Domestic and family violence information for people with intellectual disability

Directorate: Justice Strategy & Programs

Division: Strategic Policy & Commissioning

Project summary

Supporting people with intellectual disability by providing accessible information on domestic and family violence and the help that is available.

Focus Area:

• Improving access to mainstream services through better systems and processes.

Project objective

This project will deliver accessible communications materials for people with intellectual disability that focus on raising awareness of domestic and family violence and the help that is available to people experiencing violence.

The challenge

Current communications materials on domestic and family violence may be inaccessible for people with intellectual disability. This project will develop specific communications materials for people with intellectual disability, with consideration given to appropriate and accessible messaging and media.

Why is this important?

People with disability have a higher risk of experiencing violence than people without disability, and so there is a pressing need for accessible and appropriate messaging to ensure people with disability are:

• able to identify experiences of violence
• are aware of the help available to people experiencing violence
• are aware of their rights if they are experiencing violence
• are confident to seek help for experiences of violence.

Developing specific communications materials for people with intellectual disability will assist in overcoming barriers that impact on help-seeking behaviour by people with disability experiencing violence.

What will success look like?

A successful project will deliver communications materials for people with intellectual disability that are accessible and appropriate, and overcome barriers to accessing support for people with intellectual disability.

How will you measure success?

The accessibility and appropriateness of the materials will be measured through message testing and feedback from the sector and advocacy organisations around how well the materials are understood by people with intellectual disability.

The impact of the materials on overcoming barriers to accessing support for people with intellectual disability will be measured through calls to the NSW DV Line¹ as well as anecdotal evidence from the sector and advocacy organisations around whether there has been an increase in help-seeking behaviour following launch of the communications materials².

Status report

Current Status: Progressing

Date: 12/10/2020

Status Notes:

Status Explanatory Note:

Status reports provided:

[1] The capacity for the DV Line to collect relevant data is still to be determined.

[2]  Any increase in general help-seeking behaviour is unlikely to be able to be directly attributed to the communications materials.