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The safety of practitioners working in the area of domestic abuse is a current subject of research and practice concern, as services endeavour to better understand constantly evolving tactics of violence and abuse and respond appropriately. This paper reports on a subset of findings from a practice-led research project focussed on capacity-building workers and their organizations to address domestic abuse, which highlighted the ongoing concerns expressed by practitioners—particularly female practitioners—about their own physical, emotional, and professional safety. Ethnographic notes were taken of Community of Practice discussions in four regions of New South Wales, Australia, involving 69 senior health practitioners from a range of service streams: specialist domestic abuse, mental health, substance use, and child protection. Themes identified through thematic analysis included the following: a tailored approach to practising safely; attending to physical safety; threats to professional identity; promoting emotional well-being; documentation to support worker safety; and attending to cultural safety. These themes are encapsulated in the practitioner question: Who's got my back?—highlighting the importance of legislation, policy, and practices that provide an environment in which safety and support are embedded in a culture of care at every organizational level.

Purpose Substance use plays a significant role in the perpetration of much intimate partner violence (IPV). However, responses to these two issues are rarely integrated. Single focus programme responses can lead to poor outcomes for men as well as their families experiencing these intersecting issues. This scoping paper aims to establish the current state of knowledge on contextual factors influencing the development and implementation of combined programmes. Design/methodology/approach Four electronic databases were systematically searched in May 2021 and December 2021. Twenty-one peer-reviewed studies reporting on ten programmes were included. Findings This scoping review revealed that combined programme responses are an underdeveloped area of research and evaluation. The limited evidence base indicated systemic barriers hindering services’ capacity to expand this field of work, affecting implementation and outcomes. Support is required from the wider service systems to intervene in men’s perpetration of IPV in the context of substance use. Practical implications Findings in this scoping review demonstrate the importance of fostering a coordinated and collective response to IPV in the context of substance use. Combined programmes have the potential to reduce siloed practices, enabling more holistic responses for men with intersecting issues. However, researchers and policymakers must also address contextual issues hindering or enabling combined programmes’ implementation and development. Originality/value Mapping the evidence based on combined programmes provides direction for further development and research to expand this field of inquiry.

Contact between children in care and family members is complex and often emotionally difficult for all concerned. In the context of a wider Australian cross-jurisdictional intervention trial, focusing on contact between children in long-term care and their parents, a snapshot survey of 901 children in Victorian foster care and kinship care placements was undertaken. The aim was to determine which children had seen parents, siblings or extended family members within a 12-month period, and how practitioners explained lack of contact between children and their parents. The study found that most children had had contact with parents or other family members, though children in long-term care were less likely to have seen their parents than those where reunification was still a possibility. Practitioners’ views on why parental contact had not occurred for 18% of the sample illustrate the complexity of the issues involved in contact. IMPLICATIONS To support children’s best interests, professionals should be clear about the purpose of family contact and provide support appropriate to that purpose. With children in long-term care less likely to see their parents, professionals have a role in helping these parents adjust to a new role. Developing strategies to maintain meaningful connections between children in long-term care and their parents may be more effective for children’s best interests than the current emphasis on actual visits.

BACKGROUND: The co-occurrence of domestic violence with alcohol and other drugs significantly increases the severity of abuse and violence experienced by family members. Longitudinal studies indicate that substance use is one of few predictors of men's continued use of, or desistance from, violence. Recent developments in men's behaviour change programs have focused on men's attitudes and behaviour towards their children, and the exploration of interventions that address the needs of all family members. However, the research evidence is limited on the most effective elements of men's behaviour change programs in promoting the safety and wellbeing of child and women victim survivors. This study aims to build on the existing evidence by trialling the KODY program which addresses harmful substance use by men who also perpetrate domestic violence; the safety and wellbeing of women and children; the needs of children in their own right, as well as in relationship with their mothers; and the development of an 'all-of-family' service response. The evaluation of these innovations, and the ramifications for policy development to support less fragmented service system responses, provide the rationale for the study. METHODS/DESIGN: A quasi-experimental design will be used to assess the primary outcomes of improving the safety and wellbeing of mothers and children whose (ex)partners and fathers respectively participate in KODY (the trial program), when compared with 'Caring Dads standard' (the comparison group). Psychometric tests will be administered to fathers and mothers at baseline, post-program and at 3-month follow up. Data collection will occur over three years. DISCUSSION: By building the evidence base about responses to co-occurring domestic violence and substance use, this study aims to develop knowledge about improving safety outcomes for women and children, and to better understand appropriate support for children in families living at the intersection of domestic v

