Annual report 2010-11 by Women's Health West

womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s health west annual report 2010-2011

vision

Values

Who we are

Equity and justice for women in the west

• We work within a feminist framework, respecting human rights • We act to support women to take control over their decisions and their lives • We recognise that the conditions in which people live, work and play are shaped by political, social and economic forces that we must understand and take action on to achieve better outcomes for health, safety and wellbeing • We value the diversity of our region and work to actively recognise and respect women’s diverse strengths, experiences and goals • We value transparency and accountability in our operations, practices and relationships with others • We recognise that children’s health, safety and wellbeing is intrinsically connected to that of women • We recognise the importance of being responsive to the changing needs of our community • We recognise and value the expertise of others and the vital importance of working together to achieve our goals

Women’s Health West (WHW) is the women’s health service for the western metropolitan region of Melbourne.

Mission

We partner with others to change the conditions that cause and maintain women’s oppression, to deliver family violence services and to undertake health promotion actions

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

We have two main programs that complement each other – allowing us to work across the continuum from preventing problems, to responding to problems after they occur. Our health promotion, research and development program plans and implements activities designed to promote women’s health, safety and wellbeing across three key areas – sexual and reproductive health, mental health, and prevention of violence and discrimination. Our family violence service provides women and children who experience family violence with the range of services they require while in crisis - such as court support, crisis housing and case management – through to services designed to promote healing and recovery, such as women’s and children’s counselling. We work collaboratively with communities, government and local agencies, and provide secondary consultation for health, community and other service providers.

WHW is funded by a mixture of government grants, principally from the Department of Human Services and the Department of Health, and also from philanthropic organisations. WHW is an equal opportunity employer with a VCAT Exemption A109/2009 (under Equal Opportunity Act 1995) to employ only women. We employ 59 women with a range of qualifications, skills and life experiences as part of our diverse staff team. WHW is centrally managed from Footscray. WHW is incorporated under the Associations Incorporation Act 1981. We are a Public Benevolent Institution endorsed as a Deductible Gift Recipient and therefore entitled to receive tax deductible donations. All women living, working or studying in the western metropolitan region of Melbourne are eligible for membership of WHW, as are organisations whose client base includes the western region. Our strategic plan outlines our focus on redressing the social, economic and political factors that limit the lives of women. We do this through a range of actions designed to influence public policy or change legislation; improve access to services and resources; and build women and girl’s capacity to take positions of leadership.

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

YEAR IN BRIEF CONTENTS CON

WHW’s catchment consists of seven local government areas: Brimbank, Hobsons Bay, Maribyrnong, Melbourne, Melton, Moonee Valley and Wyndham

N.B. Family violence staff are referred to by first names only to protect their safety.

Who We Are Year in Brief Achievements Measured Against Strategic Goals Chair and CEO Report Treasurer’s Report Family Violence Services Family Violence Services Data Intake Service Family Violence Outreach 24 Hour Crisis Response Program Intensive Case Management Intensive Case Management for Women with a Disability Crisis Accommodation Service Private Rental Brokerage A Place to Call Home Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Crisis Housing Program Court Support Safe at Home Victim’s Assistance Counselling Program Children’s Counselling Program Family Violence Regional Integration Coordination Health Promotion, Research and Development Power On Power On For Carers Girls Talk - Guys Talk Family and Reproductive Rights Education Program Western English Language School Healthy Relationships Education Lead On Again Sexual and Reproductive Health Strategy Financial Literacy Program Anti Racism Action Research Sunrise Women’s Groups Prevention of Violence Against Women International Women’s Day Communications Advocacy Presentations Operations Occupational Health, Safety and Environment Our Staff Professional Development Staff List Organisational Chart Governance Financial Reports Key Partnerships Acronyms Table of figures

3 5 6 8 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 16 17 18 18 19 20 20 21 21 22 23 24 24 25 26 27 27 28 28 29 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 35 36 37 38 38 39 40 42 43 43

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

HIGHLIGHTS

LOWLIGHTS

WHW advocated strongly for gender pay equity this year. Fair Work Australia found that gender is a significant cause of the pay gap for social and community service workers. See page 33.

The national health reforms; reviews and new plans from state and regional departments of health and human services; and the change in state government have contributed to a sense of uncertainty. See page 8.

WHW were successful in our submissions for three new family violence programs – ‘Enhanced After Hours’, ‘A Place to Call Home’ and ‘Safe at Home’. See pages 15, 18 and 20. WHW achieved a bronze award in the Australasian Reporting Awards (ARA). See page 32. The official launch, by the Hon. Joan Kirner AM of Preventing Violence Together attended by 100 influential guests across the region, in December 2010. See page 30. The reputation of Girls Talk – Guys Talk as a well-evaluated whole of school health relationships program has led to 100 expressions of interest in training across sectors and interstate. See page 25.

Financial overview Figure 1

3,500,000 3,000,000 2,500,000

Our landlord’s family withdrew his offer to rent and refurbish an additional floor in our current building when he became unwell. We continue to pursue long-term accommodation. See page 9. Indigenous women and children constituted 9 percent of our crisis accommodation clients, but only 1 per cent of our outreach clients. We hope to increase this percentage by offering concerted support to Indigenous-specific programs. See page 17 and 14. Demand is high for safe, secure and accessible housing for women with larger families escaping family violence. The western region requires more transitional and public housing.

2,000,000 Profit on disposal of assets

1,500,000

Interest earned

1,000,000

Other income 500,000

State government grants

2006/07

2007/08

2008/09

2009/10

2010/11

The main source of income is the Department of Human Services and the Department of Health. There has been consistent growth across the organisation, particularly through the family violence programs ‘Safe at Home’ and ‘A Place to Call Home’. Other income includes grants from local government and philanthropic organisations.

Figure 2

3,500,000 3,000,000 2,500,000 2,000,000 1,500,000

Communications and promotion

1,000,000

Accountability and administration Programs

500,000 0

I am happy and proud of you... because you are telling me about how you are feeling and coping, how you work out your problems in such a positive way. I love the colours you chose, the hair and the cheeky look.

2006/07

2007/08

2008/09

2009/10

2010/11

Program expenditure includes brokerage and emergency relief, and program delivery costs including staff wages and oncosts, venue hire, community education and professional development. Accountability and administration includes operational costs like insurance, rent, information and communication technology, capital costs, risk management training and development to ensure WHW complies with regulatory requirements. Communication and promotion includes all newsletter, publications, website development and events.

Mother’s letter to child

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

2010-2011 Achievements

Measured Against the Strategic Plan STRATEGIC GOAL 1

STRATEGIC GOAL 3

Deliver and advocate for accessible and culturally appropriate services and resources for women Women’s Health West will engage in actions such as advocacy, research, organisational capacity building, direct service delivery and community development to influence those factors that restrict women’s access to resources and services

Improve the conditions in which women live, work and play in the western region of Melbourne We will undertake direct service provision and health promotion actions that recognise the important influence of, and aim to improve the social, economic and political factors that determine the health, safety and wellbeing of women and their children in the western region

Put women’s health, safety and wellbeing on the political agenda to improve women’s status Because gender is a critical factor in improving conditions for women, we will particularly focus on the structural factors that cause and maintain the conditions under which women and their children face discrimination, and undertake actions designed to change those factors

Deliver community development programs for women from a range of backgrounds  Our strengths-based leadership program for culturally and linguistically diverse young women, Lead On Again, entered its eighth year, with 46 per cent of graduates from previous programs continuing their involvement in leadership activities (p.27)  Provided 17 sessions of family violence community education (p.34)

Assist women to break the cycle of family violence by providing tailored direct services  Half of our family violence outreach clients were supported for more than three months (p.14)  Doubled the numbers of women receiving after hours support (p.15)  This year 762 women received court support, more than double the numbers from two years ago and ten times our target (p.16)  The numbers of women leaving refuge within a week reduced from 35 to less than 14 per cent this year (p.17)

Respond to key topics impacting on equity and justice for women in west  WHW rallied, wrote to federal and state ministers and MPs, published articles and spoke to the media in support of gender pay equity (p.33)

Engage in advocacy on topics related to women’s health, safety and wellbeing  Wrote a submission advocating that the Australian Association of National Advertisers review of their code of ethics direct the fashion, media and advertising industries to play an active role in protecting the interests and rights of consumers, particularly women and girls (p.33)  Contributed to the Family Law Amendment (Family Violence) Bill 2010 with reference to women and children who experience family violence (p. 33)  WHW and Western Region Health Centre coordinated a submission to the Scrutiny of Acts and Regulation Committee inquiry into the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 (p.33)  WIFVP responded to a state inquiry into child protection to inform the government on ways to reduce child abuse with regard to the effectiveness of existing systems and enhancements to protect children (p.33)

STRATEGIC GOAL 2

Undertake health promotion activities designed to improve women’s health, safety and wellbeing  Delivered professional development to over 70 nurses and 15 doctors at Sunshine Hospital, with over 90 per cent identifying an aspect of the training that will positively influence their service provision to women affected by female genital mutilation (p.26)  Girls Talk - Guys Talk, our whole-school sexual and reproductive health program, began work in its third school, Taylors Lakes Secondary College (p.25)

 Our submission for consideration in the development of Maribyrnong City Council’s 2011-2012 budget advocated for the adoption of gender responsive budgeting across council, arguing that gender responsive budgets link commitments to gender equity to the ways in which governments raise and spend money, and provide a concrete way to increase accountability to all community members (p.33.)  Prior to the state election we printed and distributed 2000 copies of an advent calendar designed to inform women in the region about the major parties’ women’s health platforms in a fun and unconventional way (p.33)  Worked with WHAV to organise ‘Setting Our Agenda’, a forum giving the major political parties in Victoria an opportunity to respond to the call for transparent, measurable outcomes for women’s health, safety and wellbeing in the lead up to the state election (p.33)

STRATEGIC GOAL 4

Recognise that good health, safety and wellbeing begins in our workplace We will identify all the components required to operate a service that is responsive to our vision and mission – valuing our workforce, ensuring financial sustainability and organisational accountability, understanding our limits, and developing and learning from experience – and use our resources intelligently and creatively to achieve our strategic goals Continue to support staff professional development  Staff attended 133 professional development courses and seminars (p.37) Complete Enterprise Agreement  WHW staff and board completed negotiations for an enterprise agreement. The agreement was reviewed and endorsed by Fair Work Australia (p.36) Strategic restructure  WHW restructured the existing role of finance manager to business manager. The new broader role incorporates finance, operations, human resources, compliance and risk management functions (p.10) Implement transparent finance frameworks  Last financial year WHW implemented the Victorian Standard Chart of Accounts; our focus this year has been on consolidation (p.10)

 Distributed 5 media releases resulting in 11 stories in local newspapers and a radio show on 3CR (p.32)

STRATEGIC GOAL 5

Work with others to achieve our goals We value the skills, knowledge and expertise of individuals, organisations and communities in our region and aim to work in collaboration with them, sharing what we learn along the way and identifying where we each fit in achieving our ambitious goals

This list shows selected actions we have taken over the last twelve months to achieve our strategic goals. Progress is indicated using the following key:  COMPLETED  IN

PROGRESS

Increase and enhance our partnerships  Active participation in Primary Care Partnerships (PCP)  CEO sits on interim governance group of Inner North West PCP and board of HealthWest partnership  Manager Health Promotion, Research and Development sits on Integrated Health Promotion Network at HealthWest PCP  CEO chairs NWMR family violence committee  McAuley Community Services for Women and Molly’s House Women’s Refuge joined the Western Integrated Family Violence (WIFV) Partnership, enhancing our scope and reach (p.8) Work with others to complete the prevention of violence against women action plan   Celebrated our region-first strategy, Preventing Violence Together, led by WHW with HealthWest and the Inner North West Primary Care Partnership. Strategy is complete, implementation is in progress (p.30) Lead sexual and reproductive health strategy for the west   Published Social Determinants of Sexual and Reproductive Health 2011 report outlining strategies for prevention of sexual and reproductive ill-health. Completed framework to support development of regional sexual and reproductive health strategy. Framework is complete, strategy development is in progress (p.28) Establish an International Women’s Day committee comprised of at least 7 agencies  Over 150 women participated in I Am Strong, We Are Strong our International Women’s Day event in March 2011 organised by a steering committee comprised of 15 organisations including Victoria Police, western region local councils, community health centres, and arts organisations (p.31)

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

or advocate for equity in public policy.

Chair and CEO Report Each of our service areas have reported to funding bodies and the board of directors regarding their operational plans and funding targets. These reports confirm that all programs have met the targets set out by funding bodies for service delivery, except our crisis accommodation service, where limited options for housing women post-refuge increase the duration of their stay and therefore impact on targets. In fact, many of our programs have exceeded targets.

Dr Robyn Gregory Chief Executive Officer

Georgie Hill Chair

We are pleased to present the Women’s Health West Annual Report 2010-2011, which provides information to government and other funding bodies, our members, community, staff and partners, about our operational and financial performance for the year 1 July 2010 to 30 June 2011. At the mid-point of our 2009-2012 strategic plan, it is timely that this report highlights our significant achievements to date. The report indicates a financially healthy organisation that has continued to meet the increasing demands of women and children experiencing family violence in the western region; and to research and respond to the needs of the most isolated and disadvantaged groups of women in our region.

However, target data alone does not provide a clear enough picture of our work. To improve clarity and accountability, we have set out the objectives for each program, outlined the strategies employed to achieve those objectives, and indicated the outcomes of those strategies. This is the third year this approach has been used in the annual report, providing a simple and accountable method for our communities of interest to track where objectives are being met and any reasons why this might not have occurred. Similarly, future directions for each program allow tracking of achievements against stated plans. Despite continued population growth, particularly in the outer west, WHW continued to provide responsive services to women and their children by ensuring a flexible approach, adapting service models and partnering with other agencies, as outlined below. Family Violence WHW were successful in our submissions for three new programs – ‘Safe at Home’, ‘Enhanced After Hours’ and ‘A Place to Call Home’.

The ‘Safe at Home’ program improved the safety of 32 families by providing practical and emotional support to women to remain in their

own home and have the perpetrator leave. This results in women and children remaining connected to local schools, workplaces and friendship groups, significantly reducing the homelessness, isolation and dislocation that traditionally accompanies family violence, which can lead to particularly poor outcomes for children. For women where the option to remain in their own home is unavailable or too dangerous, ‘A Place to Call Home’ has resulted in 6 families being able to move straight from refuge or transitional housing into permanent housing. The Enhanced After Hours funding has been integrated with our existing After Hours program to develop a new 24-Hour Crisis Response Service. This has resulted in 987 women receiving a response to police ‘faxback’ referrals over the weekend and 75 women an immediate crisis response at police stations or in hospital. Partnerships The crisis response program has benefited from McAuley Community Services for Women and Molly’s House Women’s Refuge joining the Western Integrated Family Violence (WIFV) Partnership, working a three-week roster alongside WHW to provide the weekend service. This partnership has gone from strength to strength, with a program operations group meeting every two weeks up to the end of December, then monthly from February, to plan the delivery of coordinated services.

The recommitment of Elizabeth Hoffman House to the WIFV partnership also promises a more responsive service to Indigenous women and children experiencing family violence in the western region. Over the last year 9 percent of our crisis accommodation clients have been Indigenous women and children,

but they make up only 1 per cent of our outreach clients. We are hoping to increase this percentage by offering concerted support to Indigenous-specific programs to meet regional needs. Our partnerships with peak bodies including VCOSS, DV Vic and WHAV continue to enhance our ability to collaborate on a state wide basis, such as in the pay equity campaign. Health Promotion, Research and Development Tackling inequity in health, safety and wellbeing; preventing death, disability and chronic disease; and strengthening the capacity of individuals, families and communities through effective health promotion actions are increasingly prominent and necessary responses to our diverse, expanding and ageing population. To bring about real and lasting change we cannot ignore the relationship between income, poverty, social exclusion, un/ employment, gender, ability, sexuality and culture on individual health, safety and wellbeing.

