Active Research

Delivering trauma-informed support for child sexual abuse victims in Victoria: mapping the knowledge gaps and training needs of the specialist sectors

    • Response to child sexual abuse
    • Understanding child sexual abuse
Research Topic areas 
  • Community awareness
  • Education
  • Government & policy responses
  • Therapeutic responses
Project Duration
Start: July 2023
End: June 2024
Geographical Scope
VIC
Populations
Workforce
Young adults (18-25 years)Adults (26-65 years)Older adults (>65 years)
Gender
All genders

Project Lead

Dr Amy Webster, Sexual Assault Services Victoria

Project Team

Kathleen Maltzahn, Sexual Assault Services Victoria
Emily Roberts, Sexual Assault Services Victoria

Background

This project will gather evidence that Sexual Assault Services Victoria can use to strengthen the capacity of professionals across the specialist child sexual abuse sector workforce in Victoria, to provide trauma-informed and compassionate supports. In turn, this will improve understanding of the current knowledge and training needs of key sector workforces and identify opportunities to embed trauma-informed curricula into key qualification pathways.

Aims

This project will specifically investigate the knowledge, training and education needs required to provide trauma-informed and compassionate supports to victims of child sexual abuse from diverse backgrounds, and their families.

Methods

This project will use a mixed methods approach, including a desktop review of key documents and evidence, a survey and focus groups with specialist practitioners representing Sexual Assault Services Victoria member services, to gather evidence that members can use to design and implement a range of workforce capacity building and knowledge translation activities.

Significance and Dissemination

This project will leverage stakeholder engagement through Sexual Assault Services Victoria’s role as the peak body for specialist sexual assault and harmful sexual behaviour services across the state. This approach will ensure findings generated can be quickly and effectively translated into key workforces, contributing to improved outcomes and experiences for those impacted by child sexual abuse.

Further Details

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Funding body:
The National Centre for Action on Child Sexual Abuse
Funding budget:
$35,000 grant
Monitoring and governance:
This project is guided by oversight of the Project Advisory Group and organisational governance of Sexual Assault Service Victoria
Prevention of child sexual abuse

From bystanders to allies: a structural feminist perspective for supporting child victims and adult survivors of child rape and torture.

Emma Rees
Queensland University of Technology
Understanding child sexual abuse

Preventing child sexual abuse by understanding perpetrators’ motivations

Kelly Richards
Queensland University of Technology, School of Justice
Needs of victims and survivors

Supporting Victims and Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse: Rapid Evidence Reviews

Michaela Guthridge
The National Centre for Action on Child Sexual Abuse

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The Australian child sexual abuse attitudes, knowledge and response study
CHANGE – curtailing harm and navigating growth: evidence for change pathways of young people who have engaged in harmful sexual behaviour
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Australian Child Maltreatment Study
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Enhancing the capacity of rural and regional respectful relationship educators
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Differentiating adverse childhood experience profiles of male youths who exhibit harmful sexual behaviours

Needs of victims and survivors

From bystanders to allies: a structural feminist perspective for supporting child victims and adult survivors of child rape and torture.
Supporting Victims and Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse: Rapid Evidence Reviews
Ngagagee Ngulu Murrup Durra (‘The Ngagagee project’)
Evaluation of the Multi-Agency Investigation & Support Team
The Australian child sexual abuse attitudes, knowledge and response study
An environmental scan of Child Sexual Abuse related workforce training offerings in Australia
Enhancing the capability of Australia’s Primary Health Workforce to respond to child sexual abuse
Improving legal, policy and practice responses to the intersection of domestic violence perpetration and child sexual abuse offending
Investigating experiences of child sexual abuse disclosure and disbelief in the Family Court
Understanding the experiences of child sexual abuse disclosure in Australia in the wake of the Royal Commission
Building trauma-responsive sexual health and relationship education
Learning from victims and survivors about what helps disclosure and responses to child sexual abuse
Amplifying the voices of victim-survivors: Advancing the harmful sexual behaviour evidence base – the Ava project
The dignity by design project: survivor-led system redesign
Supporting continuous quality improvement in safeguarding at Hockey Australia and other national sporting organisations
Evaluating a harmful sexual behaviour education program in a residential care setting
Community as experts: investigating the context, needs and help-seeking pathways for child sexual abuse survivors and their supporters in the NSW Bega Valley
Enhancing the capacity of rural and regional respectful relationship educators
Creating safer futures: raising public awareness of child sexual abuse among young adults through digital storytelling
Survivor perspectives on institutional use of child sexual abuse material
The more I talk, the stronger I get: unlocking our past to free our future

Prevention of child sexual abuse

From bystanders to allies: a structural feminist perspective for supporting child victims and adult survivors of child rape and torture.
Preventing child sexual abuse by understanding perpetrators’ motivations
Ngagagee Ngulu Murrup Durra (‘The Ngagagee project’)
Preventing repeat child exploitation material offending: An international evaluation of the CEM-COPE Program
Conceptualising and Estimating the Costs of Child Sexual Exploitation (Phase One of Australian Study into Economic Costs of Child Sexual Exploitation)
The Australian child sexual abuse attitudes, knowledge and response study
An environmental scan of Child Sexual Abuse related workforce training offerings in Australia
CHANGE – curtailing harm and navigating growth: evidence for change pathways of young people who have engaged in harmful sexual behaviour
Evaluating a harmful sexual behaviour education program in a residential care setting
Developing and implementing a framework for abuse prevention through culture change and organisational development
Building a knowledge frame for responding to the needs of children and young people who have engaged in harmful sexual behaviour
Australian Child Maltreatment Study
Strengthening relationships and connections for young people in therapeutic residential care
Differentiating adverse childhood experience profiles of male youths who exhibit harmful sexual behaviours

Identification of child sexual abuse

From bystanders to allies: a structural feminist perspective for supporting child victims and adult survivors of child rape and torture.
The Australian child sexual abuse attitudes, knowledge and response study
An environmental scan of Child Sexual Abuse related workforce training offerings in Australia
Enhancing the capability of Australia’s Primary Health Workforce to respond to child sexual abuse
Supporting continuous quality improvement in safeguarding at Hockey Australia and other national sporting organisations
Evaluating a harmful sexual behaviour education program in a residential care setting
Developing and implementing a framework for abuse prevention through culture change and organisational development
Children and Young People’s Safety Project
The safeguarding capability of adults in Catholic Church ministries: a global perspective

Disclosure of child sexual abuse

Ngagagee Ngulu Murrup Durra (‘The Ngagagee project’)
The Australian child sexual abuse attitudes, knowledge and response study
An environmental scan of Child Sexual Abuse related workforce training offerings in Australia
Enhancing the capability of Australia’s Primary Health Workforce to respond to child sexual abuse
Improving legal, policy and practice responses to the intersection of domestic violence perpetration and child sexual abuse offending
Investigating experiences of child sexual abuse disclosure and disbelief in the Family Court
Understanding the experiences of child sexual abuse disclosure in Australia in the wake of the Royal Commission
Learning from victims and survivors about what helps disclosure and responses to child sexual abuse
Supporting continuous quality improvement in safeguarding at Hockey Australia and other national sporting organisations
Community as experts: investigating the context, needs and help-seeking pathways for child sexual abuse survivors and their supporters in the NSW Bega Valley