Professor Sandra Creamer to join speakers at the first symposium of the Solidarity: Safety, Justice, Wellbeing Series
Professor Sandra Creamer to join speakers at the first symposium of the Solidarity: Safety, Justice, Wellbeing Series
Professor Creamer, Wannyi/Kalkadoon women and CEO of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women’s Alliance will be participating in our first symposium. Sandra has worked with Indigenous women in Australia and globally, and believes it is important to empower Indigenous women for self-determination, equality of their rights, and understanding how they can challenge issues that affect their communities and work with them to find solutions.
Professor Creamer will be sharing her experience and wisdom with a case study that will demonstrate the power and impact of community led collaborative change. Register now to join Sandra and the other fantastic speakers we have lined up for this event, the first in our 2022 series.
Speakers for Symposium 1 of the Solidarity: Safety, Justice, Wellbeing Series announced
Speakers for Symposium 1 of the Solidarity: Safety, Justice, Wellbeing Series announced
We are delighted to announce our first tranch of speakers for our innagural Solidarity series symposium. Our keynote address will be delivered by Amy Remeikis, political reporter for the Guardian. Additional speakers includes Cathy Humphreys (University of Melbourne) talking about her role in implementing the Safe and Together framework and the role of service navigators. Paul Monsour (Anglicare) will be providing his perspective on safety as a practitioner in a DFV perpetrator intervention program. And Karina Hogan (Broadcast Journalist and First Nations woman) will be speaking on resilience from her own story. For more information about this Series visit: https://workupqld.org.au/solidarity-safety-justice-wellbeing/
New symposium series – Solidarity: Safety, Justice, Wellbeing
New symposium series – Solidarity: Safety, Justice, Wellbeing
WorkUP Queensland is excited to announce our 2022 Symposium Series ‘Solidarity: Safety, Justice, Wellbeing'.
The series follows last year’s highly successful ‘Daring, Inclusive, Feminist Leadership’ series, in understanding how different services can better work together to create meaningful change in ending violence against women.
Last year, participants told us they valued allyship within and across the sector and viewed this as a powerful mechanism for change, reporting that the symposium series was a fun and practical way to connect.
This year’s symposiums will include keynote speakers, practitioners, and academics sharing evidence and experience in integrated and collaborative service delivery, within and across sectors.
WorkUP Queensland will facilitate peer group learning experiences, which will dive deeper into key topics and provide a forum for creative thinking and brainstorming about implementation opportunities.
Facilitated by Jan Archer of Archersfield Management and Consulting, the series will combine practical wisdom, emerging evidence, and outside thinking, all with the aim of reducing friction and frustration within the system, for the benefit of service users and the workforce itself.
Aligning with Principle Seven of the Domestic and Family Violence Services Practice Principles standards and guidance – ‘Services collaborate to provide an integrated response’ – this series is designed for specialist and mainstream services and will be particularly useful for those in leadership or decision-making roles.
Download the brochure here, or register to attend one or more symposiums and peer groups here, noting that if you would like to participate in the peer groups, you will need to attend all symposiums.
When you register for peer groups, WorkUP Queensland will send you a few questions so we can design the right structure to meet your needs, such as when you would like to meet and what you would like to gain from participation.
We will be releasing more details about speakers throughout the year. Subscribe to our newsletter below for the latest news, or contact workforce@healingfoundation.org.au to learn more.
FREE practical and targeted support for services implementing DFV standards
FREE practical and targeted support for services implementing DFV standards
Did you know that WorkUP Queensland offers free, confidential, and practical support to implement the Domestic and Family Violence (DFV) Services Practice Principles, Standards and Guidance?
This service is designed to work with you to identify strengths and specific areas where assistance may be required to support your service in complying with the principles.
When you contact us, the WorkUP team will link you with a DFV specialist who will then facilitate a structured conversation with you to reflect on your service’s engagement with the DFV Practice Principles, Standards and Guidance.