Women’s Health West has significant expertise in ‘upstream’ health promotion; that is, actions that tackle population-wide influences on health, safety and wellbeing, like violence against women. While this requires extensive work and can appear overwhelming, working together at the local level in partnership with communities and groups with common interests and concerns is an effective approach. This understanding has led Women’s Health West to focus our health promotion, research and development program on region-wide strategies in partnership with other agencies, on wholeschool approaches to sexual and reproductive health, and on projects such as those that improve financial literacy,

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

Access to services Women’s Health West has continued to expand as we have secured funding for new programs. Ensuring secure and sustainable accommodation in an accessible location is an ongoing struggle in the context of urban renewal and significant increases in housing costs. We are committed to remaining in Footscray where possible, as this suburb is directly accessible by public transport from every local government area in our region.

Having a central location for staff increases the understanding and connections between our diverse programs, increases the support available to staff and clients, and ultimately strengthens the quality and effectiveness of our programs for women and children. Our staff then travel to ‘outposts’ in Wyndham, Melton, Brimbank and Melbourne to ensure our clients can access services where they live, work or study. Financial sustainability and organisational accountability Following our growth over the last financial year, WHW restructured the existing role of finance manager to business manager. The new broader role incorporates finance, operations, human resources, compliance and risk management functions. The change allowed a more strategic approach, which has resulted in improved systems and efficiencies.

additional floor in our current building. Unfortunately, following the ill-health of our landlord, his family withdrew this offer. We have continued to set aside these funds, while developing plans to secure long term accommodation. The financial statements have been audited and prepared in accordance with Australian Accounting Standards and are presented in this report for your information. Challenges Much of the previous year has been characterised by uncertainty, with the shifting national health reform process, the announcement of the first group of Medicare Locals; reviews, restructures and new plans from state and regional departments of health and human services; and the change in state government in December 2010.

The volume of work generated by these changes, and the lack of information about governance structures offered by the divisions of general practice, add to the sense of uncertainty in how we might best engage in catchment planning processes for the benefit of women in our region. Ongoing uncertainty is likely to be a feature of our work over the coming year.

WHW finished the financial year with a deficit of $3,719 after ensuring that any unspent specific purpose funds from reciprocal grants were preserved and allocated in the new budget to ensure programs meet their requirements in the coming year.

Nevertheless, WHW are clear that the needs of the women and children we work with in the western region have not changed, and inequity in health outcomes continue to plague the most disadvantaged of our population groups. As a result, WHW has steadily continued to respond to service demands, scanning the political environment for opportunities for engagement, participation and response, and developing our relationships with new ministers and members of parliament.

WHW also set aside organisational funds from other reserves this financial year to support the rent and refurbishment of an

A forward thinking board with renewed energy We would like to thank outgoing board directors Meg Bumpstead (Chair

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

2009-2010), Naomi Raab and Kirsty McIntyre for their significant contributions, including their energy, commitment and firm belief in our ability to achieve our strategic plan. The board welcomed five new directors in 2011: Catherine Bateman, Lara Rafferty, Peta Olive, Claire Culley and Leigh Russell. A rigorous recruitment process has resulted in a complementary mix of knowledge, skills and experience to ensure the sustainability of the board and to enhance our approach to governance and robust decision-making. The board has focused this renewed energy and resolve on realising our commitment to become a ‘strategic thinking’ organisation. We have reviewed our governance strategic action plan, drafted a learning and development plan, and realigned board task groups to match the skill sets of incoming board directors with our strategic objectives. Future directions Our priority continues to be the delivery of responsive, value-for-money services that are evidence-based, woman-centred, accountable and innovative, to meet the needs of our community. This includes continuing to work alongside our partners, including the state and federal government, primary care partnerships, peak bodies, formal service delivery partners, and individuals and agencies in the community.

In the coming year WHW will be gearing up for our second round of accreditation. To complement this we plan to rewrite the risk management database to ensure it more accurately reflects the risks faced by WHW. We will also review our 2009-2012 strategic plan and develop the 20122015 plan. This will require clear engagement with our partners and careful scanning of the political and economic environment in the face of ongoing change.

We have a number of strategies planned for the coming year, including the development of a client/ service user participation strategy, a staff learning and development strategy, and an organisation-wide advocacy plan. Advocacy for increased funds to respond to the often-invisible needs of children who experience family violence will be a particular focus of our work, as will ongoing advocacy for the pay equity case currently before Fair Work Australia. While the outcome is yet to be determined, WHW will continue to advocate for a commitment from state and federal governments to fully fund the anticipated increase in staff wages to ensure this does not impact on service delivery or organisational capacity. At the award ceremony for the Australasian Reporting Awards, one of the judges commented that what really impressed him about WHW was the amount of work we undertake, in comparison to our size and our budget. He hoped that our funding bodies recognise what extraordinary value for money WHW offers. It is our hope that this report again shows the extraordinary hard work of the staff and board of WHW in delivering an extensive range of quality services with scarce resources. With a renewed board of directors with expertise and commitment to WHW, along with our hard-working and committed staff, and our tireless partners, united by a common purpose - equity and justice for women in the western region – WHW is well-placed for the future.

Georgie Hill Chair

Robyn Gregory Robyn Gregory CEO

Treasurer’s Report

Family Violence Services

Figure 3

Donations Investments Other income

Karen Passey Treasurer

The result this year continues to reflect a solid position for WHW in a difficult financial climate, with an increase in income of $79,518 bringing our total revenue to $3,271,516 (see fig 3). Our expenses came to $3,275,235 (see fig 4) leaving a small deficit of $3,719 after all commitments had been made.

Other grants Government funding

Figure 4

Factors contributing to this outcome were a decrease in ‘other grants and income’ and a smaller profit on disposable assets. State government income represents around 93 per cent of our overall income directly associated with program delivery. Close to 81 per cent of our expenditure is linked to the provision of skilled staff to deliver our funding and service agreements designed to support women in our community. Last financial year we implemented the Victorian Standard Chart of Accounts (SCOA) as recommended by our major funding agency, the Department of Human Services, and adopted by all government departments and agencies. While this standard will reduce administrative costs and enhance accountability and transparency in the future, the changeover has resulted in inevitable complexity when comparing annual financial results. This financial year our focus has been on consolidation and we have invested resources to ensure the SCOA is embedded. Although our capital investment capacity is limited, we continued to implement a three-year information and communication technology strategy, including an upgrade of our computers, to ensure the organisation continues to deliver program requirements in the most cost effective manner.

Programs Accountability and administration Communication and promotion

The Finance and Risk Committee is responsible for regulatory compliance and mitigation of risk and this year focussed on investment in specialist risk management training for all staff. The Finance and Risk Committee, together with the board of directors, has agreed to a sound ethical investment strategy to ensure strong fiscal management of our assets despite challenging financial times both locally and globally. WHW set aside organisational funds from other reserves this financial year to support the rent and refurbishment of an additional floor in our current building. We have continued to set aside funds. One of our key objectives is to find long term, secure and sustainable accommodation for the continued delivery of our services.

We expect that financial conditions for all not-for–profit organisations will remain tight and the WHW management team and board of directors will continue to closely monitor our performance through the coming year to ensure we maximise the use of our funds through responsible management. I encourage you to read our annual report, which demonstrates the expertise in financial management of the CEO and staff to enable them to deliver on such a broad range of programs for women in the west.

Over the past year WHW’s family violence service has excelled in an environment of continued change and uncertainty. We are particularly proud to report the following highlights against our strategic goals. Delivering and advocating for accessible and culturally appropriate services and resources for women across the region • In August 2010 the family violence management team underwent a restructure, introducing a coordinator who is responsible for the 24-hour crisis service, court support, client high-risk strategy and faxback response. See pages 15 and 16 for detailed outcomes

• The partnership operations group worked with the WHW communications team to develop a ‘safe at home’ media campaign including a website, posters and safety booklets to be launched in the next reporting period. See page 20 Improving the conditions in which women live, work and play in the western region of Melbourne • WHW provided long-term family violence support and housing to seven women and their children through the ‘A Place Called Home’ program that supports families into public housing with minimal disruptions, by turning their transitional housing property into long-term housing. See page 18

• WHW played a lead role in implementing the ‘safe at home’ program designed to assist women to remain in their home and have the violent person leave. We have also introduced an expanded 24-hour service by working collaboratively with our colleagues in the Western Integrated Family Violence Partnership. For details see page 20

Working with others to achieve our goals • Our family violence outreach workers continued to work within men’s behavioral change programs at Lifeworks and Relationships Australia to provide services to women who have experienced family violence and enhance relationships between women’s and men’s services

Recognising that good health, safety and wellbeing begin in the workplace WHW introduced pay equity across case management services, with the result that our refuge workers – whose funding model differs from other family violence workers – are paid at the same rate as our family violence outreach workers

• WHW endorsed the client high-risk strategy resulting in a partnership between WHW, men’s behavioural change programs and Victoria Police, which coordinates responses to women at immediate risk of severe violence or death as a result of family violence

• We will advocate for funding that would enable us to increase the hours of the intensive case manager for women with a disability from less than two days per week to a full time position

• WHW contributed to the Western Think Child Working Group to improve links between family violence, child protection, Child FIRST and family support agencies. The outcome is a partnership agreement that has strengthened referral processes. See page 22

Future directions • We plan to pilot a children’s advocacy case manager position to respond to the demand for children’s services and to collect evidence to support our case for increased resources for children who experience or witness family violence

• We plan to place an outreach worker at Child FIRST Melton Brimbank one day a week over a six-month pilot period

Putting women’s health, safety and wellbeing on the political agenda to improve the status of women • In May 2010 the WIFVP put forward a submission to the state government Protecting Victorian Vulnerable Children Inquiry. We emphasised the importance of support services for children who have experienced family violence trauma and suggested ways that family violence specialist services can work in collaboration with child protection • In January 2011 the WIFVP submitted a response to the Family Law Amendment (Family Violence) Bill 2010, a Federal Government initiative to improve the safety of victims of family violence, including children

Karen Passey Treasurer

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

Family Violence Services Data Figure 5

PROGRAMS

Intake and Outreach Intake One-off Telephone Support Intake Appointments and Drop In Intake Secondary Consultations Court Support Case Management Accompanying Children (case management)

INTAKE SERVICE

1011

0910

0809

0708

0607

1,882 361 748

2,193 191 825

1,702 N/A 956

1,688 N/A 760

1,411 N/A 696

762 314

634 379

376 373

360 394

389 566

1,351

1,325

1,338

1,367

1,432

Crisis Accommodation Refuge Accompanying Children CALD Housing Program A Place to Call Home*

51 199 52 7

79 237 48 N/A

92 283 55 N/A

66 242 57 N/A

91 280 67 N/A

Counselling Children

110

118

Victim’s Assistance Counselling Program Other Programs After Hours Police Faxbacks Received W/day Police Faxbacks Received W/end* Total Police Faxbacks Received Intensive Case Management Disability Intensive Case Management Private Rental Brokerage Housing Options Crisis response* Safe at home*

114

Intake workers are the first point of contact for women entering family violence services. They offer a telephone or face-to-face crisis response and coordinate referrals to WHW and other services. The service also provides a critical coordination role by responding to police faxback referrals, requests for secondary consultation, coordinating court support for clients, and monitoring the case management services waiting list.

110 1,609 N/A N/A

104 1,385 N/A N/A

58 1,066 N/A N/A

128 708 N/A N/A

N/A

46 5 75 32+61 kids

39 6 N/A N/A

29 5 N/A N/A

25 6 N/A N/A

31 7 N/A N/A

Faxback response Drop ins Appointments Secondary consultation

OBJECTIVE Provide a well-coordinated central access point for women and children’s family violence services in the western region

STRATEGIES 1. Conduct telephone and face-to-face risk assessments, provide information, support and referral, and identify interim safety plans for women experiencing family violence

132

216 1,938 424 2,362

Figure 6

2. Support the 24-hour crisis response team to respond to faxback referrals from local police (see also page 15)

3. Provide specialist family violence consultations (average of 12 per week) to other service providers

4. Coordinate and provide interim support to an average of 5 women a month on the case management waiting list for no longer than 10 working days

5. Compile and maintain a daily schedule of at least 77 women per year requiring court support at the three designated magistrate courts in our region, arising from faxback and other referral sources 6. Continue to advocate for specific funding for the intake service

Asterisk (*) indicates programs introduced in this reporting period

Phone contact

OUTCOMES 1. Provided telephone support, information, advocacy and referral in response to 1,882 enquiries from women. Delivered 361 face-to-face supports to women and children in crisis, which, like last year, is an increase of nearly 50 per cent

2. Intake staff responded to 898 police faxback referrals from July - September 2010. After commencement of the 24 hour crisis response service in October 2010, intake staff shared 1,464 referrals with the crisis response team (note in figure 6, only July-September faxback referrals listed)

3. Provided 748 secondary consultations (more than 14 per week) to external service providers, including advice to case workers on conducting family violence risk assessments and writing safety plans. See figure 6 4. Managed and provided interim responses to an average of 7 women per month on the case management waiting list for an average duration of 5 working days

FUTURE DIRECTIONS Like other family violence and homelessness services from 1 July 2011, WHW will replace the SMART data collection system with the Specialist Homelessness Information Platform (SHIP). We expect improvements in the quality of data resulting from the capacity to: • Count children as clients in their own right • Record information on the number of people we cannot service

We anticipate the main challenge of implementing SHIP will be the requirement to collect extensive details about the client and the support WHW provided. If time consuming, this could reduce our capacity to respond to calls. Also, clients who fear for their safety may be reluctant to provide extensive details during a first contact

5. Provided court support workers with daily schedules of an average of 63 women per month who required support, an increase of 8 women per month since the previous reporting period 6. Raised the topic of intake-specific funding at all meetings with Department of Human Services

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

FAMILY VIOLENCE OUTREACH

Family violence outreach case managers provide transitional support to women experiencing family violence. Case managers coordinate resources relating to housing, legal, health and other matters required to support the long-term safety of women and children. They also work across specific local government areas to facilitate professional and advocacy networks. OBJECTIVE Ensure women and children who experience family violence can access timely and relevant services and resources, regardless of their location in the region STRATEGIES 1. Provide case management services to 522 women and their children 2. Outpost workers to 4 locations in the outer west to increase access to services 3. Strengthen links with men’s services to ensure access to services by the women partners of men who use violence

4. Develop strong partnerships with agencies including legal services, police, housing, Centrelink, family and youth services to facilitate a more streamlined experience of the service system for women

5. Deliver tailored information sessions to relevant agencies and groups to improve the capacity of local communities to respond to women and children who experience family violence

Figure 7

Indigenous CALD Anglo-Australian

OUTCOMES 1. Provided case management services to 314 women and their children, or 60 per cent of our target. The remaining 40 per cent of targets were directed toward providing an otherwise unfunded intake service that responded to over 3,800 intake enquiries

2. Provided a total of 5 outpost services to Melton, Point Cook, Werribee and, as planned in the previous report, Carlton Family Resource Centre plus another location in the city of Melbourne. This resulted in 236 clients receiving a more accessible service; an increase of nearly 32 per cent compared with the previous year 3. We worked in partnership with Lifeworks and Relationships Australia to provide partner contact for the men’s behaviour change program and 75 women accessed our service as a result

4. Outreach workers attended family violence network meetings across 7 local government areas. The outreach team also collaborated with the Women’s Circus to facilitate a 27-week women’s group with 6 regular participants

5. Provided 17 sessions of family violence community education with 257 participants (see page 34 for details). These sessions were targeted to communities and agencies. Feedback from participants indicated that the sessions would positively influence their future work with clients FUTURE DIRECTIONS • WHW will work with Victoria Police to develop a strategy for responding to family violence in circumstances where women contact police on multiple occasions. We will employ a police liaison worker to work in collaboration with Victoria Police to coordinate responses tailored to each family to stop the violence

• WHW will advocate for funding to establish an ongoing children’s case manager position. We plan to pilot a part time position in the next reporting period to gather evidence for recurrent funding for this much-needed role Figure 8

‘My life is more resolved and on track because of you all. It was difficult for me to face these problems without your support.’ 52+ weeks

Outreach Client

26-52 weeks 13-26 weeks

24-HOUR CRISIS RESPONSE PROGRAM

Figure 9

The 24-hour crisis response program provides an immediate face-to-face response to women and their children who are facing a family violence-related crisis. This enhances the intake service by providing a worker to assist victims of family violence wherever they are within the western region, such as a police station or hospital, ensuring support and information at the time of crisis.

