inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 1

Multicultural Centre Against Family Violence

inTouch
annual report
2012-13
2 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 3
Contents
Highlights 4
Chairs report 6
CEOs report 8
About us 10
inTouch team 14
Prevention and early intervention 16
Crisis intervention 20
Post-crisis support 26
Research and advocacy 28
Building sector capacity 30
Strengthening organisational capacity 32
2012/13
inTouch Inc. Multicultural Centre Against Family Violence
GPO Box 2905
Melbourne Vic 3001
Phone: (03) 9413 6500
Fax: (03) 9429 0057
Country Callers: 1800 755 988 (freecall)
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.intouch.asn.au
4 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 5
OUR CLIENTS COME FROM
94 DIFFERENT CULTURAL
BACKGROUNDS
2012/13 Highlights
972
CALD women received assistance
through Family Violence Support program
A total of
A major milestone
in the history of
the organisation -
Launch of inTouch
Legal Centre in
November 2012
an innovative,
client-centred
model, the frst
of its kind in
Australia
inTouch staff
provide services
to clients in
22 different
languages
22
I will never forget your kind support and all the actions you took in regards to
my case. I am now renting a small unit. I am also in the process of getting my
drivers licence and will start my rst job in Australia next month.
I could not nd a right card nor an
exact word how to express perfectly
my sincerest thanks from the deepest
of my heart, for being there for me to
listen and to understand my broken
English, for supporting me mentally
and emotionally, for giving me courage
to ght for my rights and an opportunity
to make a new beginning for my two
children and myself.
13741
community members
involved in prevention
activities
women received
specialist immigration
support
256
MORE THAN
WOMEN AND
CHILDREN INVOLVED
IN COUNSELLING AND
THERAPEUTIC GROUP
PROGRAMS
6 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 7
We are in no doubt that respectful
interpersonal relationships really do form
the basis of a sustainable, just society.
Yet there continues, distressingly, to be an
absence of respect in many relationships
which leads to the very worst of outcomes
for women, children and families.
The numbers of women and children who
access the inTouch crisis intervention
services tells a disturbing but not
surprising story. This year alone, our direct
services team supported almost over 1000
women and their accompanying children.
Most of women we support at inTouch,
no matter what their country of origin,
describe their social lives as deeply rooted
in patriarchal structures where they remain
relatively powerless. Beyond this, in cases
of family violence, structural constraints,
such as language barriers, perceived
prejudice in the criminal justice system and
a lack of adequately coordinated ethno
cultural services and representation are all
major disincentives to seeking help.
Family violence is and always has been a
complex and multi-faceted problem which
requires a multifaceted solution. This past
year has shown that inTouch is really at the
forefront of facilitating a comprehensive
approach which nds solutions through
prevention based work. Through direct
community engagement - maintaining a
culturally responsive and holistic approach
- we are involved with government and the
broader services sector in developing new
responses for crisis intervention.
But we are really focused and committed
to pioneering new prevention programs,
particularly in relation to embedding
sustainable programs promoting respectful
relationships. To this end, we undertook
four key projects where men played a key
role in preventing violence against women
and achieving cultural change in attitudes
and behaviours. Contributing to what it
ultimately means to recognise respect as
a basic human right.
It is our sincere hope that by supporting
women to move from crisis to safety
and independence and increasing
understanding and awareness of
respectful relationships we will improve
societal responses to, and increase
protection for, women and children
affected by abuse.
Our work in this past year demonstrates
how strategic partnerships between
government, private sector and not for
prot organsiations can achieve long-term
positive social outcomes and give families
and communities hope for a better future.
Building a relationship and relationships,
accorded by respect for the other can
be transforming. When men and women,
are able to respect and accept their
differences it helps to frame a positive
narrative which is critical to enabling
and sustaining ethical, non violent
relationships. It is also critical to achieving
the safety and wellbeing of all individuals,
families and communities.
I am proud and honoured as Chair of
inTouch to lead an organistion which in
the past year addressed access and
equity accorded by respect in the most
fundamental way.
We know the vital importance of
understanding how to construct respectful
relationships which provides social equity
and the building blocks of our society.
Where systems work for women they
create the foundations necessary for
womens empowerment in all aspects of
their lives. They foster an environment
of respect for dignity and equality, and
enable progressive development in each
facet of our shared endeavor.
We laid the foundations for positive
change with the establishment of the
inTouch Legal Centre in 2012 and are
more optimistic than ever having come
through 2013 in our capacity to help
create a society which does not accept
violence against women and children.
More importantly one which lays the
foundations for respect for children to
be listened to, women heard and men
acknowledged.
We appreciate the vision of the
Australian Government and the Victorian
Government for their continued support.
We also thank them for their ongoing
commitment and look forward to our
shared successes.
On behalf of inTouch I wish to thank all
Board members who have demonstrated
a high level of commitment and dedication
to their role and to the many facets of the
organisation.
On behalf of the Board I would like to
express our gratitude to our CEO, Maya
Avdibegovic who over the past year
has strengthened the organisation,
consolidating our place as a leading
service provider in the sector. She is
supported by a loyal team at all levels,
who have provided the strong foundations
we have today.
It is exciting to look back on the year
of accomplishments that far exceeded
our expectations and we embrace the
challenges which lie in the year ahead.
