Promising Practice Programs

The Program
The 'Respect' community education program is conducted in the Shoalhaven region to coincide with the Day of Action Against Sexual Violence (DAASV).
The DAASV was first proposed in 1993 by Women's Health Services in NSW.
The 'Respect' program evolved over the past five years to maximise the principle of community participation and involvement. In particular the DAASV committee in the Shoalhaven region targeted both males and females to draw public attention to sexual violence. Importantly, males were acknowledged as victims of sexual violence, whilst being informed and educated about 'respectful' relationships.
The 'Respect' program has adopted and expanded upon the objectives and strategies of DAASV.

Objectives

• To draw public attention to the issue of sexual violence
• To foster community support and participation
• To highlight services and persons who work against sexual violence and advocate for service enhancements
• To commemorate victims and survivors of sexual violence, both female and male
• To celebrate the capacity for recovery, growth and hope for the future
• To actively promote the concept of RESPECT amongst men and women, and boys and girls.

Strategies

• Adopting existing themes and developing upon them, for example; tree plantings - drink spiking awareness campaigns - party-safe campaigns - community art competitions - youth specific art competitions
• Prizes and certificates are based on the concept of 'every one's a winner' so there are as many prizes as possible, not only first, second and third prize.
• Media articles and coverage of the actual day of DAASV
• Development of resources based on works submitted by the young people of the Shoalhaven region
• Distribution of resources to young people in specific community education programs for example, YWCA and the Y-ise up relationships program
• Entertainment and information expos on the DAASV which incorporated guest speakers, musical performances, dance, poetry and story telling
• Staging expo days in high school settings and delivering to the whole year group (year nine)
• Development of the 'RESPECT game show'.

2001 and 2002 - main activities

• 'Spiked drinks poster' - adapted existing resources from the Eurobodalla region and reproduced them for Shoalhaven. They were then distributed to all licensed premises by police licensing officers as part of the 'Are you responsible?' campaign
• Sticker competition produced with year ten art students - The stickers incorporated the phone number of the local sexual assault service
• Community Visual Arts competition for all ages
• Book Mark - labelled 'RESPECT' - made from artwork with useful phone numbers on the reverse side
• DAASV poster - made from artwork including useful services' details.
• Information and entertainment expo held at the Aboriginal Cultural Centre with guest speakers, survivors telling their stories, international storyteller and juggler introducing the theme of RESPECT with poetry readings, song, multicultural dance, dance therapy and awards ceremony.

2002 and 2003 - main activities

• RESPECT game show and DAASV held at local high schools - audience and participants were the whole of year nine classes
• Youth specific performing and visual arts competitions
• Story teller juggler and youth themselves as entertainers around the theme of RESPECT
• 'It's never your fault' - RESPECT/party-safe wallet size information card.

2005 - main activities

• DAASV tree planting and afternoon tea
• Targeted service providers
• Honoured networks
• Evaluation of program to date and consolidation of a conceptual framework and mission statement
• Development of a presentation about the Shoalhaven RESPECT project - DAASV community education program for delivery at the Education Centre Against Violence to new sexual assault workers.

Summary of Promising Practice
The program is inclusive of males and females as victims of abuse. It is targeted at all youth in the development of RESPECTful behaviours to reduce the incidence of sexual abuse.
Diversity is addressed by specifically inviting Aboriginal groups and people with disabilities to be involved.
Evaluation processes are built into the project plan and reports are written for funding bodies.

Examples of Promising Practice

• Highlights males as victims of abuse also. Community education is best delivered where the audience is gender and race inclusive - particular effort was made to target the Aboriginal population and people with disabilities
• Takes account of contemporary research and practice developments in the field of sexual assault
• Positions diversity as key to the development, understanding and delivery of good practice models
• Contributes to improving systems' responses to sexual assault, and is directed at preventing sexual assault
• Demonstrates a sensitivity towards the barriers faced by victim/survivors in disclosing and reporting sexual assault
• Has a clearly defined conceptual framework which evolved with time to address needs of the local population and maximise effectiveness of the program
• Includes processes of accountability and evaluation, especially during the 2003 and 2004 program.
• Demonstrates a capacity for replication (i.e. other services/organisations could adapt/re-model the program for their use)

Type
Written evaluations following attendance
The program's effect on participants was assessed by pre-test and post-test comparison where program participants were compared to members of a control group ('no treatment' group).

2003
N = 150, age range = 14 -15 years
Evaluation was made of their thoughts about the day.
Participants were given two fluro post-it notes and were asked - 'what did you think about today?' - responses were stuck to a large poster with a question mark on it as participants departed and received a can of drink and chips.
Of the 71 responses 93% were positive

Positive responses included -
'it was great,
entertaining,
it was fun and interesting,
today was pretty good learnt lots,
Spiked dinks play was funny,
ring if you're in trouble'

Of the 71 responses, 17% were negative
Negative responses included -
'Bad,
boring,
didn't understand the whole spiked drinks plug'