Other WHW Crisis Accommodation Services Hospital Victoria Police Women's Health West Women's Domestic Violence Crisis Service

OBJECTIVE Provide a 24-hour, 7 day a week family violence service to women and children to ensure crisis support is available as quickly as possible STRATEGIES 1. Employ a crisis worker to respond immediately to women’s requests for support on weekdays from 9am to 5pm. This worker will provide information, risk assessment, safety planning and advocacy

2. Provide an after hours family violence service by ensuring that a worker is available from 6pm to 8am, Monday to Friday, and 24-hours on weekends and public holidays 3. Respond to weekday faxed police referrals within 72 hours of a family violence incident 4. Introduce a weekend service in collaboration with McAuley Community Services for Women and Molly’s House to respond to faxed police referrals OUTCOMES 1. The crisis response worker has assisted 75 women and provided consultation services to external agencies on 184 occasions since her employment in November 2010. This worker also provided education and WHW service information sessions at 15 agencies in the western region and across the state

Figure 10

July 2010

Women

August 2010

Children

Sept 2010 Oct 2010 Nov 2010 Dec 2010 Jan 2011 Feb 2011 Mar 2011 April 2011 May 2011 June 2011 0

Other Maribyrnong Hobsons Bay Melton

3. Responded to 1,938 weekday faxback referrals from Victoria Police, 80 per cent were responded to within 72 hours

Melbourne Moonee Valley

4. Introduced a weekend response to Victoria Police referrals in September 2010 and workers from WHW, Molly’s House and McAuley Community Services for Women responded to 424 police referrals FUTURE DIRECTION At the WHW family violence services planning day in May 2011 we identified gaps in the service system leading to a plan to focus on family violence responses to Indigenous women, children, young women and adolescent violence towards parents

Wyndham Brimbank

Figure 12

708

2006/2007

1066

2008/2009

2-4 weeks

1,385 1,609

2009/2010

2,362

2010/2011 0

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

Figure 11

2007/2008

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

2. WHW after hours service assisted 216 women and 90 children, almost double the 110 women assisted in the previous reporting period. We attribute this marked increase to the expansion of the after hours program into a coordinated 24-hour crisis response service. See figure 9

4-13 weeks

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

INTENSIVE CASE MANAGEMENT

The intensive case manager provides family violence support to women with complex needs and their children. The service targets women who experience multiple barriers to the service system and have difficulty escaping an abusive partner/ex-partner because of those barriers. The duration of intensive case management support is longer (6 month average) than the transitional case management support (3 month average) provided by other case managers in the outreach team. OBJECTIVE Ensure that clients with complex needs receive a comprehensive case management service designed to assist them to overcome long-term family violence, access specialist services, and secure safe and sustainable housing STRATEGIES 1. Provide up to 16 women with an average of 6 months of intensive case management support

2. Implement client engagement strategies designed to build trust with women whose previous experiences of community services, justice, police and family violence systems have been negative

3. When a woman is assessed as having an escalated risk, refer her to the high-risk notification register to coordinate the responses of all agencies involved and establish a safety plan in conjunction with those agencies and Victoria Police

4. Develop strategies to ensure intensive case management clients have access to therapeutic interventions in addition to ongoing assessment and monitoring of risk OUTCOMES 1. Provided intensive case management to 14 women; one woman accessed the service twice and another three times, resulting in 17 support periods

2. Client engagement strategies involved acknowledging that women have had negative experiences with services in the past and, prior to investigating long-term solutions, the intensive case manager actively built the client-worker relationship by providing an extended period of crisis and trauma counselling. We also created and maintained realistic expectations by continually reviewing the case plan goals. Return visits to WHW show that women feel engaged with our service.

3. Of the 14 clients seen; 2 were referred to the high-risk notification register and strategies to respond to the risk were established during 5 case conferences with Victoria Police and other involved agencies

4. Clients accessed therapeutic counselling support in a range of ways, 4 clients were referred to external services, 2 clients were referred to counselling by child support and the remaining clients were either already linked to mental health services or were not yet ready to undertake therapeutic interventions FUTURE DIRECTIONS Women accessing this program are generally very socially isolated. We will build on our work with individual women by supporting them to identify personal interests and linking them to programs and organisations within the community such as sport, hobbies, children’s activities, book clubs, libraries and neighbourhood houses

WOMEN WITH A DISABILITY INTENSIVE CASE MANAGEMENT

The two-year intensive case management project for women with a disability, completed during this reporting period, worked to build the capacity of the service system to reduce barriers for women with a disability in accessing family violence services and provide support and advocacy to women with disabilities. OBJECTIVES Support women with a disability who experience family violence by building the capacity of family violence and disability services to work together to provide intensive case management services STRATEGIES 1. Provide an intensive case management service to at least 6 women with a disability who experience family violence 2. Convene and facilitate at least 4 advisory group meetings with representatives from family violence and disability sectors to guide the project

3. Develop strategies to support a shared understanding of the barriers facing women with disabilities who experience family violence 4. Deliver 2 family violence training sessions in collaboration with local and regional disability services to build their capacity to respond to women with a disability who have experienced family violence

5. Promote the project at regional and state levels with agencies and advocacy groups to showcase work undertaken by the project 6. Develop a model of best practice for Victorian family violence workers tailoring the existing intensive case management model to the needs of women with a disability OUTCOMES 1. Provided intensive case management support to 6 women with a disability

2. Project worker convened and facilitated 6 advisory group meetings with representatives from Annecto, Women’s Domestic Violence Service, Women with Disabilities Network, North West Region Department Human Services Disability Client Services, Mambourin Enterprises and Victoria Police 3. Strategy developed to hold practitioner working groups to explore the best ways of working together – three groups were convened, attended by family violence and disability workers

4. Worked in partnership with Domestic Violence Resource Centre Victoria to develop a common risk assessment framework (CRAF) training package tailored to disability workers, and provided 2 sessions of common risk assessment framework training to 40 Department of Human Services disability workers (20 in each session) in partnership with Domestic Violence Resource Centre Victoria

5. Presented a paper at the 10th ASSID Disability Support Conference in collaboration with the Housing Resource and Support Service, and Women with Disabilities Victoria

CRISIS ACCOMMODATION SERVICE

WHW Crisis Accommodation Service comprises crisis accommodation properties and outreach services to other crisis and transitional housing properties that provide shelter for women and their children escaping family violence.

Figure 13

OBJECTIVE Ensure that women and their children are able to escape family violence by providing crisis accommodation and specialised, culturally-appropriate family violence support services to assist them to access long term housing and re-establish safe lives STRATEGIES 1. Provide women and their children with crisis accommodation and case management services for 70-80 periods of support. Support includes emotional support and referral to recovery services to deal with the impact of family violence; strategies to ensure ongoing safety including legal information, financial assistance and court support; and assistance accessing transitional, public and private housing options 2. Ensure that the specific needs of children are met through recreational and developmental activities that facilitate children’s healing and recovery from violence and abuse

3. Explore ways to reduce the percentage of women leaving the refuge within 7 days OUTCOMES 1. Provided 51 women and 199 children with 74 periods of support, including post-refuge case management support in transitional housing 2. The children’s worker organised a recreational trip to Luna Park this year for 3 women and their 10 children; 7 children and their mums attended school holiday activities at Federation Square; and 13 children and their mother’s attended the Variety Christmas Party. Developmental activities included making a veggie patch, initially involving 5 children; and running an arts group 3 times a week with children residing at the refuge

26-52 weeks 13-26 weeks 4-13 weeks 4 weeks 4-7 days 1-3 days < 1 day

Figure 14

Not known Returned home Allocated APTCH property Allocated public housing Moved in with family and friends Relocated out of the state Transitional housing Crisis accommodation properties

3. Last year 35 per cent of women stayed in the refuge for less than a week and this year that figure reduced to 4 per cent following the development of improved intake processes; we now acknowledge and respond to women’s anxiety and fear when they first arrive at refuge prior to attending to administrative processes (see figure 13) FUTURE DIRECTIONS • Develop strategies to improve relationships between women in refuge • WHW welcome the Office of Housing review of the funding and practice model for the refuge program. The current model was developed in the 1980s and defines ‘crisis’ as a period of 2-4 weeks. This no longer meets the needs of women and children accessing the program, with over 64 per cent of WHW clients requiring support for longer than 4 weeks

6. Completed draft report outlining best practice model, including 3 cases studies as evidence of best practice

FUTURE DIRECTIONS Complete the project report in late 2011 and use evidence to advocate for recurrent funding for a full time position to support the delivery and development of appropriate and accessible intensive case management services to women with a disability

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

A PLACE TO CALL HOME

As a support agency for the A Place to Call Home (APTCH) program, WHW nominate women and their children who have experienced family violence to fill up to 20 properties over 4 years depending on funding. We provide women in these properties with case management support for 12-14 months until the properties are assigned to the women as public housing. OBJECTIVE Reduce the level of homelessness of women and their children who experience family violence and remove the instability associated with temporary accommodation by providing long term housing properties, intensive case management and brokerage options STRATEGIES 1. Form an advisory group to guide the direction of the project 2. Employ a case manager to develop case plans in consultation with 5 women indicating:

‘…I had no place to live, no money. Now I have a nice unit and enough money to live.’ Private Rental Brokerage client

PRIVATE RENTAL BROKERAGE

This program provides support and financial assistance for women to attain or remain in safe and sustainable private housing. OBJECTIVE Improve the living conditions of women leaving situations of family violence by providing short-term financial assistance to assist them to access and maintain independent, affordable and appropriate long-term private rental housing STRATEGY Provide a maximum of $1,500 financial assistance to 32 women who meet the criteria for the program in conjunction with case management support. In 2009-10 we anticipated increased demand on this program and decreased the maximum amount of assistance available from $2,000 to $1,500 to allow us to assist additional women OUTCOME Successfully assisted 46 women to obtain or remain in private rental housing for periods of 3-6 months, compared to 39 women assisted in the previous reporting period FUTURE DIRECTIONS • We will continue to be responsive and flexible when allocating funding, to assist as many women as possible. Clients can struggle to secure accommodation in the current private rental market as a result of increased rents and reduced stock available. However, private rental continues to be a more realistic option for many women given the lack of available public and community housing • WHW will continue to advocate with a range of agencies on behalf of individual clients and will keep affordable and stable housing for women and children on the agenda when engaging with local and state government funding bodies and other relevant agencies

• Expected level of client worker contact over 12-14 months • Resources ($4000 and intensive case management support) allocated to assist family to integrate into new community • Outreach to develop community connections

• Cultural support needs including a recommendation by DHS that 10 per cent of all APTCH properties are allocated to Indigenous clients • Case plan review schedule

3. Participate in formal data collection and a Department of Human Services evaluation of the program

4. Liaise quarterly with Department of Human Services and submit 6-monthly report on funds expenditure OUTCOMES 1. Established 15-member advisory group representing family violence and disability sectors within 3 months of project commencement

2. Employed APTCH case manager for 3 days a week in March 2011 who supported 5 women and their children to obtain properties. An additional 2 women and their children residing in transitional housing were provided with brokerage funds and case management support only because of the lack of availability of multi-bedroom APTCH properties for large families of 4-8 children 3. Added APTCH-specific questions to the SMART data collection tool in October 2010. In the next reporting period SMART will be upgraded to the Specialist Homelessness Information Platform and we will ensure that APTCH-specific questions are included in that system 4. Provided updates on referrals and brokerage spending at 4 APTCH review meetings with the Department of Human Services

FUTURE DIRECTIONS Advocate for larger APTCH properties that can accommodate women with large families

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

CULTURALLY AND LINGUISTICALLY DIVERSE CRISIS HOUSING PROGRAM

The CALD housing program is a culturally specific family violence case management service supporting CALD women’s access to safe, long-term housing. WHW has nomination rights to place women in 17 transitional housing properties managed by Yarra Community Housing Services, Salvation Army Social Housing Service and Women’s Housing Limited. The CALD housing program manages 2 crisis accommodation properties and has nomination rights for 3 others. OBJECTIVE Ensure that women from CALD communities who experience family violence are able to access culturally appropriate crisis accommodation and case management support to assist them and their children to establish safe lives STRATEGIES 1. Provide case management services to 52 CALD women and their children escaping family violence and housed in crisis accommodation or transitional housing properties to which WHW have allocation rights. Women are supported for the period they are housed in these properties so the duration of case management can last up to 2 years with the intensity of contact tapering off over time. Case management includes coordinating client access to properties in consultation with WHW family violence outreach and crisis accommodation services staff 2. Manage WHW’s 2 crisis accommodation properties to ensure that residents are safe and that the properties are in good condition

3. Assist CALD women to apply for private rental accommodation through real estate agents, bond loans or WHW private rental brokerage funds, and monitor the number of CALD women having to live with family, friends and other persons due to the shortage of safe, affordable housing

4. Provide secondary consultation and professional development sessions to other services that work with CALD women and children to highlight the barriers they experience escaping family violence OUTCOMES 1. Provided case management for 52 women and their children from a variety of backgrounds, with half requiring an interpreter service. The two largest groups were Sudanese and Vietnamese women. See figure 15 for further detail. Case management involved initial and ongoing safety assessments, emotional support and practical assistance, including accessing financial counselling and assistance, and general counselling through the Victims Assistance and Counselling Program. Placed 15 clients in transitional housing in consultation with 21 WHW family violence workers. See figure 16 for housing outcomes of individual CALD clients

2. Over the reporting year, 8 women stayed in the 2 WHW crisis accommodation properties. Women waiting for permanent visas and social security benefits can wait in crisis accommodation properties for more than 18 months. Difficulties concerning immigration featured in 3 cases, with 2 of those women staying in crisis accommodation for 10 months before attaining permanent visas and benefits and moving to transitional housing. The remaining woman continues to reside in the property after 4 months and still awaits permanent residency women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

‘I’m very happy with my new property. I haven’t stopped smiling all week.’ CALD housing client

Figure 15

Sudanese Arabic Vietnamese Arabic Chinese Thai Amharic Italian Indian Turkish Dinka Serbian Egyptian Swahili Filipino Spanish Samoan Iraqi Serbian

2 2 2

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0

3 3

10 10

Clients Figure 16

Crisis accommodation properties Transitional housing Crisis accommodation properties Relocated out of the state Transitional housing Moved in with family and friends Relocated out of the state Allocated public housing Moved in with family and friends Private rental Allocated public housing Returned home Private rental Not known Returned home Not known

Clients

3. Assisted 5 women to find private rental accommodation by providing transport to view properties, advocating for women with real estate agents, and assisting them to access bond loans through the Office of Housing. The remaining 3 women were provided private rental brokerage funds. The number of women who moved in with friends because of a lack of available housing options doubled from 3 to 6 this year

4. Provided a total of 120 secondary consultations during the reporting period, plus 1 professional development session to Western Women’s Break the Cycle Program at Djerriwarrh Health Service in Caroline Springs FUTURE DIRECTIONS We will advocate strongly for accessible and culturally appropriate services for CALD women and children who have experienced family violence by networking with Office of Housing and transitional housing management services, real estate agents, lawyers and financial and psychological counselling services

VICTIM’S ASSISTANCE COUNSELLING PROGRAM

SAFE AT HOME

COURT SUPPORT

Family violence outreach workers provide court support to women at three magistrates’ courts in the western region - Melbourne, Sunshine and Werribee. OBJECTIVE Deliver accessible services for women in the western region by providing outreach court support to a minimum of 77 women seeking intervention orders STRATEGIES Provide an outreach worker at: • Werribee Magistrates’ court one day a week

• Melbourne Magistrates’ court one day a week — explore reasons for low client numbers and develop strategies to increase access to services • Sunshine Magistrates’ court three days a week

The outreach worker: • Explains court processes, in particular intervention orders, their conditions, breaches and how to report them

• Provides emotional support to women who are often fearful of retribution • Liaises with court staff, legal services and police

• Conducts risk assessments and safety planning when needed

• Refers women to relevant services including the WHW family violence outreach program OUTCOMES Demand for court support continues to increase. This year we provided assistance to 762 women across three courts – nearly ten times our target. On average we saw: • 4 clients per week at Werribee, an increase of 1 client per week since last year • 2 clients per week at Melbourne, an increase of 1 client per week since last year. We undertook a 3-month trial of outreach worker attendance on Wednesdays instead of Mondays, in response to identified gaps. Following the success of this strategy the worker is now permanently out posted to the Melbourne Court on Wednesdays

• 9 clients per week at Sunshine, an increase of 2 clients per week since last year

FUTURE DIRECTIONS We will continue to provide court support to three courts. Our data indicates that our yearly target is routinely exceeded. To accommodate this exponential increase in demand workers must limit the time spent with clients; this strategy is not sustainable so we continue to advocate for changes to the funding model that will support both the volume and the needs of individual women

The Safe at Home program works with women who are considering whether it is safe to stay in their home rather than leave after experiencing family violence. Staff assist women to make safety plans, obtain intervention orders that exclude the perpetrator from the home, and access funds to improve their home security. OBJECTIVE Provide practical and financial assistance to meet the immediate safety and wellbeing needs of a minimum of 29 women who have experienced family violence to allow them to remain in their home and have the violent person leave STRATEGIES 1. Provide safety planning and case management support to assist a minimum of 29 women and their children to remain safely in the family home where appropriate

2. Coordinate the provision of a minimum of 30 home safety strategies including lock changes, door and window repairs, safety lighting, purchase of landline or mobile telephones with credit, and personal alarms 3. Provide court support to assist women to apply for an intervention order containing a clause that excludes the perpetrator from the home

4. Provide support and referral to crisis accommodation for women awaiting an intervention order OUTCOMES 1. Safe at Home supported 32 women and 61 children to remain in their home in this reporting period

2. Spent a total of $8,250 in brokerage funds improving the safety of 32 families through 91 security installations, upgrades and/or repairs 3.