As Chair I am privileged for the
opportunity to serve inTouch and the
women and children and now men,
who receive its services and participate
in its programs.
To everyone who continues to contribute
to the success of inTouch - thank you.
Faye Spiteri
Chair
Chairs report
The past year has in short been revolutionary
for inTouch.
Every human being, irrespective of their power
and strength, has the right to be respected.
Our desire to advocate for, and facilitate this
strongly held view, has become the cornerstone
of everything we do as an organisation. This
expresses itself best through our deeply held and
enduring value - which sees equity of opportunity
and social justice as primary and fundamental.
8 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 9
Family violence is a major social,
economic and health issue and continues
to have a profound and devastating
impact on women, children, families and
communities.
Reporting is increasing at a substantial rate
which is reected in the demand for our
services. In 2012-13, 972 CALD women
experiencing family violence received
assistance through our Family Violence
Support Program. This represents a
9.2% increase from the last nancial year
and exceeds our capacity of 691 clients
by 34.6%. Women without permanent
residency continue to represent the most
disadvantaged group of clients, with 256
women receiving immigration support from
our Registered Migration Agent.
inTouch continues working tirelessly not
only on improving responses for CALD
women and children experiencing family
violence, and on preventing violence
against women in CALD communities.
21 November 2012 marked a major
milestone in the history of the organisation
when Attorney-General Robert Clark
launched the inTouch Legal Centre, an
innovative and unique client-centred
model and the rst of its kind in Australia.
The inTouch Legal Centre is yet another
success for the organisation and
demonstrates our achievement of our
strategic goals and moving towards
building a multidisciplinary, culturally
responsive service that can meet diverse
needs of our clients.
A big highlight this year has been our
prevention project - CALD Communities
Leading the Way to Respectful
Relationships. Croatian, Indian,
Sudanese and Vietnamese Taskforce
members proved to be true champions
in their efforts and work to mobilise
their communities and raise awareness
about gender equality and respectful
relationships.
We also delivered another successful
Vietnamese Mens Behaviour Change
Program and a number of therapeutic
groups for women and children. Alongside
this we represented the interests of
inTouch and advocated for our clients at
22 different committees and networks,
providing our input to a number of different
initiatives and projects. We presented
at 3 major conferences and conducted
more than 20 training and professional
development session to enhance cultural
competency of the service providers.
I would like to thank all staff and volunteers
at inTouch your dedication and passion,
your hard work, empathy and caring is
inspiring. I am also grateful to the Board
for its generous support and commitment
to the strategic direction of the
organisation and its continuing success.
I thank all partners and stakeholders who
we worked with in 2012/2013; it is only
through combined effort and collaboration
that we work toward achieving a future
free of family violence for all women
and children.
Above all, I would like to celebrate all
women and children who come through
our service.
Your strength continues to encourage and
motivate us.
Maya Avdibegovic
CEO
CEOs report
It is my pleasure to present the inTouch Annual
Report for 2012/2013. It has been another
successful and busy year for our organisation
and our partners in the CALD and family
violence sector.
10 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 11
about us
inTouch, the Multicultural Centre against Family Violence, is a state-wide service that provides services,
programs and responses to issues of family violence in CALD communities. We acknowledge the rights and
diverse experiences of our clients and in doing so, develop and implement a number of culturally sensitive and
holistic models to provide services to both victims and perpetrators of family violence.
In tackling the issues of family violence we act on multiple levels individual, relationship and community.
Our organisation strives to create a world where all women and children will be safe and free from violence.
12 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 13
Our Vision: For CALD families to live a life free from violence
Our Mission: Providing support to individuals, families and communities and working
toward preventing family violence through social and systemic advocacy
and community awareness.
