Foundational work with victim survivors
Foundational Work with Victim Survivors
A self-paced online course for frontline practitioners across Australia
Most victim survivors of family and domestic violence meet a generalist or early-career worker before they ever meet a specialist. How that first person responds shapes whether she is believed, whether she seeks help again and how safe she is.
This course gives you the foundational knowledge and practical skills to respond well. It is written for practitioners and advocates in any Australian state or territory, in any service where people experiencing violence may seek help.
What you will learn
- Recognise coercive control as a pattern, and understand its impacts, including fear, obligation and guilt (FOG) and social entrapment
- Respond to disclosures in ways that convey belief, uphold dignity and support safety
- Use response-based language and questions that keep the person using violence visible and bring the victim survivor’s resistance into view
- Apply an intersectional and reflective lens to identify bias, structural barriers and the risk of misidentification
- Provide information, referral pathways and factual documentation that support safety and choice
What’s included
- Six chapters of short, practical lessons grounded in current Australian research
- Realistic case scenarios that follow one woman’s story from first disclosure to referral
- Reflective activities, including one designed to take to supervision
- Six downloadable practice resources to keep, including the Pandora FOG resource and a response-based practice guide
- A knowledge check and a certificate of completion
Who it’s for
New and emerging practitioners, advocates and support workers, and experienced workers who want a refresher. No prior family violence training is needed.
Course details
- About 3 hours, self-paced, with lessons you can complete over several sittings
- National and framework neutral, with prompts to check the framework and services in your own state or territory
- Developed by Tori Cooke, Principal Consultant and Practice Educator at Pandora Projects Pty Ltd, drawing on nearly 30 years in the sector
This course discusses family and domestic violence. Content notes are provided, and support information is included in the first chapter.