Provided court support to 24 women to obtain intervention orders; 11 orders included a clause to exclude the perpetrator from the home, the remaining 13 women either no longer lived with the perpetrator or chose not to request an exclusion condition Supported 3 families to find interim crisis accommodation while they waited for their intervention orders to be finalised

FUTURE DIRECTIONS • WHW will promote the program to the wider community through a publicity campaign designed to challenge traditional community perceptions that women and children should leave their home after experiencing family violence • Federal funding for this program will end after two years so WHW will collect evidence to show the efficacy of the program when advocating for ongoing funding Figure 17

Description of security item provided

No. of items

Re-key/replace locks on doors and windows Diaries to assist women to document incidents as part of their safety plan Install security devices

Repair windows and doors

TOTAL

32 13 91

Note: Since one woman might require a number of security items, total items are not equal to the total number of women supported.

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

WHW works in partnership with Western Region Health Centre to provide up to 5 free counselling sessions to support recovery for women who are victims of family violence and who have reported an incident to the police or have an intervention order. OBJECTIVE Deliver professional, accessible and culturally appropriate counselling services for women seeking to recover from the effects of family violence. We create a safe space for women to speak about their trauma, identify their needs and strengths, protect their children, and feel encouraged to move towards their goals STRATEGIES 1. Provide 360 hours of counselling to 50 women who are seeking recovery from their experiences of family violence

2. Maintain a strong partnership with Western Region Health Centre who process VACP intake requests, and other agencies to ensure that a minimum of 50 women have access to support

3. Ensure that counselling staff are equipped with effective, evidence-based strategies to provide therapeutic services for women through six-weekly supervision and professional training 4. Lobby Department of Human Services and Department of Justice regarding the merit of the community counselling model 5. Ensure counseling is accessible to women in the outer western region by providing an outpost in Wyndham

OUTCOMES 1. Provided 251 hours of individual counselling to 44 clients. Targets were not met because the position was vacant for two months following difficulty recruiting into a nine-month maternity leave position

2. Participated in 4 cross-agency peer supervision sessions on a six-weekly basis with the Western Region Health Centre counselling team

3. Engaged in monthly supervision and training opportunities in the family violence field (see professional development on page 37) 4. From February to May 2011 WHW promoted the community counselling model at 7 KPMG-facilitated rapid development workshops with over 150 sector and government representatives (including Department of Human services and Department of Justice) to inform the development of practice guidelines for the integrated family violence system 5. Provided counselling for 12 clients at Isis Primary Care in Wyndham

FUTURE DIRECTIONS • Continue to promote the value of community counselling programs to funding bodies including the Department of Human Services and Department of Justice, and explore opportunities to access non-government funding to expand the availability of counselling to women victims of family violence • Support the recruitment and retention of staff in the sector through advocacy for wages and funding that reflects the value of the work and expertise required, to increase our ability to compete with the private sector for staff

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

Counsellor: What did you learn from the group? Child: I am not alone

CHILDREN’S COUNSELLING PROGRAM The children’s counselling program provides a therapeutic environment for children to express, make sense of, and recover from the trauma of witnessing and/or experiencing family violence. This occurs through individual counselling and therapeutic group work.

OBJECTIVE Provide access to counselling services and collaborate with agencies across the region to support the recovery of children who have experienced family violence. Our group work aims to build the capacity of mothers and carers to support and respond to their children as they recover STRATEGIES 1. Provide a regionally-accessible individual counselling service to 91 children using creative arts and play therapy 2. Co-facilitate two children’s therapeutic creative arts groups for 16 primary school age children in collaboration with other agencies 3. Involve mothers in individual counselling and group work to encourage their participation in their children’s recovery 4. Build the capacity of other family violence programs to deliver group work to children

5. Engage in collaborative advocacy for funding to increase our ability to respond to the needs of children who experience family violence OUTCOMES 1. Provided individual counselling to 95 children in the western region including sessions with 29 children in Hoppers Crossing and 12 in Melton

2. Partnered with ISIS Primary Care, Community for Children, and Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service Sunshine to run 2 children’s therapeutic arts groups for 15 children. Each group ran for 8 weeks, with 10 children at Hoppers Crossing and 5 participants in Sunshine

3. Eight mothers attended 3 sessions as part of the 8-week children’s therapeutic art group

4. WHW’s CAS children’s worker helped facilitate the Hoppers Crossing group, enhancing her capacity to run groups in the refuge (see page 17) 5. Provided DHS with data on unmet demand for children’s counselling services, case studies and evaluation reports on demand strategies. Overwhelming demand led us to close our waiting list, with up to 16 children waiting for up to 4 months. Demand management strategies included the introduction of ‘meet the counsellor’ sessions for mums FUTURE DIRECTIONS • Better manage demand by providing interim group information sessions for mothers and carers while they are on the waiting list

• Introduce an open studio school holiday art group for children’s counselling clients nearing the end of their therapy

• Develop a flyer and other resources that capture the voices of the children who have experienced violence and use these to assist other children and educate workers

FAMILY VIOLENCE REGIONAL INTEGRATION COORDINATION The family violence regional integration coordinator provides community-based leadership to promote, develop and enhance integrated approaches to family violence, and reports to the Western Integrated Family Violence Committee (WIFVC). The role is auspiced by Women’s Health West.

OUTCOMES 1. Participated in 3 consultations at Maribyrnong City Council, WHW and Western Region Health Centre in the process for development of the 2010-2014 action plan. Built partnerships and shared key information by attending 23 regular statewide, regional and sub-regional meetings

OBJECTIVE Provide information, resources and support to implement the WIFVC action plan aimed at achieving the goals of integrating family violence services in the western metropolitan sub-region

2. Advocated to members of parliament for adequate resourcing of family violence services, in particular: 2.1 Worked with Domestic Violence Victoria on a family violence-specific children’s counselling campaign that featured in local, state and national newspapers, television news, local radio and social media 2.2 Provided members of parliament with comparative data and information on response patterns to ensure continued resourcing of Victoria Police family violence response units

STRATEGIES 1. Participate in the development of the 2010-14 WIFVC action plan, including provision of key information to inform the environmental context in which the plan is being developed 2. Support organisations in the western region to commit to agreed integration frameworks by advocating for adequate resources to enable this commitment to occur

3. In October 2010 the northwest metropolitan region committee committed to the ‘Think Child’ partnership agreement to 3. Facilitate the development of collaborative working enhance relationships between family violence services, relationships, clear referral pathways and intake processes child first/family services and DHS child protection services. between agencies that respond to family violence, including Implementation has strengthened local intake processes and the development of a partnership agreement between family increased referral and co-case management. violence services, child protection and child first/ family 3.1 The Western Think Child working group mapped services family violence responses for children and young people 3.1 Map responses to children and young people to to determine the need for resources. Recommendations determine the need for resources will be published in the next reporting period 3.2 Identify an action for the WIFVC and the Aboriginal 3.2 The WIFVC, as members of the North-West Men’s Regional Action Group (RAG) to work on together Integrated Family Violence Partnership, supported the 4. Encourage and provide resources to support community RAG to develop the Centre for Males, a holistic centre education and family violence prevention strategies for indigenous men, to be launched in the next reporting period

Health Promotion, Research and Development In the last 12 months our health promotion, research and development team has worked with external partners, agencies and the community to deliver a range of projects across our priority areas of: • Mental wellbeing and social connectedness • Sexual and reproductive health and • Equity and social justice

Improving the conditions in which women live, work and play in the western region of Melbourne

We aim to achieve sustainable prevention of ill-health by improving the broader social, political and environmental conditions that affect women, rather than focusing on individual behaviour change. For example, at this year’s Australian Health Promotion Conference WHW showcased several projects that tackle the social determinants of women’s health and wellbeing.

4. Allocated resources to the following violence prevention and community education projects: 4.1 The launch of Preventing Violence Together: The Western Region Action Plan to Prevent Violence Against Women attended by 100 guests (see page 30) 4.2 Funded a 15-week behaviour change group for 10 Vietnamese men 4.3 Contributed to the funding of WHW’s International Women’s Day event, I Am Strong, We Are Strong, attended by 150 women (see page 31) 4.4 Funded the White Ribbon Regional Leaders Lunch, attended by 150 mayors, councillors and Victoria Police representatives 4.5 WIFVC worked with the Western Region Football League Women in Football Foundation to launch family violence information cards for distribution to football clubs across Wyndham, Hobsons Bay and Maribyrnong FUTURE DIRECTIONS • Funding for full time family violence regional integration coordinators is due to revert to part-time on 30 June 2012, significantly limiting their capacity and effectiveness. We will gather evidence of the efficacy and importance of this position in the west to inform bids for continued resourcing at the current level Family violence-specific children’s counselling campaign produced by DV Vic with the family violence regional integration coordinator

• A workshop on our anti-racism project demonstrated to conference delegates the process we’re using to unveil the discrete, yet deeply embedded and institutionalised forms of racism that affect women’s opportunities and experiences • We presented our leading role in the development of a regional action plan for sexual and reproductive health promotion, and shared the approach that underpins our work with women from FGM-practising communities Delivering and advocating for accessible and culturally appropriate services and resources for women across the region

• Our professional development program at Western Health has built the capacity of medical, nursing and allied health staff to respond to the needs of women who are affected by female genital mutilation (FGM) • Training on the social and cultural aspects of FGM has enabled maternal and child health nurses to better understand and support affected women Recognising that good health, safety and wellbeing begin in the workplace

Given the expansion in the health promotion team over the last couple of years, we restructured the program to introduce two new coordinator positions. These positions provide more tailored support for staff within each of the priority areas and allow the manager to focus on broader planning and development work Working with others to achieve our goals

WHW recognises that we cannot achieve our goals alone and so we strongly emphasise collaborative project planning and delivery, and sharing our resources, expertise and knowledge with others. Highlights include: • Our regional leadership in the prevention of violence against women has resulted in councils and

• WIFVC and the Aboriginal regional action group will map Aboriginal-specific family violence funding and targets in mainstream services to identify gaps

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

• A paper on the Preventing Violence Together regional strategy outlined our role in supporting local councils and community health services to implement a suite of strategies to prevent violence against women

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

community health organisations signing on to deliver Preventing Violence Together, an action plan that is targeted and well-coordinated

• We led the regional Sexual and Reproductive Health Working Group to develop a framework that will guide regional action planning to redress the social determinants of sexual and reproductive health Putting women’s health, safety and wellbeing on the political agenda to improve the status of women

We have continued to advocate for women’s health, safety and wellbeing to remain a high priority on the regional health promotion agenda. This includes our substantial contribution to the primary care partnership health promotion networks at HealthWest Partnership and Inner North West PCP We submitted to a number of enquiries, including a critique of the representation of women and girls in marketing and advertising, advocating for the centrality of health promotion to redress the broad social factors that determine women’s health in national health reform, and promoting priority health issues for women in the Victorian Public Health and Wellbeing Plan 2011-2015 Future directions

• Lead the development of a regional health promotion action plan on sexual and reproductive health and involve a broad range of services and organisations in its design and delivery

• Train and resource others to deliver the Girls Talk – Guys Talk sexual health program

• Assist Preventing Violence Together signatories to design and deliver local and region-wide projects to prevent violence against women

• Advocate for sexual and reproductive health and prevention of violence against women as health promotion priorities in health and wellbeing plans at all levels of government

• Engage with community women, funding bodies and partner organisations to develop an evidencebased health promotion plan for WHW for 2012-2015

POWER ON

Power On is a twelve-week program designed for women who experience mental illness and is comprised of modules that women have identified as key to enhancing their health and wellbeing. The program uses a peer education approach that recognises women as experts in their own health. OBJECTIVE Promote the success of the Power On program to secure funding for agencies to implement the program within and outside the western region STRATEGIES 1. Build an evidence base of the success of the program by completing an evaluation of the programs implemented by 6 agencies working with 2 peer educators and 75 clients over 12 months in 2009-10 2. Maintain partnerships with local agencies and seek funding to continue the program in Victoria

GIRLS TALK - GUYS TALK

‘I have received lots of feedback from women who have participated in Power On. Many still speak about the experience years later with the overall opinion being an extremely uplifting and positive one. Norwood’s involvement in delivering Power On to women is invaluable and for us as staff members to deliver this amazing, empowering and life-changing program is an absolute honour. Power On will not only change the lives of women who participate but our lives too.’ Lyn O’Keefe, Power On Facilitator Norwood Services

3. Maintain and establish partnerships with interstate agencies to build their capacity to support women who experience mental illness by implementing the Power On program OUTCOMES 1. An evaluation of Power On in partnership with Norwood, Mental Illness Fellowship, Western Region Health Centre Outreach Service and Outer West, Isis Primary Care and Doutta Galla Community Health Service was completed in July 2010. Results indicate that all evaluation objectives were successfully achieved. Recommendations for improvement focused on streamlining the work required of host agencies 2. Power On was bequeathed a generous donation as a result of our last annual report, which has been allocated towards achieving sustainability. A formal consortium was not established this year because of competing demands, though we maintained strong partnerships with local mental health agencies, including:

• Western Region Health Centre (Outreach Service and Outer West) who allocated their own funding to implement Power On in partnership with WHW peer educators • Norwood Association, who allocated resources to WHW to provide additional facilitator training for their staff with the view to deliver Power On twice in the next reporting period

3. Provided consultative support to Aspire, a Tasmanian mental health agency, and Women’s Health Tasmania, who have each run the program 6 times, including in Burnie, Launceston and Hobart. Invited to train facilitators and peer educators at Footprints in Brisbane and the Family Service Group on the Gold Coast, following promotion of the program at a conference FUTURE DIRECTIONS • Continue to build and use the evidence base about the success of the program to advocate for funding to sustain Power On

• Continue to train facilitators, provide peer educators and offer support to agencies to implement Power On in the western region where funds are available

• Provide professional development to staff in Queensland who plan to implement Power On

POWER ON FOR CARERS

Power On for Carers is an eight-week program for women who are carers of people who experience mental illness. The program arose out of Power On at the request of carers and is based on the same peer education and strengthsbased approach. OBJECTIVE Work with Carers Victoria Respite Connections to take over the delivery and sustainability of Power On for Carers STRATEGIES 1. Negotiate and implement a training and support program at Carers Victoria Respite Connections to increase the pool of trained facilitators and peer educators from 1 of each to a total of 4 facilitators and 2 peer educators

Girls Talk – Guys Talk (GTGT) is a unique 14-month program that extends the World Health Organisation whole-ofschool approach by combining it with a year nine sexuality education program, the VicHealth participation for health framework for action, and a feminist approach to violence prevention. Since starting the program in 2006 WHW has found that it fosters a sustainable school environment in which young people gain the knowledge, skills and resources they require to build respectful relationships, develop leadership skills and make healthy sexual choices. OBJECTIVE Improve students’ capacity to build respectful relationships, take up leadership opportunities and make healthy sexual decisions by engaging students, teachers, parents and community members in building a sustainable whole-school approach to sexuality education STRATEGIES 1. Complete and evaluate GTGT at Hoppers Crossing Secondary College (HCSC) and train student working group members as leaders through a mentor program designed to assist older students to support younger students 2. Select a new school to undertake Girls Talk – Guys Talk in 2010-11

3. Establish a staff and local service providers reference group and a student working group to assist in the implementation of the program 4. Identify student needs by conducting a survey of all year 9 students then tailor the curriculum and policy to this quantitative information while incorporating qualitative input from the student working group 5. Provide sexual and reproductive health professional development for health and physical education staff

6. Develop a manual and training package for the Girls Talk – Guys Talk program aimed at service providers and professionals working in the field of sexuality education and health promotion who are interested in implementing this model

2. Promote Power On for Carers widely through our newsletter to generate interest in the program

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

OUTCOMES 1. Completed evaluation of Girls Talk - Guys Talk at HCSC in August 2010. The mentor skills and confidence of 14 student group members were increased through participation in the Stride Foundation Supportive Friends program

2. Local schools applied to run GTGT and Taylors Lakes Secondary College (TLSC), the successful applicant, was announced in November 2010

3. Established a reference group comprised of 8 TLSC staff and 2 local services (ISIS Primary Care and Brimbank City Council Youth Services). Established a 12-member student working group at TLSC comprising representatives of each year 9 class

5. Project worker provided all year nine health and physical education teachers with education sessions on sexually transmitted infections, contraception, sexual decisionmaking, body image, bullying, cyber safety and self esteem 6. Employed consultant to work with GTGT project worker to develop the program training manual in February 2011

FUTURE DIRECTIONS WHW will continue to support Carers Victoria Respite Connections to sustain the Power On program

Patricia Chalmers, Carer Peer Educator

Assistant Principal, Hoppers Crossing Secondary College

4. Distributed 187 surveys to year 9 students at TLSC. Each survey has 33 questions with as many as 30 sub-questions; the information gathered is rich, complex and invaluable to the success of the program

OUTCOMES 1. Negotiated a thorough plan that includes recruitment, training and support of 2 new staff. Implementation of this plan will commence in the next reporting period 2. Published an article about peer educatation in whw news. The newsletter is distributed to 1500 members and partners

‘Facilitating Power On is a lot more work then you might imagine, but it is worth it. Women who are carers really need something like this, it really resonates with their lives and it’s amazing to see the real change that happens for them.’