Purpose: It is well established that the service system has a poor history of responding holistically to address the needs of children and families living with co-occurring complexities such as domestic violence, parental mental health and/or substance use. The purpose of this conceptual paper is to describe the developmental process and content of guidelines created to inform practice at the intersections of domestic violence, mental health and alcohol and other drug services, ensuring that the tactics of coercive control are visible in contexts of complexity. The approach: The guidelines were developed through undertaking a literature review, followed by a practice-led research approach with practitioners from 33 organisations across three Australian states. Communities of practice comprised of practitioners providing interventions to children and families were central to the approach. Data that informed the development of the guidelines included a literature review, ethnographic notes, qualitative interviews, quantitative surveys, and reflections. Findings: Practice-led research engaged practitioners in the development of guidelines to promote an integrated response to working with families experiencing domestic violence, substance use and mental health issues. The integrated approach drew from the Safe & Together Model, emphasising partnering with women survivors, pivoting to the perpetrator, focusing on children’s safety and wellbeing, promoting worker safety, collaborating across agencies, and influencing organisational change. The process demonstrated the usefulness of this integrated approach, using practitioner-based examples. Originality/value: Successful iterative processes to develop the guidelines were undertaken to support cultural change towards holistic and collaborative work across multiple sectors and organisations.

This book makes an important contribution to the international understanding of domestic violence and shares the latest knowledge of what causes and sustains domestic violence between intimate partners, as well as the effectiveness of ...

Much literature about kinship care has focused on the issues facing grandparent carers. An Australian research project explored the experience and support needs of young kinship carers and children in their care through analysis of census data and in‐depth interviews with young kinship carers and children/young people. This article describes the views of 16 young people. These young people expressed satisfaction with their home life and spoke of improvement over time in their wellbeing, mental health, and schooling. While they appreciated their carers' attunement to the world of young people, they articulated many challenges for themselves and their carers, including the burden on their carers, the challenge of adjusting to their carers' parental role, and financial pressures. They wanted greater access to counselling and casework services in order to deal with the impacts of family trauma.

Much literature about kinship care has focused on grandparents, with limited attention to other kinship carers. This article describes results from the second part of an Australian research project that explored the prevalence, experiences and support needs of kinship carers aged 18–30 years through interviews with 41 kinship carers. Most were sisters or aunts. Findings included deep commitment of the carers to children in their care and the children's positive development over time. Young kinship carers described personal costs of caring, including sudden adjustment to the task of parenting distressed children, suspension of studies, jobs and career development, pressures of intrafamilial conflict, a lack of recognition of their existence and support needs, and above all, financial stress. The need for multifaceted support to be available to this group of kinship carers is identified.

This Practice Framework isdesigned as a brief guide for practitioners and program designers to the principles and intervention style deemed essential for working with this population. It is best read in the context of a program curriculum such as the Positive Shift Curriculum or the University of Melbourne research reports on this topic. The framework is based on a research program about women who use force in a family context, which has included academic researchers from the University of Melbourne and Curtin University and service providers and users (Baptcare and Berry Street).

Introduction: Contact is an important part of the out-of-home care system and for maintaining birth family relationships, but little research has sought the parents’ perspective. It is important to understand parents’ experiences of contact and the reasons why they may cancel contact visits, in order to both reduce cancellations and improve the contact experience and associated outcomes for all involved. Methods: As part of the larger Australian kContact trial of a contact intervention, 90 parents having supervised contact with their children in long-term care were interviewed at baseline. The parents’ description of their contact visits is provided. Logistic regressions were used to estimate the odds of parent cancellation of contact visits for the predictor variables. Results: Parents in the study reported a number of health, financial, and support issues, and had large numbers of children. Most of their children were in long-term foster care with visits primarily supervised by agency staff. In the multivariate analyses two significant results were found: parents were less likely to cancel visits when carers supervised contact and more likely to cancel when they, the parent, were on psychiatric medication. There was also a small effect suggesting that hosting contact visits away from an agency space may reduce parent cancellations. Discussion: The need to provide supports for parents, particularly those on medication for mental health problems, to attend visits is an important finding from this study. Normalising contact visits by holding them in locations other than agency spaces and providing support for carers to supervise is recommended.

This is the final report (3 volumes) of a research program that has developed the Australian knowledge base about women who use force in a family context, and appropriate service responses. The research was funded by the Department of Social Services. Volume 1 contains a practice framework for intervening with this population, a description and evaluation of +SHIFT (a group work and case management program for women who use force) and the executive summary.

Child protection services have struggled with domestic and family violence (DV) and how to respond to it. Historically it has been slow to recognise the impact of domestic violence on children. Once identified, child protection services have been slow to recognise that affected children are usually best safeguarded by workers supporting the non-offending parent, typically, the child’s mother in situations of DFV. The focus on assessing mothers for their protection or failure to protect their children in the face of fathers who use violence has become characteristic of much child protection practice which has failed to engage constructively with the challenges of domestic violence. Many issues have emerged as problematic, highlighting the poor ‘fit’ between the traditional child protection lens and the demands of an effective response to domestic violence. These include: an exclusive focus on the ‘best interests’ of the child without due regard for two victims of domestic violence (child and usually the child’s mother); the lack of engagement with fathers who use violence; the necessities of engaging with diverse communities; the problems with developing effective domestic violence interventions when separation has not occurred. These are not the problems of an individual practitioner, but rather point to the structural and cultural change required by organisations to support workers to shift their practice. This chapter will draw on recent research (a national case reading of child protection files in Australia) to highlight the gaps in understanding the impacts of DV on parenting skills, and the gaps in recognising and documenting mothers’ strengths and efforts to keep their children safe. Sometimes this has involved mothers being deemed as ‘non-compliant’ with child protection instructions. An intersectional lens will be taken to explore a feminist perspective on child protection practice. The framework developed by Safe & Together™ will be used to inform the chap