Our Values: > human rights and gender equality
> commitment to clients
> respect for individual differences and values
> condentiality, trust and the right to privacy
> professionalism and collaboration
Our Strengths: > Multidisciplinary statewide service
> 30 years of experience
> Expertise in working with migrant and refugee communities
> Expertise in family violence
> Services offered in more than 25 languages
> Quality accredited organisation
Strategic > Prevention and early intervention
Priorities: > Crisis intervention
> Post-crisis support
> Research and advocacy
> Building sector capacity
> Strengthening organisational capacity
14 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 15
inTouch patrons
Voula Messimeri
George Lekakis
inTouch board
Faye Spiteri Chair
Michal Morris Deputy Chair
Christina Liosis Treasurer
Lucy Prinzi Secretary
Elizabeth Nunez Ordinary Member
Helen Fatouros Ordinary Member
Wesa Chau Ordinary Member
Azmeena Hussein Ordinary Member
Maria Butera Ordinary Member
inTouch staff
Maya Avdibegovic CEO
Roshan Bhandary Program Manager
Melissa Blakey Finance Manager
Alexa Ridgway Legal Centre Manager
Jennifer Dawson Group Coordinator
Yvonne Lay Quality Coordinator
Elizabeth Becker Principal Lawyer
Emma Muse Legal Centre Intake Coordinator
Naime Cevic Team Leader
Luba Tanevski FV Case Worker / Registered Migration Agent
Jen Anderson Project Worker
Chenoa Ribarits Ofce Coordinator / Receptionist
Dinar Tyas FV Case Worker
Adisa Muminovic FV Case Worker
Houng Nguyen FV Case Worker
Elham Tawq FV Case Worker
Kathrine Deng FV Case Worker
Manasi Wagh-Nikam FV Case Worker
Christine Chong FV Case Worker
Nyawargak DeiWal FV Case Worker
Sylvia Karitu FV Case Worker
Shauna Lay FV Case Worker
Kaye Sebire FV Case Worker
Casual Employees
Cinar Sultan Joyce Soon Jong Foo
Mahdokht Mahboobi Antonia Silic
Gatwech Pal Gatluak Khai Van Nguyen
Ruchita Ruchita Athieng Majak
Nurcihan Ozturk Nyawuor Riek Gai
Hatice Turk
Students
Quyen Thanh Ha
Nalini Weerasekera
Hedwig Kaloki
Volunteers
Franceska Williams Lucy Patchett
Emma Wanchap Barbara Pizir
Darko Kotevsky Lily Silic
Marijana Jerbic Dr. Sunila Shrivastava
Bhawna Sachdeva Dinesh Sood
Dr. Jasbir Singh Bedi Poonam Mehra
Inderjit Jasal Sukhdeep Kaur
Sangeeta Singh Sidona Jaden
Veronica Akur Bar Awatif Ibrahim
Bill J Kuor Guil Deng
Issac John Nyandeng Ayul
Bon Nguyen Andrew Nguyen
Tania Huynh Thuy Nguyen
Hong Vo Ken Nguyen
Quyen Ha
inTouch
team
16 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 17
Funded by FaHCSIA, this family
violence prevention project, works
with culturally-specic groups across
four ethnic communities: Indian,
Sudanese, Vietnamese and Croatian.
By implementing programs that raise
awareness about gender equality and
respectful relationships, it aims to change
attitudes and build violence-denouncing
cultures. It specically addresses the
current need of the Culturally and
Linguistically Diverse (CALD) population
who, due to language barriers and
differing cultural practice, can be isolated
from mainstream prevention activities.
As a starting point for the project, Task
Force Committees for each of the four
ethnic groups were established. These
committees are made up of between
four to eight respected community faith
leaders, elders and young people and
are led by facilitators sourced from the
community. Each committee is partnered
with a local ethnically aligned organization
that has demonstrated a desire to increase
their capacity in family violence prevention.
The partners also provide another point of
contact with the communities.
The facilitators, Task Force Committee
members, and representatives from the
partner organisations were provided with
culturally appropriate training. The training
was based on the United Nations Human
Rights and the VicHealth Preventing
Violence against Women framework. In
consultation with their communities each
Task Force Committee has developed
a two-year action plan to design and
implement eight awareness-raising
activities around the theme of respectful
relationships. The activities commenced
in late 2012 and will continue throughout
2013 and into early 2014. The project
model encourages task force committees
to take full ownership of their activities
to ensure that the community receives
messages of gender equality and non-
violence at regular intervals.
Now that the project is well-established,
inTouch is enabling the Task Force
Committees to engage with other
stakeholders such as local councils,
ethnically aligned organizations, and other
entities to continue their work. This will
ensure that momentum builds to take the
project beyond its funding period, and
will create future funding possibilities for
ongoing prevention activities.
Prevention and
early intervention
CALD Communities Leading the Way to Respectful
Relationships a community engagement initiative to prevent
family violence in Victoria
Croatian community
informative interview on the
Croatian program of SBS
national radio station
Sports for All event focused
on elderly abuse
Men Only outing to Melbourne
Scienceworks Museum, tour
of SBS radio station and
information session on respectful
relationships
information session at Endeavour
Hills Senior Citizens Club
Knitting Project women group
Indian community
White Ribbon Day event
multi-faith peace prayer
A Bollywood flm night with
a family violence theme and
a Q&A discussion.
Respectful Relationships
and Seniors Rights
Sudanese community
A family fun day with a
respectful relationships theme
A social media competition
and a disco night for young people
Art making with respectful
relationships theme
With Love and Respect
- Public Exhibition of Respectful
Relationships Artwork
Presentation at an African
Community forum
Vietnamese community
An informative stall at the
Tet Festival
A karaoke themed activity with
a senior citizens group and a
discussion that focussed on
elder abuse
Radio interview on SBS
national radio
Mothers day event
Activities delivered in 2012/2013:
Presentation to Croatian men Indian seniors event Activity participant with her clay montage
about respectful relationships
Vietnamese TFC stall at the festival
18 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 19
UPSCALE Project
inTouch has been involved in designing
and conducting training programs for
mediators from African backgrounds
since 2009. inTouch has expanded this
involvement and expertise to the Burmese
community by partnering with UPSCALE,
a new program led by the Western Region
Health Centre. The UPSCALE project
aims to develop community members
skills and knowledge to enable them to
provide effective interventions that are
informed by an understanding of the
Australian legal and cultural context.
inTouch has designed and delivered a part
of this training program.