‘[Girls Talk – Guys Talk] has given students an opportunity to develop leadership skills… it has influenced our curriculum and [clarified] what’s critical for us to be teaching at years 7-9 highlighting for staff the importance of gaining student feedback...’

FUTURE DIRECTIONS • Present findings of the questionnaire to parents during the next reporting period

• Design and print 100 manuals to train interested services and agencies to implement the Girls Talk - Guys Talk program model • Complete GTGT at TLSC in February 2012 and begin selection process for next school Students at Taylors Lakes Secondary College during education sessions on sexually transmitted infections, contraception, sexual decision-making PHOTOS: Scout Kozakiewicz

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

Western Women’s Football League have regularly donated to this program and WHW extend our thanks for their support

FAMILY AND REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS EDUCATION PROGRAM FARREP provides community education for women and professional development to health service providers in response to the health and social needs of women from communities affected by the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).

OBJECTIVE Eliminate the practice of FGM and deliver and advocate for accessible and culturally appropriate services and resources for women from affected communities STRATEGIES 1. Deliver professional development to 50 nurses and 20 doctors at Sunshine Hospital. Deliver a second round of professional development to at least 10 maternal and child health nurses from the western region 2. Consult with at least 6 women from FGM-practicing communities to evaluate the content and delivery of the community education session to ensure that it remains current and reflects the needs of the community

3. Collaborate with community service providers to foster partnerships while delivering community education programs to women from FGM-affected communities. Develop rapport with the women attending the education sessions to create a safe environment to discuss FGM and other sensitive topics 4. Attend at least 1 conference or forum to promote the achievements of the WHW FARREP program

‘I will approach the women in a more respectful and sympathetic way rather than being judgemental.’

‘Lead On Again was the most remarkable program I have ever taken part in [here] in Australia. Thanks to the program, I found my strengths, gained knowledge, made wonderful friends and learned many requisite skills.’ Trang, Lead On Again participant 2011

Sunshine Hospital doctor at professional development session

OUTCOMES 1. Over 70 nurses and 15 doctors participated in the professional development sessions conducted at Sunshine Hospital, with over 90 per cent identifying an aspect of the training that will positively influence their service provision to women affected by FGM. Conducted 1 professional development session with 2 maternal and child health nurses from the Melton Shire and developed a training calendar in collaboration with key maternal and child health nurse coordinators across the western region 2. Consultation with 7 women from FGM-practicing communities confirmed that the content and delivery of the community education session remains responsive to the needs of the community 3. Collaborated with AMES and New Hope Foundation to deliver 8 community education sessions attended by 32 32 women. We discussed health topics including breast health, health, cervical cancer, contraception and mental health, and and established a safe environment in which women were willing to discuss the topic of FGM, which is not commonly willing discussed in their culture discussed

4. Presented a poster at the Australian Health Promotion 4. Presented Association conference titled ’Condemn the Practice not Association the the People’ outlining our gendered approach to tackling the the determinants of health for FGM-affected women while considering considering compounding factors such as language, legal status, status, media sensationalism and stigma. The poster (left) was was selected for a guided poster tour and viewed by around 200 200 health promotion professionals FUTURE FUTURE DIRECTIONS • Carry Carry out an outcome evaluation of the professional development development conducted with Sunshine Hospital medical, nursing nursing and allied health staff

• Regularly Regularly analyse and evaluate the content of community education education sessions to ensure they remain responsive to women’s women’s health needs

• Initiate Initiate consultations with young African women in the western western region to identify factors that influence their sexual and and reproductive health

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

Lead On Again is a year-long project focused on a 5-day strengths-based leadership program designed to encourage participation in community and leadership activities by culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) women aged 16-24. OBJECTIVE Encourage the participation in and opportunities for CALD women’s leadership by partnering with the Western Young People’s Independent Network (WYPIN) to deliver the Lead On Again program in 2010-11, and build the capacity of new agencies to implement this model in future years STRATEGIES 1. Facilitate a 5-day leadership workshop for 12-15 young CALD women who live, work or study in the western region in partnership with WYPIN

Lead On Again participants PHOTO: Scout Kozakiewicz

WESTERN ENGLISH LANGUAGE SCHOOL HEALTHY RELATIONSHIPS EDUCATION

We deliver a 5-week human relations program twice a year to newly-arrived students to prepare them for their entry to mainstream schooling. This is run in partnership with the Western English Language School, Western Region Health Centre and Maribyrnong City Council. OBJECTIVE Enhance students’ knowledge and understanding of human relationships and sexual and reproductive rights, to encourage young women to become more confident in taking control over sexual and relationship decision-making, and young men to be more informed and respectful in negotiating relationships STRATEGIES 1. Deliver the 5-week program to an average of 20 female students twice in 2010-2011 during terms 2 and 4. Liaise with male youth worker at Maribyrnong Council to deliver a malefocussed version of the program to 20 male students 2. Review the program to ensure that it meets the current needs of students OUTCOMES 1. The number of students attending the program fluctuated each week but was delivered to an average of 20 female students in each term. Maribyrnong Council delivered the program to 15 male students in each term

2. WHW worked with the Western English Language School, Western Region Health Centre and Maribyrnong City Council to begin a review of the program with a focus on modernising content to encompass developments in social media, and strengthening the monitoring and evaluation process FUTURE DIRECTIONS We will complete the review of the program in the next reporting period and implement recommendations to ensure continual improvement in response to the emerging social health needs of the students. We will continue to deliver the 5-week program twice a year with our partners

LEAD ON AGAIN

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

2. In partnership with WYPIN, facilitate the participation of 50 per cent of graduates in leadership initiatives within 6 months of Lead On Again 2011

3. Identify and mentor one participant from Lead On Again 2010 in the months prior to the workshop to be a peer educator in Lead On Again 2011

4. Disseminate the Lead On Again resource to two agencies to expand the reach of the program

5. Scope the potential of local government and community agencies in two outer western areas to undertake Lead On Again with a view to supporting and building the capacity of workers to implement the program in their catchments

OUTCOMES 1. WHW and WYPIN ran Lead On Again 2011 from January 2428 at the Phoenix Youth Centre in Footscray with 13 young women participants from Burmese, Chines, Ethiopian, Thai and Vietnamese backgrounds

2. A total of 6 graduates (46 per cent) were involved in leadership initiatives within 6 months of completing the program - 4 graduates undertook leadership roles at WYPIN, while 2 others obtained leadership roles in their universities and schools

3. We identified 3 young women from previous programs then trained and mentored them to become peer educators in Lead On Again 2011, including co-facilitating sessions during the week-long program 4. As a result of targeted promotion WHW sold 4 Lead On Again manuals to Inner Northern Local Learning Employment Network, Australian Immigrant and Refugee Women’s Alliance, Youth 2 Youth - Ecumenical Migration Centre and the Australian Red Cross and each organisation was keen to run the program themselves 5. We supported Melton Youth Service and Djerriwarrh Health Service in their plan to run Lead On Again in 2012 in Melton FUTURE DIRECTIONS • We will run Lead On Again in Footscray in partnership with WYPIN during 2011-2012

• We will support Melton Youth Service and Djerriwarrh Health Service to deliver Lead On Again in Melton in January 2012

‘Today I learned to express my feelings’ Western English Language School student

WESTERN REGION SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH STRATEGY

‘If you hold a view that might be racist, make the effort to talk to women from that group and hear their stories; once you understand them better you will realise that we have a lot in common.’

Over the past 2 years WHW has built collaborative relationships with key partner agencies to facilitate the development of a regional, coordinated and multidisciplinary approach to sexual and reproductive health activities. This stage of the project identifies the social conditions that impact on sexual and reproductive health outcomes, and actions we might engage in to respond to those factors. OBJECTIVE Build the capacity of organisations to work together to respond to and enhance the sexual and reproductive health of disadvantaged communities in Melbourne’s western region STRATEGIES 1. Organise and facilitate monthly meetings of the sexual and reproductive health working group and broaden membership to ensure a stronger emphasis on partnering with agencies who work with local communities and target groups 2. Carry out a critical review of international and national literature to consolidate the evidence-base for those factors that determine sexual and reproductive health 3. Develop a health promotion framework to provide an overarching conceptual guide for health promotion and primary prevention action

4. Promote completed report through WHW website, whw news and at conferences OUTCOMES 1. Sexual and reproductive health working group meetings were held 12 times and attended by 9 community health services, specialist sexual and reproductive health services, and local government representatives 2. WHW published the Social Determinants of Sexual and Reproductive Health 2011 report outlining strategies for sustainable prevention of sexual and reproductive ill-health

3. Developed the sexual and reproductive health promotion framework 2011, which provides an overarching conceptual guide to evidence-based sexual and reproductive health promotion planning

4. Promoted this work through an article in whw news distributed to 1500 members, made the report available for downloading from our website and presented a poster at the Australian Health Promotion Conference, which was seen by hundreds of delegates FUTURE DIRECTIONS Use information and ideas outlined to date to develop a collaborative western region sexual and reproductive health action plan. This is designed to build organisational capacity, consolidate regional partnerships, balance clinical service delivery with an integrated approach to health promotion and, ultimately, optimise the sexual and reproductive health and wellbeing of individuals and communities in the west

‘We are unaware of anyone else having done this work in Victoria … so this is a great achievement and something we anticipate will become highly regarded within the sector … the depth of experience [on the working group] has enabled robust debate and ensured that the project meets the needs of the west.’ Corinne Rice, Coordinator - Health Promotion, Isis Primary Care

Australian Health Promotion Conference delegate

ANTI-RACISM ACTION RESEARCH

This project is designed to create safe spaces for a conversation about racism in the region. By encouraging understanding through separate workshops with community women and service providers we hope to reduce the occurrence of racism in our region. Financial literacy participants PHOTO: Kirsten Campbell

FINANCIAL LITERACY PROGRAM

A 6-week course designed to explain Australian financial systems to newly-arrived women. The program is targeted to participants and based on community consultation, in partnership with other agencies in the western region OBJECTIVE Ensure that women from newly-arrived communities have access to services, resources and information that builds their capacity to understand and gain control over financial decisionmaking STRATEGIES 1. Deliver 3 x 6-week financial literacy programs to women from Vietnamese, Chin and Congolese communities, ensuring that program content is specific to each community’s needs

2. Improve links between women and finance-related agencies in the western region by partnering with and involving agency staff in program delivery OUTCOMES 1. Delivered a 6-week financial literacy program to 18 women from the Vietnamese community in St Albans in partnership with Good Shepherd Youth and Family Services. A change in government delayed receipt of funding for this program resulting in only 1 program being run instead of 3. Consultations to tailor program content were undertaken with Gambler’s Help, the Vietnamese Women’s Welfare Association and the Vietnamese Welfare Resource Centre. By way of further consultation, a draft program plan was put to the 18 participants in the first week of the program; participants readily approved all content 2. The broad involvement in consultation and delivery led to improved links between Vietnamese women participants and those agencies, with 11 Vietnamese women accessing financial counselling appointments as a direct result of attending the course. Good Shepherd has noted that more Vietnamese people are generally accessing the service since the program began FUTURE DIRECTIONS Deliver the previously planned programs with Chin and Congolese communities on receipt of funding. Identify and deliver the program in another community, to be identified with reference to emerging settlement patterns

‘I was nearly crazy with worry, now I know where I can get help.’ Vietnamese Participant

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

OBJECTIVE Improve the conditions in which women live, work and play in the western region by using action research to explore safe ways to discuss and define racism, unravel the causes of racism, examine how racism affects women, and create strategies to assist us all to reduce racism in our region STRATEGIES 1. Conduct a literature review to examine existing methods of defining racism, how we communicate about it, its effects, and strategies to reduce racism

2. Research and plan an appropriate method for ensuring that this project has significant representation from community women affected by racism 3. Facilitate 2 workshops, 1 with a minimum of 10 service providers, and another with a minimum of 10 community women affected by racism

4. Contribute at least 1 article to whw news as a strategy to introduce a region-wide discussion about racism OUTCOMES 1. Completed literature review and used findings to inform the method to run the workshops

2. WHW collected participant feedback from the in-house sessions to further develop our method of convening anti-racism workshops. Feedback indicated that the most effective way to talk about this difficult topic involves creating a safe space to express ideas publicly and providing structured questions that examine discrimination based on ethnicity and culture at individual, organisational, community and societal levels 3. Convened a workshop with 15 WHW staff building on the 2009-10 workshop. Here we explored the impact of racism in terms of employment, housing, access to services and education, and considered possible actions to prevent racism. Convened a workshop with 23 participants at the April 2011 Australian Health Promotion Conference in Cairns 4. Published 2 articles in whw news (edition 2, 2010 ‘Racism and racial discrimination is really hard to talk about’ and edition 1, 2011 ‘A young woman’s perspective on racism’)

FUTURE DIRECTIONS • Anti-racism work in the region to this point has been targeted at changing the reaction of the victim, or of the bystander. WHW research will facilitate a shift in work across the region to develop strategies directed at preventing racism in the first instance. Changes in staffing have led to a pause in this project; we plan to recommence in 2012

• Identify similar projects with a view to collaborate and/or build on existing efforts to understand and eradicate racism.

Sunrise participants PHOTO: Scout Kozakiewicz

SUNRISE WOMEN’S GROUPS

WHW’s longest running program, the Sunrise Women’s Group for women with a disability, turned 20 this year! Each group is held once a month from February to December in Werribee and Laverton. The focus is on fun, friendship, skills building and information sharing within a woman-centred context.

