Co-designing family violence prevention initiatives with marginalised communities
There is currently a limited evidence base for understanding the drivers of family violence in LGBTI communities. It is understood that LGBTI people experience family and intimate partner violence at the same, if not greater rates than their cisgender, heterosexual counterparts. Research also suggests that family violence against LGBTI people does not occur in a vacuum, but in the context of broader and deeply entrenched discrimination and abuse. In order to build the evidence base and develop initiatives to prevent family violence for minority communities, an approach which prioritises the voice and experiences of community members is needed.
At this year’s FRSA Conference, Ellen Poyner and TGV’s Deanne Carson will share learnings from the “We Deserve” family violence prevention project which aims to build knowledge and develop effective family violence prevention strategies with and for trans and gender diverse (TGD) communities. The presentation will explore the co-design model utilised across the We Deserve project including how an intersectional approach was adopted to engage a wide diversity of TGD Victorians in co-planning, co-designing, co-delivery and co-reviewing primary prevention initiatives.
The presentation will outline overall learnings from the co-production process, as well as:
- Key themes from focus group consultations with over 40 trans and gender diverse people
- How these themes informed the co-design and co-delivery of family violence prevention initiatives
- Considerations for the safe implementation of prevention initiatives which create positive representation of TGD people and their relationships
- Future directions for initiative development.
In sharing both the process and outcomes of the project, this presentation will highlight how utilisation of a coproduction model ensures “We Deserve” will pave the way for more respectful relationships for trans and gender diverse people and their families.
The theme for this year’s FRSA Conference is New Horizons: Building the future, Paving the Way. For more info or to book tickets, please visit their site.
The executive summary for the We Deserve Research and Evaluation Report is available here.
As a Senior Consultant at drummond street, Ellen manages the research and evaluation of a number of violence prevention and co-production projects and mainly works within Queerspace research. Ellen is passionate about the co-design of programs and initiatives to best meet the needs of communities.