Urbis, in partnership with Karen Milward, was commissioned to undertake a project to map Aboriginal-specific family violence prevention initiatives across Victoria. The project was jointly commissioned by Respect Victoria, Family Safety Victoria (FSV) and the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (DFFH) on behalf of the Dhelk Dja Strategic Priority Two Sub-Working Group of the Dhelk Dja Partnership Forum.
Objectives
This purpose of this project was to provide Dhelk Dja with an overview of family violence prevention initiatives targeting Aboriginal communities. The project mapped prevention initiatives delivered over the last five years to identify successes, challenges, gaps, and opportunities for future investment.
Methodology
The project mapped prevention initiatives delivered between 2016 and 2021 to identify successes, challenges, gaps, and opportunities for future investment. We reviewed over 150 documents and identified and mapped 251 government-funded prevention initiatives. Most of these were delivered by Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations.
Insights
Our report found that prevention projects delivered across a range of settings including health, family and community services, sport, the arts, education and childcare. The most common delivery modes comprise workshops, cultural activities and events, including camps aimed at building culture connection and preventing family violence. Many of these activities address the drivers of family violence against First Nations people. This includes the ongoing impacts of colonisation, and the ways they interact with the gendered drivers of violence against women. Other activities strengthen protective factors against family violence, like connection to culture. Community-controlled organisations take a holistic approach. They deliver activities across the prevention spectrum, from primary prevention, early intervention through to response.
Our report found that much of this work is being done with limited resourcing, and the majority of projects received less than $50,000 funding. Current funding is not commensurate with the size of the need and the time required to achieve prevention outcomes. Effective prevention requires ongoing or longer-term funding to community-controlled organisations.
Full report linked here.