OBJECTIVE Deliver an accessible service for women with a disability who live in the outer western region by providing monthly health information sessions and social outings for groups in Laverton and Werribee STRATEGIES 1. Hold 1 group per month in Werribee and 1 in Laverton as these localities have the poorest access to transport and services

2. Work in consultation with women participants to develop an annual calendar of activities and events 3. Involve more isolated women with a disability, particularly women from CALD backgrounds, who reside in the outer west by promoting the group within the community

OUTCOMES 1. The Laverton group had 8 -10 regular participants with a total of 65 attendances this year. The Werribee group again experienced low attendance with a total of 23 participants across the year. Of these women, 4 have attended Sunrise events since it commenced in 1991

2. All activities were identified in consultation with group members and included sessions on tiredness, bladder control, sexuality, art therapy, a 20-year celebration and social outings to the Rosegarden and Werribee park

3. Group members distributed 300 brochures to Werribee services including hairdressers, libraries, supermarkets, doctors, chemists, and employment services. We promoted Sunrise on our website and through whw news. Strategies to focus on CALD participants will require further work in the next year FUTURE DIRECTIONS • Plan a forum to be held in September 2011 to raise awareness of the Sunrise groups among relevant service providers with the aim of increasing referrals of all women with disabilities and build on our plan to improve access for CALD participants

• Publish an article in whw news promoting the Sunrise group to service providers to encourage referrals

‘I have met lots of interesting women who are fun to be with; we share ideas and have a few laughs.’ Peggy, Sunrise Laverton participant

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

Preventing Violence Together was launched by the Honourable Joan Kirner in December 2010 PHOTO: James Boddington

African drumming workshop

BUILD THE CAPACITY OF ORGANISATIONS IN THE WESTERN REGION TO PREVENT VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN The prevention of violence against women program undertakes collaborative activities in the region designed to build communities, cultures and organisations that are non-violent, non-discriminatory, gender equitable and that promote respectful relationships. OBJECTIVE Lead the creation of an integrated region-wide strategy for the primary prevention of violence against women, and promote preventing violence against women as a priority for our partner organisations STRATEGIES 1. Finalise the development of an integrated action plan for the western region to prevent violence against women, in partnership with other organisations

2. Establish a new steering structure to guide the implementation of the western region action plan, Preventing Violence Together, from January 2011

3. Formally launch Preventing Violence Together at high-level event to secure executive-level commitment to endorsement and implementation 4. Seek endorsements and commitment to implement the action plan from all participating councils, community health services, and primary care partnerships in the western metropolitan region of Melbourne OUTCOMES 1. Completed Preventing Violence Together: The Western Region Action Plan to Prevent Violence Against Women in September 2010

2. Established the Preventing Violence Together Implementation Committee comprising all agencies that were asked to implement the action plan: 7 local councils, 4 community health services, and 2 primary care partnerships in the western region. The implementation committee is guided by an expert advisory group of 5 academics and other specialists

FUTURE DIRECTIONS • Develop tailored implementation plans for each endorsing agency

• Devise and deliver intensive capacity-building training exclusively for community health services in the western region • Implement region-wide prevention actions as set out in Preventing Violence Together

• Secure endorsements from all remaining target organisations • Build the capacity and political will of all endorsing agencies to implement Preventing Violence Together through forums and training • Rigorously evaluate Preventing Violence Together to contribute to the ‘good-practice’ evidence base for the primary prevention of violence against women

‘Being part of the development of Preventing Violence Together has really raised the profile of preventing violence against women at Wyndham City. Wyndham is a proud endorsee of PVT, and is also working collaboratively with other organisations across the region. Together, our impact is much greater than we could have otherwise achieved.’

I AM STRONG, WE ARE STRONG: CELEBRATING WOMEN’S STRENGTH ON INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY International Women’s Day (IWD) is marked on 8 March every year as a major day of global celebration for the social, political and personal achievements of women. In 2011 we observed IWD with a day-long event celebrating the strength of women who have experienced or are experiencing family violence. OBJECTIVE Hold an all-day event at Footscray Community Arts Centre for women who experience/have experienced family violence, offering opportunities to try activities that can bolster their strength and enhance their sense of connection with the community and other women. STRATEGIES 1. Strengthen regional partnerships by establishing an event steering committee comprised of a minimum of 7 agencies involved in supporting women affected by family violence

2. Celebrate the strength and resilience of 100 women affected by family violence, and provide opportunities for them to learn new skills at a fun, free, IWD event 3. Provide opportunities for women affected by family violence to connect with other women to reduce isolation 4. Create a space for family violence counsellors and case managers to reflect on the work they do and celebrate their achievements alongside the women they have worked with

WHAT KEEPS ME STRONG? ‘This day made me bit stronger, great day today’ ‘This is fantastic idea. Well women coming together as one group and healing ourselves and meeting other groups. Well done to all involved feeling relaxed and happy.’ ‘I enjoyed everything from henna tattoos, massage, Zumba, circus and the women’s football practice…oh, and the food was great as well!’ OUTCOMES 1. Established a steering committee comprised of 15 representative organisations including Victoria Police, western region local councils, community health centres, and arts organisations. Participant organisations reported during the post-event ‘reflective workshop’ that the process of organising the event in collaboration with other agencies greatly enhanced partnerships and linkages

2. The event was attended by 150 women and included circus skills, tai chi, stencil art, singing, drumming, henna, massage, journaling, public speaking, resume writing, zumba, self defence, frippery home arts and women’s football skills. This diversity was a highlight for many, as one participant observed, ‘[there was] something for those who want to be active, those who want to think and those who want to be pampered.’ 3. A number of women nominated the opportunity to connect with other women as a highlight. Of the 12 qualitative interviews conducted, 11 women reported that they had met someone that they would like to keep in contact with. Reducing isolation and providing opportunities for women to connect with one another were particularly vital outcomes: 70 per cent of women who responded to the questionnaire indicated that they had not participated in an event like IWD before

Jacqui Croxon, Health Planner, Wyndham City Council

3. Preventing Violence Together was formally launched in December 2010 by Professor Helen Keleher and Joan Kirner AM. The launch was attended by over 100 guests including MPs, mayors, and CEOs from organisations across the region

4. IWD was attended by 17 family violence workers who joined in and celebrated the day alongside the women they support

4. To date 7 official endorsements have been received. Planning for implementation and remaining endorsements are ongoing

Zumba lessons

Self defence sessions PHOTOS: Anne-Sophie Poirier

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

FUTURE DIRECTIONS We celebrate IWD with public events every second year and in 2012 we will apply for funding to run another in 2013

‘I have just seen your fantastic election calendar; I think it’s brilliant and wanted to say congratulations... Such a creative idea and so well done. ’ Dr Caroline Lambert Executive Director YWCA Australia

June 2010 - June 2011 Equal Pay Case WHW rallied, wrote to federal and state ministers and MPs, published articles and spoke to the media in support of pay equity. Fair Work Australia found that social and community service workers are not receiving equal pay and that a significant cause of the pay gap is gender. The ruling on funding the gap should be announced in the next reporting period

COMMUNICATIONS

The communications team works with WHW staff and others in the region, including the media, to produce engaging print and web publications promoting equity and justice for women in the west

STRATEGIES 1. Plan, coordinate, write, design, edit and collate publications including 3 editions of whw news, an annual report, conference posters for colleagues, and other brochures, reports and print materials

3. Prior to the state election we printed and distributed 2000 copies of an advent calendar designed to inform women in the region about the major parties’ women’s health platforms in a fun and unconventional way

4. Organised the successful I Am Strong, We Are Strong International Women’s Day event celebrating women’s strengths in March 2011, attended by 150 women. See page 31 for details. Our annual general meeting was attended by 81 members and featured Professor Helen Keleher launching the Preventing Violence Together regional action plan

2. Ensure all publications are accessible to their audience through maintenance of an in-house style guide for all WHW print and web resources, including policies for translating and FUTURE DIRECTIONS disseminating health information across the region • Continue to produce 3 newsletters and 1 annual report each 3. Work with staff and local media to promote WHW programs year while supporting colleagues to produce informative and and actions by producing at least 5 pro-active media releases engaging publications per year to support organisation-wide advocacy 4. Organise 1 community-based International Women’s Day event every 2 years for around 100 women and 1 annual general meeting per year for our members

OUTCOMES

1. Produced 1,500 copies of the 2009/10 annual report, which won bronze at the prestigious Australasian Reporting Awards

• Last year we planned to develop a new website that reflects our brand and is accessible to our diverse audience. While work has progressed on the site we did not reach our goal because of competing priorities such as preparation of our advent calendar. We plan to renew our focus on the site and launch in the next reporting period

• Produced 3 editions of whw news and distributed each to 1,500 readers

• Worked with health promotion staff to create 2 posters for the Australian Health Promotion Association conference. Produced 500 copies of the preventing violence against women action plan. Developed a website, safety booklet, poster and pen kit to promote the Safe at Home program

• Translated WHW membership and rights brochures into Vietnamese and Arabic • Disseminated WHW written style guide

August 2010 Letter to Deputy Premier and discussions with DHS Director Advocated for a funding structure review to bring funding for refuges into line with other family violence services October 2010 I Vote for Choice In the lead up to the state election in November 2010 WHW participated in the WHAV campaign to support those MPs who supported women’s right to access safe and legal abortion 10 Point Plan for Victorian Women’s Health 2010-2014 Worked with WHAV to develop the ‘10 point plan’, which calls for a whole of government strategy and action plan for improving women’s health with a strong emphasis on measurable, transparent outcomes. Sent to all western region members of parliament, with follow up visits ‘Setting Our Agenda’ Political Forum Worked with WHAV to organise a forum giving the major political parties in Victoria an opportunity to respond to the call for transparent, measurable outcomes for women’s health, safety and wellbeing in the lead up to the state election

• Distributed 1,823 health promotion-related resources and 20,855 family violence resources to clients, communities and organisations through mail outs, presentations and events

2. Distributed 5 media releases resulting in 11 stories in local newspapers and a radio show on 3CR. Developed and disseminated a media procedure in June 2011

WHW engages in advocacy designed to change the structural factors that cause and maintain the conditions under which women and their children face discrimination. We support or run campaigns, submit papers to government in response to white papers and inquiries, visit MPs, and present at forums and conferences.

CAMPAIGNS

LEFT: Advent calendar to count down to the state election RIGHT: Three editions of whw news

OBJECTIVE Increase the profile of women’s health in the western region by promoting the work of WHW staff in creative and inspiring ways

ADVOCACY

WHW FARREP worker Teresia Mutisya at the evaluation station talking to a participant during the I Am Strong, We Are Strong International Women’s Day event in March 2011 PHOTO: Anne-Sophie Poirier women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

Surveyed western region members of parliament to inform women via our newsletter of local MPs’ position on women’s health, safety and wellbeing

November 2010 AWARD WHW was nominated by Moonee Valley Council for a Women’s Participation in Local Government Coalition Award for our Lead On Again program PERFORMANCE WHW were asked to perform at the state-wide wide ‘Not 1 More’ event to commemorate the victims of domestic homicide on White Ribbon Day at Federation Square June 2011 Victorian Equal Opportunity Act amendments WHW rallied to oppose amendments to the Victorian Equal Opportunity Act 2010 designed to make it legal for faith-based organisations to deny someone a job on the basis of their gender, sexual orientation, religion, marital status, parental status or gender identity. The bill was passed on 15 June 2011 Ongoing CEO was the metropolitan WHAV representative on the statewide advisory committee for the development of the Victorian women’s health and wellbeing strategy 2010-2014 CEO continued to chair the Maribyrnong Prevention of Violence Against Women group WHW continued to support the Victorian Women’s Mental Health Network campaign for funding to ensure that women psychiatric in-patients can be treated in single-sex wards

SUBMISSIONS September 2010 Advertising Ethics Advocated that the Australian Association of National Advertisers review of their code of ethics direct the fashion, media and advertising industries to play an active role in bringing about longterm cultural change and that the interests and rights of consumers, particularly women and girls, are protected

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

Funding for Power On Unsuccessful partnership grant application with Doutta Galla Community Health Centre to Moonee Valley Council to employ a Power On project worker to strengthen referral pathways for women who experience mental illness Medicare Locals Feedback on potential boundaries for Medicare Locals and Local Hospital Networks submitted to Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing as part of the National Health Reform November 2010 Medicare Locals Response to the discussion paper on governance and functions submitted to Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing as part of the National Health Reform January 2011 WIFVP Submission Family Law Family Violence Bill 2010 Contributed to the Family Law Amendment (Family Violence) Bill 2010 with reference to women and children who experience family violence February 2011 Maribyrnong City Council 2011-2012 Budget Advocated for gender responsive budgeting in the development of Maribyrnong City Council’s 2011-2012 budget

Women’s Affairs regarding the need for a statewide Sexual and Reproductive Health Strategy May 2011 Reponse to City of Melbourne ‘Strategy for a Safer City 20112013’ Responded to the City of Melbourne draft ‘Strategy for a Safer City 2011-2013’ highlighting the absence of methods to prevent violence against women in the current strategy June 2011 Victorian Health Priorities Framework 2012-2022: Metropolitan Health Plan Advocated to the Department of Health for a greater focus on preventing ill health and ensuring Victorian health services are responsive to the health, safety and wellbeing of women in metropolitan Melbourne WIFVP (for Women and Children) Response to Protecting Victoria’s Vulnerable Children Inquiry Responded to state inquiry into child protection to inform the government on ways to reduce child abuse with regard to the effectiveness of existing systems and enhancements to protect children

Inquiry into the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 WHW and Western Region Health Centre coordinated a submission with 33 Forced and Servile Marriage recommendations to the Discussion Paper Scrutiny of Acts and Regulation Recommended the Federal Committee inquiry of the Attorney-General’s Criminal Justice Department introduce Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities legislative and non-legislative reforms to end forced marriage Act 2006 on behalf of 8 other community and women’s and ensure that women and girls’ human rights to freedom health services and integrity are protected and WIFVP Endorsement of the upheld ‘Count Us In!’ Submission April 2011 WHAV Proposal for a Victorian Sexual and Reproductive Health Strategy Contributed to the WHAV proposal to the Minister for Health and Minister for

The Victorian Regional Homelessness Networkers submitted a response to the Counting the Homeless 2006 methodological review

OPERATIONS

PRESENTATIONS

WHW reception and operations support and enhance the ability of direct service, health promotion and project workers to meet our strategic goals.

Health promotion, research and development

10-13 April 2011 Australian Health Promotion Association Conference, Cairns The social determinants of sexual and reproductive health: More than the prevention of sexually transmitted infections and unwanted pregnancy Elly Taylor, Health Promotion Worker This poster on the social determinants of sexual and reproductive health outlined the work WHW has led in Melbourne’s west to optimise the sexual and reproductive health status of communities most at risk of sexual and reproductive health morbidity 200 attendees 200 attendees

A Health Promotion Approach to Preventing Violence Against Women: From Policy to Practice Erin Richardson, Health Promotion Worker The presentation argued that a social determinants approach, in concert with a clear feminist underpinning, offers many opportunities for strong prevention of violence against women work, particularly within mainstream institutions

Racism: its effects and strategies to eradicate it Sally Camilleri, Health Promotion Worker The workshop modelled a process to create a culture where racism can be safely discussed to develop anti-racism strategies. Conference delegates were encouraged to implement the model within their organisations 30 attendees 30 attendees Condemn the Practice not the People: A Social Determinants of Health Approach to Female Genital Mutilation Teresia Mutisya, FARREP Community Worker The poster summarised the social determinants of health for women who have been affected by FGM or who come from FGM practicing communities, outlining several components of our approach to the elimination of FGM

Family violence community education WHW family violence services conducted 17 family violence education sessions tailored to audiences during this reporting period. Sessions outlined ways of recognising family violence, suggested practical methods of responding, and explained the services we offer to optimise referrals Sunshine Hospital Emergency Department Isabelle and Batsi 20 attendees 20 attendees 20 August 2010 Catholic Regional College Luise and Suzanna 20 attendees 20 attendees 1 September 2010 New Hope Foundation/ Western Region Health Centre Batsi 20 attendees 20 attendees 15 September 2010 Centrelink Watergardens Tammy 10 attendees 10 attendees 14 October 2010 Australian College of Applied Psychology Tammy 10 attendees 10 attendees

15 November 2010 Victoria Police – Western Region Family Violence Liaison Officers Batsi and Michelle 16 November 2010 Victoria Police – Moonee Valley Police Station Batsi and Michelle 4 attendees 4 attendees 24 November 2010 Centacare and Luise 17 February 2011 Women’s Domestic Violence Crisis Service Batsi and Michelle

15 March 2011 Victoria Police – Sergeants from Brimbank Police Station Batsi and Michelle 30 attendees 30 attendees 22 March 2011 Royal Children’s Hospital Luise and Isabelle 15 attendees 15 attendees 25 March 2011 Victoria Police – Sergeants from Melton, Werribee, Laverton, Footscray, Altona Police Stations Batsi and Michelle 15 1 June 2011 Department of Human Services – Child Protection Intake, Preston Batsi and Hang 10 attendees 10 attendees

3 June 2011 Victoria Police – Werribee Police Station Family Violence Unit Batsi and Hatice 3 attendees 3 attendees 23 June 2011 Department of Human Services – Child Protection Case Management Team, Footscray Batsi, Michelle and Jelena 20 attendees 20 attendees 30 June 2011 DASWest Drug and Alcohol Services Vicky and Jude 5 attendees 5 attendees

• Staff training: number and nature of training attended

We created an ‘IT helpdesk’ email address and procedure to streamline and record requests for ICT assistance. This year we recorded 188 requests, 73 more than the previous year, indicating a high level of staff comfort with the new method of reporting technical problems. We replaced 13 computers with new machines running Windows 7 as part of phase two of the computer turnover plan outlined in the ICT plan, and will replace 19 computers in the next reporting period.

