National mapping and meta-evaluation outlining key features of effective “safe at home” programs that enhance safety and prevent homelessness for women and their children who have experienced domestic and family violence

Domestic and family violence have consistently been identified as major reasons for women’s homelessness. A number of jurisdictions have implemented “safe at home” programs or approaches which aim to mitigate the specific homelessness and safety impacts of domestic violence on women and their children. Although these are relatively new programs, a number of these have been evaluated. A meta-evaluation of these programs provides a synthesis and update of existing research on this topic, and identifies the current gaps in evidence.

This project mapped current Australian “Safe at Home” programs and approaches. Through this process, the researchers identified existing evaluations and reviews on which to undertake a meta-evaluation. These were examined to determine the important program characteristics, outcome domains and research methods in evaluations of Australian “safe at home” programs, including the strengths and weaknesses of previous evaluations.

The researchers synthesised these evaluations and literature to produce evidence of the effectiveness of “safe at home” models and identified what key features of these models are most effective in achieving safety for women and their children.

The project also made recommendations concerning key minimum elements to include in future evaluations and what minimum datasets would be required to provide meaningful data for individual programs and support the comparison of future evaluations.

The project provided evidence about how women who have experienced domestic and family violence can best be supported to stay safe in their own homes.