Community
Education sessions
In the last nancial year, inTouch provided
a series of education and information
sessions around the issue of family
violence to various CALD community
groups and members. This included
a session with Macedonian seniors, a
presentation at the Womens Forum at
Africa Day 2013 and participating in the
Small, New and Emerging Communities
Expo and the Pathways to Better Living
Expo.
of pathways and ongoing partnerships to
ensure the work of the program continues
beyond its funding period
Key Achievements of the Respectful Relationships project
Other Key Prevention
Activities
13,741
community members from the four
communities have been directly or indirectly
exposed to the projects message so far.
of all participants so far have
reported an increased understanding
of respectful relationships following
attendance at an event.
A total of
80
%
ONGOING EVALUATION, PROGRAM IMPROVEMENTS AND SHARING OF LESSONS LEARNT ACROSS THE
FOUR COMMUNITIES, PROVIDING LEARNING AND DATA FOR THE CURRENT PROJECT AND KNOWLEDGE
FOR FUTURE PROJECTS AND OTHER LIKE-MINDED ORGANISATIONS.
Maintaining consistently
high level of engagement with
each communitys partnership
organisation.
BUILDING
*
*
20 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 21
Family Violence Support
Program
Between 2012 and 2013, the inTouch
Direct Service Team provided support to
972 CALD women experiencing family
violence. This represents a 9.2% increase
from the last nancial year and exceeds
our capacity of 691 clients by 34.6%.
inTouch case workers provided assistance
and advocacy for women and children
by prioritising their safety within a case
management framework and built links
with other service providers to ensure best
practice responses to family violence.
The support was provided in a number of
different languages:
Arabic Indonesian Serbian
Bosnian Juba Arabic Spanish
Bulgarian Macedonian Swahili
Cantonese Mandarin Turkish
Croatian Nepali Urdu
Dinka Nuer Vietnamese
Greek Punjabi
Hindi Russian
Court support
An additional 371 women were supported
at Dandenong, Heidelberg and Sunshine
Magistrates courts by inTouch outreach
case workers.
Immigration assistance
During the 2012-2013 nancial year
inTouch assisted 256 clients who were
eligible to apply for permanent residence
under the family violence provisions of
the Migration Regulations 1994 (the
regulations). The Migration Regulations
1994 allows victims of family violence
to apply for permanent residence in
Australia by demonstrating that their
relationship was genuine and ceased due
to family violence.
Migrating to Australia can be a difcult
and painful process for women. They
often leave their families, jobs and culture
behind to marry and start a new life in
Australia. This compounds the stress
and trauma that women experience in
Crisis intervention
Complex Case Support
inTouch is one of the providers for
the Department of Immigration and
Citizenships complex case support
program. Currently in its second round
of contract with the Department of
Immigration and Citizenship is one
of the providers for its complex case
support program. inTouch provides
case management support to refugees,
humanitarian entrants and asylum seekers
where pre-migration experiences, severe
physical and mental health conditions,
or crisis events after arrival in Australia
present signicant barriers to successful
settlement. In the majority of cases, clients
who require complex case support have
a variety of complex needs and require
access to multiple services. During the
last nancial year, inTouch provided
support to 7 families from various cultural
backgrounds.
Social Work Student
Placements
My rst experience at inTouch was having
a sense of belonging. During my rst day
I participated in their traditional monthly
community lunch. It was divine. There
were traditional recipes being discussed
and it felt like a family gathering. I was
welcomed by staff and we exchanged
information about each others cultural
and migration experiences.
Although I migrated to Australia some
years ago, I have never experienced real
multiculturalism until I worked at inTouch.
My experience at inTouch has helped
me to understand a range of culturally
sensitive programs and services which
are critical in social work practice. I have
learnt a great deal from staff about how
to support women in family violence
situations and have been energised by the
skills of all staff.
Nalini Weerasekera
(Social Work Student, Deakin University)
Deakin University Social Work Field
Education Program is proud to have
an ongoing agreement with inTouch to
enable students to undertake their Social
Work placements there. Placements are
a central part of a students education
in Social Work, as students have the
opportunity to integrate theory and
practice and develop the required skills
and knowledge to meet the Australian
Association of Social Workers Practice
Standards (AASW, 2003).
At inTouch, students have great
opportunities to learn about providing
support to women and children through
complex life decisions. Students speak
to us about the warm welcome and
supportive education they receive
from staff.
Louise McVay
(Supervisor, Deakin University)
inTouch provides case management support to refugees, humanitarian
entrants and asylum seekers where pre-migration experiences, severe
physical and mental health conditions, or crisis events after arrival in
Australia present signifcant barriers to successful settlement.
a violent relationship. CALD women are
also coping with the cultural implications
of a separation or divorce, unemployment,
being single, being a mother, and having
to care for other family members while
navigating through unfamiliar systems such
as housing and the judiciary. Additionally,
returning to her home country is not always
viable because separated or divorced
women are viewed upon negatively,
and she may face ongoing abuse,
discrimination and rejection by community
members.
The success rate of permanent residency
applications under the family violence
provisions of the Migration Regulations
1994 made by inTouch is 99%. This
high success rate is due to the ability of
inTouch staff to provide specialist services
in supporting women and gathering
evidence. The inTouch registered
migration agent also provides training and
consultation to external migration agents
and the legal sector.