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

Reception Our reception staff are the first point of contact for clients seeking in-person or telephone support following an incident of family violence. This work requires a clear and professional response and makes up 33 per cent of our receptionist’s time. Their role is also divided between core tasks that involve meeting attendance, ICT responses, opening and closing procedures, vehicle monitoring, purchasing, and updating resources. These core tasks account for 57 per cent of their time, with the remaining 10 percent spent on administrative support. Reception staff provided 1,144 instances – or 285 hours – of administrative support this year including word processing, preparing presentations, photocopying and mail outs. The bulk of that work was required by the health promotion, research and development team and the communications team. Figure 18

Walk ins Business/other Health promotion Family violence

This year WHW reception responded to 20,869 phone calls and 433 in-person enquiries for a total of 356.5 hours

OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENT Our occupational health, safety and environment committee continued to meet quarterly with staff representatives from each program area responding to non-urgent initiatives for improvement, and monitoring responses to urgent requests or reported incidents. We have continued an unblemished record of staff safety. The annual CPR training was attended by 21 staff and 22 staff attended fire response training presented by the Metropolitan Fire Brigade. The 4 planned fire drills at the Barkly Street property were attended by a total of 138 staff, while 20 staff and 29 clients attended 6 fire drills at the refuge. Each drill was conducted on different days of the week and times of day to ensure all staff had the opportunity to attend. WHW supported belly dancing classes for health and wellbeing, led by a staff volunteer. We also ran 3 risk management workshops for staff and board directors to support the development of a strong culture of identifying and acting on risks. This was followed by the development of a simplified risk management procedure for distribution to all staff. In the coming year we plan to use what we learned to review and update our risk management data base.

TOTAL 257 attendees

• Risk management: reporting quality committee actions

Information and Communications Technology This year we began to implement the five-year Information and Communications Technology (ICT) plan developed in the last reporting period by White Room Consulting. This included convening an organisation-wide ICT strategic working group to focus on electronic data management and forward planning.

TOTAL 480 attendees

16 October 2010 Wyndham Youth Services Hatice and Maureen

We ensured the board were informed of operational matters by submitting quarterly reports that were identified by the directors as clear and appropriate to their ability to carry out their governance role: • Human resources: staff leave, new staff, resignations, etc.

200 attendees 200 attendees

50 attendees 50 attendees

8 July 2010

Human Resources Operations maintain our human resource records including payroll, contracts, leave status, superannuation and training, and this year processed 1,430 salaries. A key part of the operations role involved coordinating the cyclic review of policies and procedures, this year processing 106 documents through our document management system.

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY

Women’s Health West is committed to energy efficiency and waste reduction. We have a message board in the staff room for people to share ideas for ‘greening the office’ and each idea is considered by our OHS&E committee for implementation. • 100 per cent of office lighting has been upgraded to compact fluorescent daylight globes that use 80 per cent less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs and emit light comparable to midday outdoor lighting conditions • WHW uses only recycled copy paper, and toner cartridges are recycled by Planet Ark

• WHW has 12 cars in our fleet and our commitment to reduce carbon emissions informs our preference for smaller four cylinder vehicles • We have purchased carbon offsets for each of our vehicles

• As part of our rolling ICT upgrade, this year WHW engaged Green PC to recycle and distribute 7 computers to the community • Tea and coffee is supplied by People for Fair Trade

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Our Staff

All staff are encouraged to identify professional and personal development opportunities as a key component of their annual appraisal process, and this year we recorded 587 professional development attendances at 133 different sessions. In the coming year we plan to update the annual appraisal process to focus more strongly on goals and achievements, and develop an organisation-wide learning and development strategy for staff and board directors that articulates with this process.

EMPLOYEE RELATIONS, RECOGNITION AND PARTICIPATION

Board Risk management OHSE CPR update Emergency first aid Fire drill - Barkly Street x 4 Fire drill - Refuge x 6 Fire response OHS for supervisors and managers OHS conference

WHW staff and board completed negotiations for an enterprise agreement this year. The new agreement consolidates and simplifies the wording of employment conditions of employees previously covered by separate awards as well as an expired enterprise agreement. The agreement was reviewed and endorsed by Fair Work Australia in May 2011 and WHW celebrated with a private screening of ‘Made in Dagenham’, a dramatised account of female workers protesting against pay inequity in 1968. The collaborative process resulted in an agreement that provides better and fairer working conditions for all staff, such as 18 weeks paid maternity leave.

SUPERVISION

All of our staff received a minimum of monthly supervision plus an annual appraisal this year, with our family violence workers supervised on a fortnightly basis. Individual external supervision was available to a selection of clinical and coordinating staff, and monthly group supervision with an external facilitator focused on professional development activities for each of our family violence outreach and CAS teams.

QUALITY

WHW are fully accredited under the Homelessness Assistance Service Standards and Quality Improvement Council Health and Community Services Core Standards assessment program. Although a three-year work plan is required for accreditation, we have implemented and reported on the plan every six months, ensuring that a culture of continuous improvement is embedded in each of our day-to-day activities. Our Quality Committee, comprising senior representatives across the organisation, coordinates this process, and reviewed 106 policies and procedures this year. WHW achieved a bronze award in the Australasian Reporting Awards (ARA). The ARA provides us with an opportunity to benchmark our annual report against the ARA criteria, including for transparency and accountability.

All staff Human trafficking workshop Racism and its effects on women in the west - part 1 and 2 Risk management Stress management - CECFW x 2 Time management, Teamwork Training Services

ABOVE: Elly Taylor, Lucy Forwood and Arbeth Guevara of the Health Promotion Research and ABOVE: Elly Taylor, Lucy Forwood and Arbeth Guevara of the Health Promotion Research and Development team at the rally for equal pay for community sector workers on 8 June 2011 PHOTO: Veronica Garcia

RECOGNITION

At the AGM in November 2010, we presented long service gifts to Jo Harper for 22 years service, Phuong for 15 years and Meriem Idris for 10 years service. We are very fortunate to have staff who have devoted their time and energy to working at WHW. The board of directors presented three innovation awards that acknowledge the contribution of staff to developing and maintaining an energetic, fair and friendly workplace culture. The GOYA or ‘Getting Off Your Arse’ award, recognised Victoria’s efforts to get music to the people. Maat is the Egyptian goddess of truth and justice and this award for attitude and behaviour went to Phuong for her quiet dedication to her work. The VITA award went to a ‘Very Inspiring, Totally Active’ staff member, Sally Camilleri, who has developed terrific projects such as Power On, Lead On Again, Financial Literacy and now the anti-racism project.

STAFF CLIMATE

Best Practice Australia undertook the second of three independent surveys of the staff ‘climate’, providing comparative data about staff members’ experience of working at WHW. The results of the second survey again showed that the majority of staff are openly positive, optimistic and engaged with their work and love being ‘surrounded by a fantastic team of women’. Having comparative data over the two years allows us to track positive and negative trends, pinpointing where to focus our energy for improvement in the next year. One particularly positive trend is the improvements noted in the annual appraisal process and opportunities for professional development. Our strong emphasis on women’s right to equality and our action on advocating for women and children was universally commended. The absolute importance of continuing to advocate for pay equity for workers in our sector was also highlighted throughout the survey.

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

Operations, finance, communications ACOSS media and communications forum Australasian reporting awards feedback Australian health promotion association national conference Becoming an investor in people, VHIA Digital natives meet the colonial impulse: the web and new intergenerational politics Driving skills Exceptional customer service Handle with care - managing violent and potentially violent situations Improving your brochures and posters Legal sector publishers forum: getting to know your audience Microsoft excel 2003 (intermediate) Publishing forum - editing workshop Responding to family violence Risk and crisis communication Setting our agenda: women’s health policy forum The indispensable assistant Use of ICT and social media for human rights work Weaving your web: online essentials Your WorkCover obligations 1 and 2 Family violence team Advanced supervision skills for social and field workers Act mindfully - acceptance and commitment therapy Alcohol and other drugs Australasian Society for Intellectual Disability Conference Assisting victims of crime, Women’s Legal Service Beyond survival seminar, Australian childhood foundation Building an effective integrated community response to domestic violence - Duluth model women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

3 21 1 138 49 22 1 1 233 15 27 18 25 25

110 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

1 2 22

3 2 1 3 2 4 1

Working with adult female survivors of sexual assault forum, CASA Domestic violence and the law Centrelink crisis and domestic violence clients family assistance Child’s play, The Bouverie Centre National homelessness conference Working with interpreters CRAF (comprehensive risk assessment framework), DVRCV Creative art therapy Delegates training course, Australian Services Union x 3 Disability awareness and services, Annecto Election strategy workshop, DV Vic Family friendly workplace seminar Family law, Legal Aid Family sensitive practice forum, The Bouverie Centre Family violence risk management Young people, technology and preventing violence against women Foundations of supervision 1 and 2 Family violence seen through the eyes of children, Women’s Information Support and Housing Gender analysis, Women’s Health Vic Group facilitation Homelessness and human rights Improving systems to save lives workshop Intermediate supervision skills Introduction to domestic violence, DVRCV Intro to motivational interviewing Intro to sand play, Phoenix Institute Listening to the voices within grieving children Local government preventing violence against women conference Managing stress in the workplace Mental health and drug and alcohol awareness Mental health first aid Mind the baby forum National Indigenous domestic violence conference New public housing applications No bullshit therapy, The Bouverie Centre Parkas (parents accepting responsibility kids are safe) group Play therapy, MIECAT Practical therapeutic application of the neurobiology of trauma Responding to sexual assault Security and personal safety workshop Children who have suffered trauma seminar, Monash University Managing professional boundaries Solution focused counselling SMART: introduction and intermediate Specialist homeless information platform, DHS Suicide assessment and intervention

2 2 4 2 2 3 2 1 1 12 1 1 1

2 2 1

2 1 1 2 1 1

1 2 3

1 3 4 1 2 4 1 2 2 2

1 1 1 4 6 3 2

The body remembers, Australian Childhood Foundation The functions and therapeutics of intimacy The refugee experience Trauma and narrative therapy with children Trauma, resilience and recovery Understanding and responding to personality disorders Victims of Crime Assistance Tribunal, Department of Human Services Assisting victims of Crime, Women’s Legal Service Victoria Walk in her shoes - orientation to Melbourne magistrates court system Walk in her shoes - orientation to Sunshine court system Working with challenging behaviours Young people, technology and preventing violence against women Health promotion Australian health promotion association national conference Community learning seminar, CASA House and DEECD Critiquing the ‘good Muslim girl’, Melbourne University Cross Cultural Women’s Leadership Forum, Greek Orthodox Community of Melbourne and Victoria Election strategy workshop, DV Vic Flemington neighbourhood renewal action plan forum HACC conference Evaluation for Health Promotion Short Course, Monash University Human rights oration, VEOHRC Local Government and Community Leaders Preventing Violence Against Women Conference Metropolitan health plan forum, DH Population health short course, University of Melbourne Refugee health service coordination Researching refugees and asylum seekers: ethical considerations Result based accountability, University of Melbourne Senior executive forum, VHIA Sexual and reproductive health, FPV Shining a red light symposium, Inner South Community Health Sports without borders conference Stepping out on gender based violence Time to tell, Victorian Assisted Reproductive Treatment Authority Violence and disability, La Trobe Writing winning grants, Our Community Young people, technology and preventing violence against women TOTAL

2 1 1

2 1 1 2 1 2 2 1 1

181

8 1 1 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 2 1 2 1 1 2 1 1 1

1 1 1 2 1

38 587

Chief Executive Officer Robyn Gregory Executive Assistant Julie Veszpremi

HEALTH PROMOTION, RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

FINANCE AND OPERATIONS

Business Manager Lara Polak Finance Officer Meriem Idris Accounts Administration Officer Debra Wannan Office Coordinator Jo Harper Reception/ Administration Kirstie McLeod, Poppy Mihalakos, Jacky Heaver (Amy Clark) Student Kim Cleaner Neelum Asterisk (*) indicate maternity leave, brackets indicate resignation

Manager Health Promotion, Research and Development Lynda Memery Sexual and Reproductive Health Worker Anna Vu* (Catherine Mayes*) Health Promotion Workers Erin Richardson, Elly Taylor, Kirsten Campbell, Lucy Forwood, Sally Camilleri, Arbeth Guevara FARREP Workers Teresia Mutisya, Shukria Alewi (Rumia Abbas, Reem Omarit) Power On Peer Educators Roslyn Beer, Jenny Hickinbotham Sunrise Group Project Worker Lindy Corbett Attendant Carer Wendy Burton

FAMILY VIOLENCE SERVICES

Family Violence Services Manager Jacky Tucker Intensive Case Manager Simone Disability Intensive Case Manager (Deborah) Intake Coordinator Hang 24 Hour Crisis Service Coordinator Michelle* 24 Hour Crisis Response Worker Batsi CALD Housing Worker Phuong Casual and 24 Hour Crisis Service (After Hours) Workers Gabby, Miriam, Melanie, Reqik, Samreen Crisis accommodation services CAS Coordinator Sophie

Refuge workers Nancy, Fabien, Gwyneth, Mishelle, Pai Counselling services VACP Counsellor Kim, Melissa* Children’s Counsellors Sally, Stephanie (Rebecca) Family violence outreach Outreach Coordinator Jelena (Tammy) Outreach Workers Victoria, Jude, Kim, Luise, Hatice, Merryn, Isabelle, Irene, Melanie, (Suzanna, Christine) Regional family violence coordination Regional Integration Coordinator Maureen Smith

COMMUNICATIONS Communications Coordinator Nicola Harte Information Worker Veronica Garcia

Organisational chart Members and Communities of Interest Board of Directors Chief Executive Officer

Executive Assistant

L-R Ruth Marshall, Claire Culley, Catherine Bateman, Lara Rafferty, Georgie Hill, June Kane, Peta Olive, Leigh Russell, Karen Passey

Georgie Hill - Chair

Women’s Health West (WHW) is incorporated under the Associations Incorporation Act and our affairs are managed by a board of directors (the board). This governance statement outlines how the board discharges that responsibility.

used within standing committees and tasks groups and that recruitment and succession planning processes target skills gaps.

The board is the legal authority of WHW. Board responsibility is governance, rather than management on a day-to-day level – which is delegated to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

• have a commitment to Women’s Health West’s vision, values and direction and be familiar with the organisation’s affairs and those of the sector more broadly

Coordinator, Safer Communities and Health Promotion, Maribyrnong City Council BA, Postgraduate Certificate Social Science

Ruth Marshall – Deputy Chair

Senior Business Analyst, Western Health Chartered Management Accountant

Directors are elected for a two-year term, and may serve for up to three consecutive terms. They are expected to:

Karen Passey - Treasurer

The board is committed to ensuring WHW is accountable, strategic and responsive, and that the vision and core values that we espouse are reflected in all of our dealings as an organisation. Duty statements have been developed to clearly define director’s roles to ensure the skills of individual directors appropriately match the requirements of each position, including office bearing roles.

• make every effort to attend all of the monthly board meetings (quorum is five)

The board is comprised of nine directors drawn from our membership, taking into account their skills and ability to carry out their role effectively. An annual skills audit ensures directors’ abilities are best

The board reports to members at the annual general meeting where the annual report, including the audited financial report for the year just ended, is presented.

