preventing violence against women

The Preventing Violence Against Women initiative is a 3 and 1/2 year project to develop a whole of community approach in the prevention of violence against women.

It's a partnership between Yarra Ranges, Maroondah and Knox and is funded by the Office of Women's Policy.

The project is innovative in that it seeks to develop world first, best practice model. The goal of the project is to:
To prevent violence against women by building communities, cultures and organisations that are non-violent and gender equitable and support respectful and equitable relationships and non-violent norms between men and women.

The project objectives are to:
Drive and embed cultural change in local governments to mainstream gender equity and promote non-violent norms across policy, planning, services, leadership and practice.
Increase awareness and understandings in local government and their communities of the underlying causes of violence against women.Build skills in local governments and their communities to promote respectful relationships,gender equity and non-violent norms.
Contribute to the knowledge and evidence-base for the primary prevention of violence against women in the local government and community setting.

It's an important project and I look forward to seeing it progress to provide a model to prevent violence against women.

yarra ranges preventing violence against women

It was wonderful news to hear that Yarra Ranges Council in partnership with Maroondah and Knox City Councils was one of the four successful applicants for the Preventing Violence Against Women (PVAW) in OurCommunity Program.

Funding of $420,000 has been granted to deliver the project over the next four years. Yarra Ranges is well positioned to progress work in this area with the development of our Promoting Respectful Relationships Forum and our work with the Outer East PVAW alliance.

The program challenges gender discrimination and stereotyping and promotes gender equity and non violence.

Violence against women remains a serious issue and has a long lasting effect on women, children and the whole of community. For women aged 15 to 44 violence is the leading contributor to death, disability or illness (source). There is an enormous cost, not only to the women experiencing violence, but on our health system too.

Once completed the pilot will be assessed as a model to use in the broader context.