22 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 23
Legal Centre
The inTouch Legal Centre was originally
designed in 2012 to full our clients needs
for a specialised, in-house legal service
which could provide them with culturally-
appropriate legal support within the same
organisation that they trusted and had
an existing relationship with. The idea of
the Legal Centre was a result of inTouchs
research and report in 2010; I lived in fear
because I knew nothing: Barriers to the
Justice System Faced by CALD Women
Experiencing Family Violence. The report
found that CALD victims of family violence
faced barriers in both accessing and
going through the justice system and
that a number of these difculties were
associated with access to legal support.
inTouch Legal Centre Model
The unique operational model of the
inTouch legal centre is a result of
comprehensive research, needs analysis
and extensive consultations with a number
of stakeholders throughout 2012. It is an
innovative, client-centred model and the
rst of its kind in Australia. The Centre
provides advice and undertakes the cases
of the two key client groups:
1 Highly vulnerable clients who face
barriers in successfully following
through with referrals to legal services.
These may be: language and/or cultural
barriers, fear of authority, apprehension
to repeat their story (a repeat trauma),
confusion as to what the legal process
involves, and uncertainty about whether
they are prepared to take legal action.
This group mostly consists of clients
who are newly arrivals to Australia; and
2 Clients who are unable to access
support due to their specifc
legal issue.
This may include those clients who do
not t within a legal practices means
test, those who have a legal issue which
the legal practice will not undertake or
those who have a case of such legal
complexity that it requires signicant
case-work and is a workload that a
Community Legal Centre or pro bono
legal practice is unable to undertake.
The legal matters that the inTouch Legal
Centre supports are family violence
and family law matters. Due to resource
constraints, the Centre is unable to take
appearances for these cases. However,
all legal documentation is prepared by the
inTouch legal team. The documentation is
then entrusted with partner legal services
for court appearances.
For all cases that are either directly
referred to an external legal service or
proceed through the managed referral
process, a lawyer-client brieng process
occurs. The lawyer is provided with a
cultural brief to be better informed of any
key cultural issues that may impact on
the lawyer-client relationship or affect the
lawyers ability to comprehend the case.
Additionally, the client is provided with a
legal education brieng informing them
on what to expect from engaging legal
support and how the justice
system operates, particularly in family
violence cases.
Challenges of the
establishment stage
The inTouch Legal Centre faced numerous
challenges during its establishment stage.
The primary challenges were in terms
of registering the legal practice, getting
insurance coverage and obtaining legal
advice regarding the establishment of
a community legal centre. The latter
was especially complex because of
the multidisciplinary structure of the
organisation and the need for an
information barrier between the Legal
Centre and the Direct Service.
First Stage of Implementation:
Sunshine Magistrates Court
The initial focus of the inTouch Legal
Centre is to provide legal advice and
representation for clients who reside
within Sunshine Courts catchment
area. By targeting clients from a specic
geographic area, the Centre is able to
closely monitor operations and ne-
tune its work to ensure that it operates
effectively before expanding to clients from
other geographical areas. The Centres
initial implementation is currently being
evaluated to ensure that it is meeting its
original objectives and that its policies and
procedures are effective and represent
best practice.
Sunshine was specically chosen for
several reasons:
a this is a catchment area with a
signicant CALD population and the
majority of inTouch clients reside in
this area;
b Sunshine Court has a specialist Family
Violence Service;
c an inTouch caseworker is present at
Sunshine Court once a week meaning
that inTouch already has a strong Court
presence that can be further built upon;
and
d there is an identied gap between
self-initiated and police-initiated
intervention order applications by CALD
victims of family violence at Sunshine
Magistrates Court. This indicates that
although there is an existence of family
violence incidents within this client
group, the victims are not initiating their
own applications. However, they are
accessing inTouch for emotional and
practical support. The inTouch Legal
Centre can therefore play an incredibly
important role in linking these clients
into the justice system by assisting
them with their own intervention order
applications.
After the Legal Centre establishes
itself rmly in Sunshine, the service will
endeavour to expand to incorporate
another catchment area which is
considered strategically appropriate for the
next stage of implementation. This roll-out
will continue until the Legal Centre is able
to respond to the needs of all our clients,
no matter where they reside.
Partnerships Established
inTouch Legal Centre has developed
an incredibly valuable partnership with
Lander & Rogers whereby lawyers
from the L&R Family Law Team provide
advocacy for inTouch clients at Sunshine
Magistrates Court. In addition, Lander
& Rogers have provided pro bono legal
advice to a number of inTouch Legal
Centre clients since its inception.
Vital partnerships have also been
developed with other private law rms,
such as Altavilla Vessali. Altavilla Vessali
has provided legal support to a large
proportion of inTouch Legal Centre clients
and has mentored and supported the
inTouch Legal Centre Team. We hope that
the inTouch Legal Centre will be able to
develop similar partnerships with other
private rms by negotiating reduced fee
arrangements for inTouch clients law
matters when the inTouch Legal Centre
Team contributes a percentage of the legal
work for the case.
inTouch Legal Centre has also established
strong relationships with a number of
community legal centres, in particular with
Footscray Legal Centre and Womens
Legal Service.
Pro Bono support has been received
from Norton Rose Fullbright, Dr. Renata
Alexander, Caroline Patterson, Paul Rule,
Georgia Douglas, Sarah Bruhn and
Chris Terry.
Achievements
Between January and June 2013 the
inTouch Legal Centre worked with 49
clients. Of those clients inTouch case
managed 26 clients and referred out
23 clients.