INTRODUCTION: This study assesses the feasibility of the Positive Shift (+SHIFT) programme in the context of legal responses and social welfare provision in the state of Victoria, Australia.The +SHIFT programme, adapted from the Vista curriculum, is a group work and case management programme for women who use force. Building on traditional survivor support group strengths, the programme facilitates participants' engagement with viable alternatives to force while promoting healing. The study also aims to increase understanding about the characteristics and needs of women who use force in Australia. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This feasibility study will assess the +SHIFT programme's appropriateness in addressing women's use of force in the Victorian context. Process evaluation will be undertaken to identify recruitment, retention, women's participation, barriers to implementation, the appropriateness of proposed outcome measures and other issues. The feasibility of an outcome evaluation which would employ a longitudinal mixed methods design with measures administered at preprogramme, programme completion and 3 months postprogramme time points, along with semistructured interviews with participants, programme staff and referring professionals, will also be assessed. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Research ethics approval was obtained from the University of Melbourne Human Research Ethics Committee. Results of the study will be communicated to the programme providers as part of the action research process evaluation methodology. On completion, final results will be reported to programme providers and funding bodies, and published in academic journals and presented at national and international conferences.

This paper discusses the existing guidance in Australian legislative and regulatory frameworks to inform the process of young people moving through varying stages of maturity towards independent decision-making. In the context of exploratory research to develop a stable online repository of personal documents for young people in out-of-home care, the researchers envisioned in-built, age-appropriate levels of decision-making authority, associated with what was stored, who had access, and who owned these records. They sought guidance to protect young people themselves and to support workers and other mentors. Little unqualified guidance emerged from the documentary search. Supporting any young people in the journey towards independent decision-making relies on individual judgements about the type of decision and risks involved, and the age, maturity, and experience of the young person. Above all, a supportive trusting relationship with an adult allows young people to learn through their own mistakes. IMPLICATIONS Young people's competence in decision-making depends on a range of individual, familial, and social factors, and individualised guidance is necessary to support their participation. A supportive, trusting relationship with an adult provides the best environment for balancing vulnerable young peoples’ participation rights with their continuing needs for protection. The policy and practice challenge is to harness digital technologies without being distracted from the importance of relationship-based work.

Although the importance of contact between children in care and their parents, when safe, is accepted, there is limited research about supervised face‐to‐face contact. There is no literature that has systematically critiqued how supervised contact can be best delivered. The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the evidence for interventions aimed at improving the quality of contact visits between parents and their children who are in out‐of‐home care. Twelve studies were included in this review. Each study was graded and assigned scores according to the presence or absence of each of seven criteria. The studies demonstrated key similarities in the types of interventions provided, although delivery varied across group, individual and educational interventions. Parents reported improved capacity to manage their emotions and parents' satisfaction with the programmes was high. Although there was a lack of large scale, methodologically rigorous studies with long‐term follow‐up, some promising findings were identified: the literature indicates individual family support and group programmes have the potential to improve parent–child relationships and the quality of contact visits. This review suggests that future studies build on current evidence by addressing their methodological limitations and evaluating interventions that can be tailored to meet the needs of individual families.

BACKGROUND: When children are unable to safely live at home with their parents, contact between these children and their parents is considered, in most cases, important for maintaining children's sense of identity and relationships with their parents. However, the research evidence on contact is weak and provides little guidance on how to manage contact and when it is beneficial or potentially harmful. The evidence in relation to contact interventions with parents and their children who are to remain in long-term care is the most limited. A small number of studies have been identified where interventions which were therapeutic, child-focused and with clear goals, particularly aimed at preparing and supporting parents, showed some promising results. This trial aims to build on the existing evidence by trialling an enhanced model of contact in multiple sites in Australia. METHODS/DESIGN: This study is a cluster randomised controlled trial of an enhanced contact intervention with children in long-term care who are having supervised contact with their parents. Intervention sites will implement the kContact intervention that increases the preparation and support provided to parents in relation to contact. Baseline and follow-up interviews are being conducted with parents, carers and agency workers at intervention and control sites. Follow-ups interviews will assess whether there has been an increase in children's emotional safety and a reduction in distress in response to contact visits with their parents (the primary outcome variable as measured using the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire), improved relationships between children and their parents, improved parental ability to support contact, and fewer contact visits cancelled. DISCUSSION: By increasing the evidence base in this area, the study aims to better guide the management and supervision of contact visits in the out-of-home care context and improve outcomes for the children and their families. TRIAL REGIS