There is increasing interest in reaching migrant and refugee women experiencing family violence through settlement and multicultural services. This is because evidence suggests that women who have resettled in Australia face a range of particular and additional barriers that can hinder access to violence-specific services.
This project provides evidence about the current and potential role of settlement and multicultural services in supporting migrant and refugee women experiencing violence. The research was conducted by university-based researchers in partnership with the Multicultural Centre for Women’s Health in Victoria.The project found that multicultural and settlement service providers regularly encounter and support clients experiencing family violence. However, services’ capacity to respond to the needs of their clients is constrained by limited funding and service scope, and limited options for referral. Importantly, the project also identified core practices that strengthen the services’ capacity to respond, such as training, organisational support structures, and community connectedness. Read the full report and key findings. Find more information about the report here: https://www.anrows.org.au/project/the-muses-project-multicultural-and-settlement-services-supporting-women-experiencing-violence/