I would like to thank you for helping me,
being there when I needed you, for taking
care of things quickly and giving me
hope. (inTouch Legal Centre client)
24 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 25
Afghanistan 22
Albania 4
Argentina 2
Argentinian Antarctic Territory 1
Australia 25
Bangladesh 7
Belarus 1
Bosnia and Herzegovina 6
Brazil 1
Bulgaria 3
Burma (Republic of the Union of Myanmar) 13
Cambodia 17
Chile 4
Chilean Antarctic Territory 1
China (excludes SARs and Taiwan) 73
Colombia 1
Congo, Republic of 3
Cook Islands 1
Croatia 7
Egypt 15
El Salvador 1
England 2
Ethiopia 26
Fiji 15
Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) 23
France 1
Ghana 2
Gibraltar 1
Greece 17
Hong Kong (SAR of China) 2
Hungary 1
India 96
Indonesia 14
Iran 22
Iraq 13
Ireland 2
Israel 1
Italy 2
Japan 7
Jordan 1
Kazakhstan 1
Kenya 6
Korea, Democratic Peoples Republic of (North) 1
Korea, Republic of (South) 1
Laos 3
Lebanon 30
Lithuania 1
Luxembourg 1
Macau (SAR of China) 1
Malaysia 4
Malta 3
Mauritius 13
Mexico 1
Morocco 2
Nepal 2
New Zealand 3
Nigeria 2
Pakistan 22
Papua New Guinea 2
Peru 5
Philippines 28
Poland 2
Romania 3
Russian Federation 17
Samoa 3
Saudi Arabia 2
Serbia 9
Sierra Leone 1
Singapore 1
Slovenia 1
Somalia 23
South Africa 4
South Sudan 17
Spain 2
Sri Lanka 25
Sudan 39
Syria 5
Taiwan 3
Tanzania 1
Thailand 21
Timor-Leste 1
Tonga 1
Tunisia 1
Turkey 30
Uganda 2
Ukraine 4
United Arab Emirates 1
United States of America 3
Uzbekistan 2
Vietnam 145
Yemen 1
Zambia 1
Zimbabwe 1
Missing 12
Total 972
Cultural background of inTouch clients
I would like to thank you for helping me, being there
when I needed you, for taking care of things quickly
and giving me hope. inTouch Legal Centre client
26 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 27
Counselling and Therapeutic
Group Work
This year has been lled with a variety
of projects engaging hundreds of
women and children across Melbourne
and building healthy and respectful
relationships through discussions,
art, dance and drumming. Below is a
collection of stories shared in our group
work projects this year.
Multicultural Family Camp
Making Childhood Memories
inTouch formed a wonderfully rich
partnership with Safe Futures Foundation
working together to plan a three day
holiday for multicultural families living in
refuges across the Eastern Region of
Melbourne. In April school holidays 2013
six mums and 14 children boarded a bus
to the seaside location of Queenscliff at
Camp Wyuna.
The camp was full of wonderful activities
like a night-time walk around the camp
spotting the local nocturnal wildlife, a
rock pool walk lead by the local marine
discovery centre, building sandcastles
on the beach, a treasure hunt and a
talent show. On the last day mothers
were engaged by Victoria Police and the
inTouch Legal Centre. Several women
were referred afterward and became
clients of the Legal Centre.
Somali Families Matter
Holiday program
inTouch formed a partnership with the
Somali Womens Development Agency
and ran ve sessions during the school
holidays in January and April 2013. After
engaging in separate activities mothers
and children were then united to share
their learning, ideas and experiences.
The aim of the program was to highlight
the importance of healthy relationships,
gender equality, human rights and
strategies to solve conicts, while
providing families with an opportunity
to share enjoyable activities together.
Approximately 37 family members
engaged in this program.
Over the sessions we employed a Dance,
Art and Drumming Therapist, did role
plays, played games and had excursions
to Luna Park, Art Play at Birramung Marr
and Faireld Boat house.
Strengthening our Family Ties
- Arabic Speaking Womens
Group
A partnership was formed between
Arabic Welfare Inc and inTouch. Eleven
women of Lebanese background attended
this group over ve sessions. Topics
included building condence in decision
making and leadership, self-care, healthy
communication and healthy relationships
and the role of women. At the end of the
program the group went on excursion
with Victoria Police to Mount Dandenong.
Working with art therapist Carolyn Tucker,
the group worked with weaving as a
method to explore meaning. The process
of weaving became a time to reect on
issues of family, work, love and for some
women, loss.
Quotes from participants:
I understand how a childs upbringing
teaches them how to communicate, but
that as adults we can choose our actions.
I want to role model to my family how to
communicate respectfully.
Reections by Carolyn Tucker
(Art Therapist)
Many of the women expressed their
enjoyment of the process of weaving,
there was a sense of satisfaction within
the creative process, it also allowed time
for reection and created an opportunity
to tell their unique stories which were
symbolised by the colour and form of
the weavings
Kurdish Womens
Drumming Group
inTouch, Victoria Police and the Kurdish
Womens Society consulted to assess the
needs of Kurdish women in the northern
suburbs of Melbourne. We developed
different topics of interest and developed
an active therapy based group lead by
Drumming Therapist Allison Casas. The
group ran over ve sessions between
February and April 2013, and was
attended by 20 women.