Information Worker

Business Manager Finance Officer Accounts and Admin Officer

Office Coordinator Reception / Admin Facilities / Admin

Manager Health Promotion, Research and Devopment

Manager Family Violence Services

Coordinator Sexual and Reproductive Health

Coordinator Crisis Accommodation Services

FARREP Workers Health Promotion Workers Power On Peer Educators

Sunrise Groups Project Worker Attendant Carer

Regional Family Violence Integration Coordinator

CAS Workers

CALD Crisis Housing Worker

Coordinator Outreach Services

Outreach Workers Intensive Case Manager

Disability Intensive Case Manager Counselling Coordinator

Coordinator Intake Intake Workers After Hours Workers Coordinator 24 Hour Crisis Service 24 Hour Crisis Response Worker

VACP Counsellor Children’s Counsellors

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

Leigh Russell

CEO, Netball Victoria BA, Grad Dip Ed, Grad Dip Soc Science, Grad Cert Career Counselling, Grad Dip Bus Manager, People and Fairness, Human Resources, University of Melbourne BA, Post grad Dip (Psychological Studies)

• be willing to serve on one or more board standing committees or task groups

Claire Culley

Div Director Surgical Services, Western Health RN, BA AppSc, MA PubHealth

Dr June Kane AM

The board appoints a chair, deputy chair and treasurer, who hold office for one year and may be re-appointed.

Board meeting (inc. AGM)

CEO SIDS and Kids Victoria RN, RM, Grad Dip (Mgmt), Cert Finance, Cert Emergency Nursing, Paediatric Cert

Lara Rafferty

European Commission Expert on Violence against Children and Women BA, PhD

Peta Olive

Senior Associate, Schetzer, Brott and Appel Lawyers BA, LLB (Hons)

Catherine Bateman

Community Dev Worker, YWCA Victoria RN, MPH, Bach App Science (Health Promotion)

Figure 19. Board meeting attendance, 2010-2011

Communications Coordinator

PHOTO Meredith O’Shea

Governance

Staff list

IR task group

Finance and risk committee

Strategic planning and performance management

Board Evaluation meetings

Board planning day

ATTENDANCE

Where is eligible to attend, is attended

Megan Bumpstead Lisa Field Ruth Marshall Georgie Hill Karen Passey Naomi Raab June Kane Kirsty McIntyre Lara Rafferty Catherine Bateman Claire Culley Leigh Russell Peta Olive Samantha Merrigan (External expert) Robyn Gregory Lara Polak (Operations)

7 4 11 11* 11 8 11 7 5 5 1 1 1 11

7 4 10 9 10 7 6 6 4 5 1 1 1 11

5 23 20*

5 21 20

6 6

6 5

9 4 1 4 1 1

6 3 1 2 1 0

2 2 2 2 2 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0

2 1 1 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

0 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 1 1 1 1 1

0 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 1

Where a director is not a member of a committee, the area in the table above is shaded. The chair of each committee is indicated with an asterisk (*)

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

Financial reports

Note

State Government Operating Grants Local Government Operating Grants Other Grants Other Income Interest Donations Profit/loss on Disposal of Assets Total Income

DECLARATION BY MEMBERS OF THE BOARD The members of the board declare that: 1 The financial statements and notes: (a) comply with Accounting Standards and Australian equivalent of the International Reporting Standards (AIFRS) as detailed in note 1 to the financial statements; and

Employee benefits expenses Management & Administrative expenses Motor Vehicle expenses Depreciation expense Occupancy expenses ICT expenses Client Support Services Training & Development Communication Total Expenses

(b) give a true and fair view of Women’s Health West financial position as at 30th June 2011 and of its performance for the year ended on that date in accordance with the accounting policies described in note 1 to the financial statements. (c) are, in the board’s opinion, in accordance with the Incorporated Associations Act of Victoria

2011

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

251,735

1,876,486

1,808,396

789,168 301,976 1,091,144

1,022,119 284,054 1,306,173

Non-Current Liabilities 6 Provisions Total Non-Current Liabilities

70,141 70,141

51,468 51,468

TOTAL LIABILITIES

1,161,285

1,357,641

715,201

450,756

357,068 358,133 715,201

360,788 89,968 450,756

3,271,516

3,191,998

1(j)

2,483,370

2,277,705

TOTAL ASSETS

1(j)

96,853

121,608

43,250 85,230 191,710 66,096 206,744 73,811 28,171 3,275,235

45,877 82,724 196,388 74,158 328,253 34,479 29,998 3,191,191

(3,719)

808

11 1(j) 1(j) 1(j) 1(j)

2011 $

2010 $

3,417,287 60,338

9(a)

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

Current Liabilities Payables Provisions Total Current Liabilities

496,485

(65,583)

(62,865)

(65,583)

9(a) 4

5 6

NET ASSETS EQUITY Retained Surplus Reserves TOTAL EQUITY

8 1(i), 7

STATEMENT IN CHANGES IN EQUITY

(2,981,140)

(62,865)

CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES Borrowings (repayments) - for leased equipment Net Cash used in - financing activities Net increase (decrease) in cash held Cash at the beginning of the financial period Cash at the end of the financial period

250,791

34,162

Proceeds from (payments for) property, plant and equipment Net Cash used in investing activities

(j)Victorian Standard Chart of Accounts for Not-for-Profit Community Organisations As recommended by the Victorian Government WHW, has implemented the new standard chart of accounts for the purpose of standardising financial reporting to enhance harmonisation with other organisations. As a result of the implementation the auditor has adjusted the 2009-10 results to enable a comparison.

251,735

21,421

Non-Current Assets Property, plant and 3 equipment Total Non-Current Assets

CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES

This financial statement is a general purpose financial statement that has been prepared in accordance with Australian Accounting Standards and other mandatory professional reporting requirements and the requirements of the Incorporated Associations Act of Victoria. They are compiled on a going concern basis adopting the principles of historical cost accounting and do not reflect current valuations of noncurrent assets except where stated. This financial report has been prepared on an accruals basis.

250,791

106,288 44,315 60,338 -

CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES Receipts from grants etc 3,164,364 Interest received 85,271 Payments to suppliers and (3,131,275) employees Net Cash provided by 9(b) 118,360 (used in) operating activities

1 STATEMENT OF ACCOUNTING POLICIES

1,533,463 16,248 2,979 3,971 1,556,661

85,316 35,575 85,271 12,828

Note

Notes To and Forming Part of the Accounts

1,588,958 16,868 19,869 - 1,625,695

CURRENT ASSETS Cash and cash equivalents Receivables Prepayments Sundry Debtors Total Current Assets

STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS

Date: 20 September 2011

2010 $

Note

4,509

This declaration is made in accordance with a resolution of the members of the board by:

Karen Passey Treasurer

2,946,894

Net Surplus from ordinary activities

Date: 20 September 2011

2011 $

2010

3,026,595

2 In the opinion of the members of the board there are reasonable grounds to believe that the organisation will be able to pay its debts as and when they become due and payable.

Georgie Hill Chairperson

BALANCE SHEET

INCOME STATEMENT

for the year ended 30 June 2011

Balance at 30 June 2010 Profit attributable to members Balance at 30 June 2011

Retained Earnings $

General Reserve $

Total $

360,788

89,968

450,756

(3,719)

268,165

264,446

357,068

358,133

715,201

The full financial report is available on request.

(1,262) (1,262)

55,495

429,640

1,533,463

1,103,823

1,588,958

1,533,463

Key partnerships WHW are clear that, as a small organisation with a region-wide mandate, our greatest strength in achieving our vision of equity and justice for women in the west is through the development of robust partnerships. As a result, we commit significant resources to working in collaboration with other organisations to further our goals, including two programs that lead the region in the development of strategic responses to complex problems. We have updated our comprehensive partnership register on a regular basis, allowing us to monitor formal and informal partnership agreements, and we undertake annual reviews of the efficacy of our key partnerships using agreed assessment tools. AMES

Anglicare Victoria Annecto

Anne-Sophie Poirier

Ascot Vale Leisure Centre YMCA

Aspire, Tasmania

Australia Red Cross

Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society

Footprints, Brisbane

Footscray Community Arts Centre Gabriela Australia

Gambler’s Help

Gatehouse Royal Children’s Hospital

Gender Equity in Local Government working group

Australian Services Union

Gippsland Women’s Health Service

Berry Street – Family Violence Services

Harvester Clinic – Western Metropolitan Community Mental Health Service

Brimbank Youth Services

Hepatitis C Victoria

Barwon-South Western Regional Women’s Health Brimbank City Council

Carers Victoria Respite Connections

Carlton Family Resource Centre (City of Melbourne)

Catholic Care

Celestial Tai Chi College

Centre for Ethnicity and Health

Centre for Women’s Health, Gender and Society

Centrelink – Community Team

Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service

Child Protection (western region) Colac Community Health Service

Community for Children Deakin University

Department of Health

Department of Human Services

Djerriwarrh Community Health Service

Domestic Violence Resource Centre Victoria

Domestic Violence Victoria Doutta Galla Community Health Service

Eastern Domestic Violence Outreach Service Elizabeth Hoffman House

Family Mediation Centre Family Planning Victoria

Good Shepherd

HealthWest Partnership

Hobsons Bay City Council

Vietnamese Women’s Welfare Association

Moonee Valley City Council

Multicultural Centre for Women’s Health

Werribee Support and Housing

Multicultural Health and Support Services

West CASA

Western English Language School

Mzuri Dance

New Hope Foundation

Western Health

North West Children’s Western Integrated Family Counsellor Peer Supervision Violence Committee Network Western Integrated Family NorwoodAssociation Violence Partnership Portland District Health (women and children) Print Supply Management

Western Region Football League: Women in Football Foundation

Public Interest Law Clearing House Refugee and Immigration Legal Service

Holy Eucharist Primary School Relationships Australia and Church (Victoria) Home Ground Services Royal Children’s Hospital Housing Choices Royal Women’s Hospital Housing Resource and Salvation Army Support and Support Service Housing Services Inner North West Primary Care Scout Kozakiewicz Partnership South West Community Health inTouch Multicultural Centre Centre

Against Family Violence

Iramoo Community Centre

Isis and Pluto

Isis Primary Care

Spectrum Migrant Resource Centre St John Ambulance

JAB Solutions

Sunshine and Melbourne Magistrate Courts

Lifeworks

Sunshine Hospital

Laverton Community Centre MacKillop Family Services

Magic Movements Self Defence

Magistrates Court Victoria

Mambourin Enterprises Maribyrnong City Council

McAuley Community Services for Women

Melbourne City Council

Melbourne Magistrates Court Melton City Council

Melton Youth Services

Mental Illness Fellowship

Merri Outreach Support Services

Metro West (Yarra Housing)

Migrant Resource Centre Family Services Group, Gold North West Coast Molly’s House Refuge

Monash University

Sunshine Court Susan Miller

Taylors Lakes Secondary College

Western Region Health Centre Western Young People’s Independent Network

Whirlwind Print

WIRE Women’s Information

Women with Disabilities Victoria Women’s Circus

Women’s Domestic Violence Crisis Service Victoria Women’s Health Association of Victoria

Women’s Health East

Women’s Health Goulburn North East

Women’s Health Grampians Women’s Health in the North

Women’s Health in the South East

Telephone Interpreter Service

Women’s Health Loddon Mallee

The University of Melbourne

Women’s Health Victoria

The Good Shepherd Victoria Police

Victoria University

Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency

Victorian Cooperative on Children’s Services for Ethnic Groups

Women’s Health Tasmania Women’s Housing Ltd

Women’s Legal Service Victoria

Wyndham City Council

Wyndham Youth Services

Yarra Community Housing Services

Victorian Women and Mental YWCA Victoria Zonta Women’s Club Health Network Victorian Women’s Football League

Victorian Writer’s Centre

Vietnamese Welfare Resource Centre

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

ACRONYMS

AAS AGM ARA ASU ATO BFVU CALD CAMHS CAS CASA CECFW CPR DEECD DH DHS DICM DV Vic DV FARREP FGM FPV FV FVLO FWA HASS ICM ICT IFVS IIO IO IWD LGA MIECAT NWMR OHSE OOH PCP PRB PVAW PVT QIC RIC THM VACP VEOHRC VCOSS VHIA WDVCS WELS WHAV WHW WIFVP WRHC WSH

Australian Accounting Standards Annual General Meeting Australasian Reporting Awards Australian Services Union Australian Taxation Office Brimbank Family Violence Unit Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service Crisis Accommodation Services Centre Against Sexual Assault Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Department of Education and Early Childhood Development Department of Health Department of Human Services Disability Intensive Case Manager Domestic Violence Victoria Domestic Violence Family and Reproductive Rights Education Program Female Genital Mutilation Family Planning Victoria Family Violence Family Violence Liaison Officer Fair Work Australia Homelessness Assistance Service Standards Intensive Case Management Information and Communication Technology Integrated Family Violence Service Interim Intervention Order Intervention Order International Women’s Day Local Government Area Melbourne Institute for Experiential and Creative Arts Therapy North West Metropolitan Region Occupational Health, Safety and Environment Office of Housing Primary Care Partnership Private Rental Brokerage Prevention of Violence Against Women Preventing Violence Together Quality Improvement Council Regional Integration Coordinator Transitional Housing Manager Victims Assistance and Counselling Program Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission Victorian Council of Social Services Victorian Hospitals Industry Association Women’s Domestic Violence Crisis Service Western English Language School Women’s Health Association of Victoria Women’s Health West Western Integrated Family Violence Partnership (women and children) Western Region Health Centre Werribee Support and Housing

women’s health west annual report 2010-2011

TABLE OF FIGURES Fig 1

Five year income trend analysis ........................ 5

Fig 3

Income sources ................................................ 10

Fig 2 Fig 4 Fig 5 Fig 6

Five year expenditure trend analysis ................. 5

Expenditure ....................................................... 10 Family violence services data ...........................12 Intake service access type ................................13

Fig 7

Cultural identity of outreach clients ...................14

Fig 9

Family violence after hours referral sources .....15

Fig 8

Case management support periods .................14

Fig 10 Women and children assisted by the

after hours service ............................................15

Fig 11 Total police faxbacks by LGA ............................15 Fig 12 Police faxbacks 2006-2011 ...............................15 Fig 13 Crisis accommodation services ........................17

Fig 14 CAS client housing outcomes ...........................17 Fig 15

CALD housing program

Fig 16

CALD client housing outcomes ........................19

(Client language groups) ..................................19

Fig 17 Security items provided by Safe at Home

brokerage ..........................................................20

Fig 18 Reception call register ......................................35

Fig 19 Meeting attendance (Board directors) ..............39

Annual Report 2010-2011 ISSN 1834-710X Publisher Women’s Health West Printed November 2011 Printer Whirlwind Print Editors Robyn Gregory, Nicola Harte Designer Nicola Harte Illustrations Isis and Pluto Front cover Lead On Again participants Photographer Scout Kozakiewicz Back cover Evaluation form exploring strength at I Am Strong, We Are Strong International Women’s Day event Photographer Anne-Sophie Poirier ABN 24 036 234 159

If you would like a copy of this publication in large print or another format please email info@whwest.org.au

Are you a member?

JOIN US! All women living, working or studying in the western metropolitan region of Melbourne are eligible for membership of Women’s Health West, as are organisations whose client base includes the western region. Membership is free and includes a great newsletter and invitations to events like our AGM. Most importantly, our members help to strengthen the voice of an organisation working to bring equity and justice to women in the west. To find out how to join call us on 03

9689 9588,

info@whwest.org.au or complete an online membership form at www.whwest.org.au email

Donate

Women’s Health West receives funding from the State Government but we rely on grants and donations to help us extend our services. Donations to WHW are tax deductible. For more information please call 03 9689 9588 or visit www.whwest.org.au/docs/donate.pdf

Any support that you provide will have a very real impact on our ability to meet the needs of women in the west

$7 $30

$150 $1,000

allows us to purchase a metcard for a woman escaping violence allows us to provide an information manual to healthcare providers about reproductive health services for refugees from the Horn of Africa or to give a toiletry pack to a woman escaping violence or a children’s pack to a child who has had to leave home without their belongings allows us to pay accommodation for a woman and her children when there are no beds available in overcrowded refuges would assist us to run a financial literacy program

317-319 Barkly Street Footscray Victoria 3011 Phone: 03 9689 9588 Fax: 03 9689 3861 Email: info@whwest.org.au www.whwest.org.au