December 2015 to December 2016, the number of calls to Victoria Legal Aid increased 7 per cent, unique clients increased 3 per cent and grants of legal assistance rose by 11 per cent.

Across Victoria, almost 10,000 more people accessed duty lawyers in 2016 compared with 2013 – the majority for family violence intervention orders.

The report found financial pressure would continue to be placed on Victoria Legal Aid unless changes were made.

“With this increased demand for our services, we are spending more money than we are receiving and we expect total expenditure to grow by $17 million,” the report reads.

“While Victoria Legal Aid has sufficient cash reserves to manage the forecast deficit this year, greater deficits are forecast in the future.

“Additional government revenue is needed to preserve existing policy settings and to avoid future tightening of eligibility guidelines and a reduction in services.”

The Commonwealth Government provided VLA with $30 million in 2015 and $30.4 million in 2016, while the state government funded $45 million in 2015 and $47.3 million in 2016 – a 1 per cent and 5 per cent increase respectively.

In the same period, VLA expenditure increased from $89.7 million to $97.7 million – a 9 per cent increase.

The looming funding crisis is just one issue facing Bendigo’s legal community.

The out-of-date circa-1890s court building has been critised by legal practitioners as “unsafe”, prompting calls for a new purpose-built facility in Bendigo.