The Community Drum
by Allison Casas
The community drum came from a
personal desire to connect people from
many cultures, backgrounds and personal
experiences using the drum as the
meeting place.
The objective of these sessions was to
create a safe, supportive space to allow
the women to feel valid, to feel supported,
to feel heard and to share their stories,
their pain and their joy.
The four sessions were based around
the Native American medicine wheel - a
tool used for hundreds of centuries to
not only create a sacred space but to
discover and explore difculties, strengths
and vulnerabilities and ultimately, ways to
create positive changes in our lives.
Other initiatives included Making
childhood memories - Turkish Family
Camp and Making Connections -
Chinese Womens Group.
Vietnamese Mens Behaviour
Change Program
For the last ve years, inTouch has been
successful in running Vietnamese Mens
Behaviour Change program in partnership
with various other services, This initiative
started as a pilot project in 2008 funded
by Relationships Australia Victoria (RAV),
Kildonan Uniting Care and Djeriwarrah
Health Service. Since then, 5 sessions
of Vietnamese Mens Behaviour Change
program have been conducted. The fth
round of this program was conducted
from the Neighbourhood Justice Centre
where 9 Vietnamese Men attended the 15
weeks group sessions. The sessions were
facilitated by Vietnamese facilitators and
inTouch bi-cultural family violence worker
provided intensive partner support to
partners/ex-partners of men participating
in the group sessions.
Members of the reference group
conducted a workshop at the No to
Violence Conference on Responses to
Mens Domestic and Family Violence:
Experience, Innovations and Emerging
Directions that was held in Melbourne
during November 2012. We would like to
use this opportunity to acknowledge the
work of the reference group members
and particular staff from the agencies they
represented who put hundreds of hours of
in-kind support since the establishment of
the program in 2009.
As a result of the ongoing advocacy and
lobbying by reference group members,
inTouch received funding from the
Department of Justice in June 2013 to
continue two rounds of Vietnamese MBC
programs and to explore a new, language
specic, CALD MBC program in the
2013 - 2014 nancial year. inTouch will
work closely with the Family Violence and
Sexual Assault unit from the Department
of Justice to develop this program.
Post-crisis
support
28 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 29
Representation
Violence against Women
and Children Forum
Department of Justice Family Violence
Stakeholder Reference Group
Ministerial Advisory Council on
Homelessness Families and Children
Working Group
DV VIC Board of Management
ECCV Womens Policy Subcommittee
VLAF CALD Network
Southern Integrated CALD Network
PACMAC (Police and Community
Multicultural Advisory Committee)
Northern Family Violence Strategic
Network
Western Integrated Family Violence
Committee
Eastern Metropolitan Region Family
Violence Partnership
MAV Preventing Violence Against
Women Network
EVAs Media Award Judging Panel
North Yarra Family Violence Network
CRAF Framework Reference Group
RWH Violence as Womens Health
Issue project
ECCV Elder Abuse Prevention project
Family Violence Practitioners
Website project
Womens Voices Steering
Justice project
Hume Strengthening Risk
Management Demonstration project
Living in Harmony Steering Committee
UPSCALE Steering Committee
Consultations
Settled & Safe project by VLA
Forced Marriage project by the National
Children and Youth Law Centre
Whittlesea CALD Communities Family
Violence project
Victorian Homelessness Action Plan
consultations
Service Sector Reform project
Comparative Research Study on
Enhancing Legal and Policy Measures
to Combat DV against immigrant and
Ethnic Minority Women in Australia,
Hong Kong and UK
Berry Street strategic planning
workshop
Harmony Study by LaTrobe University,
Cultural Competency for GP Training in
Family Violence
City of Melbourne Preventing
Violence against Women Strategy
and Action Plan
Voices against Violence project by
DVRCV
Participation of CALD Women on
Board project by FECCA
WDVCS Police Referrals project
Sentencing Advisory Council
consultations
Multicultural Online project by DHS
and OMAC
Multilingual Audio Guide to the FVIO
Form by Neighbourhood Justice
Centre
Strategic planning consultations for
Hope Street Youth and Family Services
Partnerships
Building and strengthening partnerships
is one of the key strategies for ensuring
equitable access and improving
responses for CALD communities.
inTouch hosts monthly service visits with
the aim of sharing information, improving
referral pathways and building capacity of
other organisations to provide culturally
appropriate services. In 2012/2013 we
hosted the following organisations:
Fitted for Work
Safe Futures Foundation
Home at Last Older People Housing
information and Support Services
Ms. Sina Retzlaff, Samoa
PACMAC meeting
Court Network Inc
Legal Services Board
Consumer Action legal Centre
Darebin Legal Centre
Partnership with Jean Hailes
In 2012-2013 inTouch collaborated with a
leading womens not for prot healthcare
provider, Jean Hailes Health in a couple of
their initiatives focusing on CALD women.
The Health Literacy Project is an innovative
project managed by Jean Hailes. It
aims to increase the health literacy of
Victorian women in marginalised and/or
disadvantaged communities of Victoria,
with a focus on culturally and linguistically
diverse women. inTouch workers assisted
in the development of womens health
resources tailored to the needs of inTouch
clients.