This conversation might reveal that you’re doing well and don’t need any further support, or it may indicate that one-on-one targeted support or links to professional development would be helpful. Either way, starting this conversation is an opportunity to reflect on and articulate your practice and build confidence for engaging with future workplace audits. All services are different, and the support provided will be designed to meet your needs.
WorkUP can provide support to:
- enhance practice manuals
- review policies and procedures
- identify professional development needs
- build skills in a range of areas
- practise explaining what you do and why.
“It’s been about starting a conversation, opening up questions, keeping it simple and not overthinking.”
“It’s been invaluable to look back at practices and processes and make simple improvements that help us and the women we work with.”
“Fantastic opportunity, so lucky to have the support, feel heaps more confident.”
- Former program participants
Click here to find out more or request support.
Community of Practice
As part of this program, WorkUP Queensland has created a Community of Practice specifically for people working in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander services, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people working in mainstream DFV services.
Each online session is facilitated by Gabrielle Borggaard and Rona Scherer and will explore 1-7 DFV Practice Principles, Standards and Guidance areas. Sessions are designed to be a safe learning space where people can share their practice and challenges and learn from one another.
Contact Christine@healingfoundation.org.au to find out more, check your eligibility, or sign up today!
Join us for the ‘Walking Together, Learning Together’ mentoring series
Join us for the ‘Walking Together, Learning Together’ mentoring series
Would you benefit from having someone to talk to, who understands your everyday work, who could provide you with insight and advice related to your career path? Are you a service manager with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff who may be interested in being a mentor or a mentee?
Join us this year in our continuing ‘Walking Together, Learning Together’ Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Mentoring Program, where First Nations workers in the Domestic and Family Violence, Sexual Assault, Women’s Health and Wellbeing sectors come together to share knowledge, skills, and wisdom with those new to working in the sector.
The program includes opportunities to build skills and confidence, exploring topics like:
- communication skills
- emotional intelligence
- social and personal growth.
Working in this sector can be both rewarding and challenging. For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workers, this can mean juggling job expectations with cultural, community, and family responsibilities or obligations.
Now is the perfect time to consider team members who may benefit from mentoring, or those whose work, life experience, and work ethic would make them a great a mentor for someone new to the workforce.
Register for an online information session on 11 March at 9:00 am -10:00 am or email workforce@healingfoundation.org.au to learn more.
“Coming into the program I was very focused on my weaknesses. Now I’m much more focused on my strengths.”
- Workshop participant
Sessions will be facilitated by Eileen Heywood, lead consultant, and co-hosted by Rona Scherer of WorkUP Queensland.
Walking Together, Learning Together has been designed to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander frontline workers of services funded by the Department of Attorney General, across Domestic Family Violence, Sexual Assault, Women’s Health and Wellbeing sector.
Creating opportunities for change in 2022
Creating opportunities for change in 2022
This year WorkUP Queensland is continuing to work with communities to build partnerships, deliver work in meaningful ways, and create opportunities for real change.
Reforms continue to impact the sector at national and state levels, as the National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022-2032 and recommendations from Women’s Safety and Justice Taskforce Hear her voice report are implemented.
The sector has made contributions to these reports and will continue to provide input through consultations and submissions to key projects – including the current discussion paper on women and girls' experiences across the criminal justice system as survivors of sexual violence and also as offenders.
This year WorkUP Queensland will also be implementing a statewide workforce plan and delivering a workforce capability project, practice studios, a mentoring program and other key events.
The workforce capability project clarifies the knowledge and behaviour that is needed at different levels of the workforce and sets out how individuals and organisations can adapt, grow, and continuously improve to achieve the highest standards of practice. It will be flexible and adaptive as needed, rather than a mandatory framework, and is driven by workers’ aspirations and insight into the core capabilities across our diverse sector.
WorkUP Queensland will continue to develop and refine the workforce capability resource using flexible and inclusive engagement approaches. Input from more than 120 individual sector stakeholder contacts will inform the resource’s development.
Email workforce@healingfoundation.org.au to learn more or get involved, and be sure to join the WorkUP Facebook group for the latest updates.