Respect Victoria celebrated the launch of its Strategic Plan at an event attended by over 100 of our valued stakeholders, peers and partners.
Developed in consultation with key representatives from the family violence response and behaviour change sectors, as well as industry leaders working in primary prevention, the strategic plan provides a road map for Respect Victoria–demonstrating how the organisation will stop violence before it starts by disrupting the attitudes, and behaviours that allow it to happen.
Historically, family violence funding has focused on response. By applying a primary prevention approach, Respect Victoria will work in concert with early intervention and crisis response services, reducing pressure on these parts of the system.
The strategy identifies five principles to inform our work: Respect Victoria will lead research, monitoring, and evaluation to inform how violence can be prevented; build community awareness of the drivers of violence; drive uptake of best practice; collaborate with others to strengthen primary prevention infrastructure; and advocate for primary prevention practice, policy and investment.
During the event, held at the Immigration Museum, The Hon. Gabrielle Williams, Minister for the Prevention of Family Violence noted “by increasing and sustaining investment in the primary prevention of all forms of family violence and violence against women, Victoria will save lives”.
Respect Victoria CEO, Tracey Gaudry applauded the primary prevention model, citing the theoretical frameworks of human rights, gender equality, self-determination and equality of opportunity as critical to the development of Respect Victoria’s Strategic Plan.
"Rather than focusing solely on the behaviour of perpetrators, primary prevention goes deeper. It focuses on the whole community and the systemic structural and social drivers that allow violence to happen including gender inequality, racism, ageism, ableism and heterosexism”.
Respect Victoria’s first strategic plan marks another milestone in Victoria’s journey to reform the family violence system. Its launch is dedicated to victim survivors of all forms of family violence and violence against women, and to those that have not survived this violence.