Advocacy for safety and empowerment: Good practice and innovative approaches with Aboriginal women experiencing family and domestic violence in remote and regional Australia.

This research seeks to explore the challenges in partnership with three community-based, women’s specialist services that are long established in their communities, and are influenced by the politics of self-determination, identity and empowerment.

Using participatory methodology the project asks how remote and regional women’s organisations that serve Indigenous populations have learned lessons and thrived. It focuses on three key service challenges: outreach, advocacy, and safety planning. It explores the ways services respond to the culturally and context specific needs of Aboriginal women, with what priorities, under what conditions, and with what success criteria?

It also explores how and in what ways have Indigenous women themselves (as workers, clients and community members) acted to shape and influence the approaches of women’s specialist services.

In co-developing and testing methods for monitoring and evaluation, the project will produce practical resources for regional and remote family and domestic violence services, and ultimately improve responses and support for Aboriginal women and their children.

This project provides evidence to improve services for Aboriginal women who have experienced family and domestic violence.