Multicultural programs

Diversity and inclusion-focused activities in 2022/23

Some of the diversity and inclusion-focused activities we undertook in 2022/23 included:

• participating in Afghan Family Violence Consultation meetings with Afghan women, examining the gaps, challenges and insights related to family violence in the City of Casey’s Afghan communities
  
  
• presenting on healthy relationships, gendered violence and family violence collusion to men from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds in south-east Melbourne 46
  
  
• information sessions for parents from diverse cultural backgrounds on understanding and responding to children’s behaviours and emotions, and supporting children’s brain development through play – the sessions were delivered to participants of the Fitzroy/Carlton Home Interaction Program for Parents and Youngsters (HIPPY) program
  
  
• delivering Tuning in to Kids® in language for Vietnamese clients, as well as increasing the program’s delivery with Afghan families in the City of Greater Dandenong, through Communities for Children funding provided by Mission Australia
  
  
• providing psychoeducational information on family violence and services to culturally and linguistically diverse women and families in western Melbourne
  
  
• taking part in a panel discussing family violence prevention and bystander actions, through the intersectional lens of cultural diversity, as part of the 16 Days of Activism campaign
  
  
• engagement with the multicultural Flemington Women’s Group on topics including stress, anxiety and mental wellbeing, and for a 4-part series on parenting and child More than 25 women, most of whom have migrated with their families to Australia from the Horn of Africa, attended the sessions. The sessions were an opportunity to not only deepen knowledge and understanding, but also strengthen the relationships between the mothers so that they can support each other as they raise their children.

Programs in 2022/23

Vietnamese Men's Behaviour Change Programs (MBCPs)

Culturally appropriate family violence programs that are delivered in-language

Delivery of our Vietnamese MBCP recommenced this year, providing a culturally appropriate family violence program to men from the Vietnamese community. Delivered by experienced bilingual facilitators, it supports men to take responsibility for their use of controlling, abusive and violent behaviour and learn new ways to manage their relationships without using violence. We welcome referrals from men themselves, as well as from family lawyers, the Sunshine Magistrates’ Court and community corrections.

Facilitators deliver the program content in-language and with an understanding of Vietnamese customs and traditions, and the challenges commonly faced by migrants. In turn, this helps to build rapport and enhance men’s engagement with program content, including about family violence and its impacts on women and children, healthy relationships, and relevant Australian laws and legal processes.

We focus on prioritising the safety of women and children, and a Vietnamese-speaking family safety practitioner contacts partners and former partners of participants during the program. This component of our Family Safety Model involves comprehensive risk assessments and relevant referrals to afford women and their children support and safety.

Opportunity for Change

A collaborative family violence response for the Afghan community

In south-east Melbourne, we joined as a partner on a community consultation project to develop a culturally appropriate response to family violence in the Afghan community. The first phase of the collaborative project involved extensive consultations with the local community to understand their needs, and the programs, activities or actions we can take together to support positive change. These conversations are particularly important as people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds are less likely to report or seek support for family violence.

The outcomes of these and broader consultations with family violence sector staff have been collated and reviewed, and will inform the co-design of a strategy that addresses the needs of the Afghan community in the City of Casey. Our organisation’s role is content expert in relation to MBCPs, with a senior practitioner and family violence practitioner from an Afghan cultural background on the project’s reference group.

The project is run in partnership with TaskForce Community Agency and is funded through the City of Casey’s Community Service Organisation Funding Program 2021–2024 in southern Melbourne.

For more information about our work with multicultural communities in 2022/23, read our Annual Report.

Language translations

We are proud to work with people from a variety of different cultural and linguistic backgrounds, and we celebrate the rich diversity found within our communities. 

We know that family structures are diverse, and we believe in strengthening families and supporting people from diverse backgrounds to have positive, safe and respectful relationships. 

To help community members access our services, we have translated a range of information from our website into Vietnamese, Simplified Chinese and Hindi. 

These translations include information about: 

• Our commitment to you
  
• Family violence
• Counselling
  
• Family dispute resolution (mediation)
• Child and family services
• Forced Adoption Support Service
• Redress Support Services
• Programs for men who use family violence