For International Womens Day Jean
Hailes produced a short video explaining
intimate partner violence and the impact
it has. Maya Avdibegovic, inTouch CEO,
joined Professor Jane Fisher from Jean
Hailes to talk about added difculties for
women who have migrated to Australia
and may have limited English, support and
knowledge of local services.

Partnership with WHIN
and NIFVN
Together with other forty-nine local
government, health and community
organisations from the northern region
of Melbourne inTouch made a public
commitment to actions to prevent violence
against women. At the WHIN event The
North Commits to Building a Respectful
Community, we co-signed a banner to
commit to the vision and goals of Building
a Respectful Community - Preventing
Violence against women: A Strategy for
the Northern Metropolitan Region of
Melbourne 2011-2016.
In addition to an on-going commitment
to support inTouch therapeutic group
programs, additional funding from these
partners enabled us to run Turkish Family
Camp program.

Research and advocacy
inTouch undertakes its advocacy work through representation, consultations, submissions and
building partnerships with stakeholders with the aim of raising awareness of emerging issues to both
government and the broader community. This is a sample of our activities during 2012/2013.
30 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013
Presentations and Professional
Development Sessions for
Service Providers
7th National Homelessness
Conference, Melbourne
No To Violence Conference on
Responses to Mens Domestic
and Family Violence: Experience,
Innovations and Emerging Directions,
Melbourne
Stand Up! National Conference on
Eliminating All Forms of Violence
Against CALD Women, Canberra
When Violence Hurts Families
Conference, Family Law Pathway
Network, Shepparton
Young UN Women Australia Forum
2013 Africa Day Womens Forum
Australian Arab Womens Dialogue
Settlement Providers Network
Community Engagement Seminar at
Deakin Learning Hub
Brimbank Bi-cultural Workers and
Family Violence Services Network
AMES outer eastern LAC
Southern early Childhood Support
Services Network
Outer South Peninsula IFVP Critical
Linkages Group
Federation of Macedonian Seniors
study day for the Acting on Warning
Signs project
Small, New and Emerging
Communities Expo
Living in Harmony training program,
North Yarra Community Health
Pathways to Better Living Expo,
Chisholm Institute of TAFE
MacKillop Family Services
Child Protection South Division Forum
Building sector capacity
32 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 33
Volunteering at inTouch
by Francesca Williams
Having focused on research at university,
the opportunity came up to volunteer
doing research for inTouch. I would be
working on an ongoing cultural handbook
to be passed around various companies
within the family violence sector. The
handbook would focus on cultural
competency: what is culture, models of
cultural competency and fostering cultural
competency as an individual as well as
within an organisation. Having never done
any research on culture before, I couldnt
believe Id never realised how important
it is to be aware of cultural differences
and issues that arise, especially in a place
like Victoria where nearly 50% of the
population is a rst or second-generation
migrant. Doing research on the best ways
people can foster cultural competency
inevitably allowed me to develop a cultural
competence myself; as much as it will
always be an ongoing process.
Volunteering with inTouch necessitated
that I learn not only about cultural issues,
but also about family violence. Whilst there
are a lot of organisations helping victims
of violence, I never truly appreciated
the process of seeking help and how
incredibly brave victims are to admit they
want and need something better from life.
In addition, the clients contacting inTouch
more often than not face further barriers
such as social isolation, poor English
language skills and visa issues.
The rst thing that struck me about the
service was the people working here.
Not only were they incredibly welcoming
and friendly, hearing over 30 languages
being spoken within the same ofce space
was remarkable and overwhelming in the
best possible way. For someone who is
suffering from family violence and has
the added troubles of being isolated from
their country/family/friends, struggling to
communicate in a country where their
language skills are put to the test, it must
be incredibly reassuring to not only speak
to someone who speaks your language,
but also to know that they are from your
country, and understand the nuances of
your culture that other people cannot.
Furthermore they understand the cycle of
family violence and are so well connected
and informed as to guide you out of it, no
matter how difcult the circumstances
may seem. The service is especially
well-organised and the staff are
outstandingly dedicated.
The only thing I would have liked more of,
was to spend more time with individual
case workers. This would have given
me a greater insight as to the specics
of certain cultures, in order to feel more
immersed in what the reality is for these
clients. However, this would have been
very difcult as the case workers time is
so precious and they are so exceptionally
busy that it would not have been possible
especially only volunteering for one day
a week!
CALD communities are massively
underrepresented in the family violence
sector in general and so inTouch is not
only valuable but essential. To be able to
contribute to something that will be used
and will help CALD communities suffering
from family violence is incredibly rewarding
for me. As a volunteer at inTouch I was
made to feel that I in fact was helping the
company, a feeling that is rarely invoked in
volunteers. Thank you inTouch!
CALD communities are massively underrepresented
in the family violence sector in general and so
inTouch is not only valuable but essential.
Staff Training
Child Protection training
CLC Adaptive Leadership program
Vicarious Trauma and Refective
Practice
Exposure Treatment; Treating
Traumatic Stress
Statewide training program to support
the implementation of the Childrens
Family Violence Practice Guide
Delivering Community Education on
Elder Abuse Awareness
Speaking to the Media about Violence
against Women
CALD Health and Wellbeing program
Stress Management training
Strengthening
organisational capacity
34 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013 35
Notes
36 inTouch Annual Report 2012-2013