A vital court service has celebrated 30 years in Ballarat.
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Court Network started at the former Camp Street court building on October 16, 1989, with nine volunteers.
There are now 21 networkers who provide support and advocacy, without judgement, to anyone using the Ballarat courts.
Cheryl Wilde, who has been volunteering since the beginning, said there had been a lot of changes within the courts and she still found networking rewarding.
"The amount of people we can help, who often have no clue about what's going on in the courts, is wonderful," Mrs Wilde said.
Court Network program manager Michelle McKay said trained volunteers provided a unique service to the Ballarat community.
"They volunteer on a weekly basis at the Ballarat court offering support and information to court users and referrals when required. They give of their time generously to help people that may be feeling vulnerable and scared," Ms McKay said.
"The networkers show compassion and empathy to court users. They all love what they do and feel privileged to be able to help."
A celebration was held at the Ballarat law courts on Thursday to mark the milestone.
Court Network founder Carmel Benjamin AM, who attended the celebration, said it was a triumph the networkers had reached 30 years.
"You will probably never know how many lives you changed forever," Ms Benjamin told the networkers.
"I hope you are doing something important for someone else. You are there to do what ever you can to make their experience less frightening."
Through an intensive training program, networkers learn court processes and referral pathways.
They understand how to approach vulnerable and unassisted court users and provide them with someone to talk to, guidance on what to expect during a hearing and information about where they may seek extra help.
The Court Network service is free and open to all adults attending court.
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