Whittlesea CALD Communities Family Violence Research Report 2012

4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Context and Background Family violence is a significant problem that impacts on all sectors of the community regardless of age, class, income, country of origin, religion or cultural background/ identity. All women who are subjected to family violence face difficulties and challenges living with violence, disclosing family violence, finding assistance, accessing support services, leaving and moving on from a family violence situation. It is a gendered crime with a far greater number of female victims. 80% of reported family violence victims in Victoria are women (Victoria Police Crime Statistics 2010-2011) and police and court data shows that perpetrators of family violence against adult female victims are overwhelmingly male (91-95%) (Victims Support Agency, 2012, p.18). Family violence has been identified as the leading contributor to preventable death, illness and disability in Victorian women aged 15-44 (VicHealth, 2004, p.10). This report presents findings from a scoping exercise conducted by the Whittlesea Community Futures CALD Cluster group with funding from the Scanlon Foundation. The scoping exercise was motivated by anecdotal evidence that existing service responses in the City of Whittlesea were not meeting the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse (‘CALD’)1 communities experiencing family violence. This was of concern given the relatively high incidence of reported family violence in the municipality and the (increasing) proportion of the population born overseas and not proficient in English. The objective of the scoping exercise was to inform the development of a new approach to del ?????????????????????????????? 1????????????????????????????????????????)??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????)??? ?????]????????)????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????)????????????????? 1???????????Q?????????????????????????????????????????????)?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? 1???????????????????)?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????)????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????)????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????)????????????????????????e?????????????????????????????((?()??????????????????I??????a 1?d???????????????????????????????a9?????????M???????? ????????d?????????????)??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????)???????????????????????????????????????????????????Q???????????????????????????????????????????)????????????????????????????????????a 1?d???????????((

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