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Family Violence Initiative

Projects funded by the Department of Justice Canada under the Family Violence Initiative (April 2002 - March 2003)

Title: Domestic Violence Tracking Project Phase II

Applicant/Beneficiary: Saskatchewan Justice

DESCRIPTION: The aim of this project is to conduct an evaluation of policies and procedures in police-reported domestic violence cases. Through an examination and evaluation of current policies and procedures in domestic violence cases, the project will provide both, information on current practices, as well as recommendations for changes where necessary.

The results of the tracking survey will be used to improve policy, programs and procedures in response to domestic violence. It will also be used to promote new approaches to dealing with reported incidents of family violence.

Title: Elder Abuse - The Hurting Times

Applicant/Beneficiary: Senior Resources Centre of Newfoundland & Labrador

DESCRIPTION: The objective of the project is to promote awareness and knowledge about elder abuse among health care professionals, older adults and the general public and develop an innovative support program for victims of elder abuse that is available in their community through their peers. This objective is being achieved through the provision of information sessions on elder abuse to interested peer advocates volunteers and other seniors in their communities, as well as the development of a Speakers Bureau and working with the media.

The project supports the development and implementation of new cost-effective approaches to service delivery for victims of elder abuse.

Title: Stuart Lake Community Safety Strategy - Phase II

Applicant/Beneficiary: Stuart Lake Community Services Society

DESCRIPTION: The project supported the development of a community protocol for dealing with women and children in domestic crisis situations that require removal from the home to safety in a local safe haven facility for short term stays. The protocol will provide for improved referral services and assistance to victims of domestic abuse in Fort St. James thereby increasing the ability of service providers to support victims of domestic violence. The project also supported planning and delivering training to volunteers working at the community shelter as well as the development of a "Personnel Policy & procedures Manual" and "Staff and Volunteers Information and Procedures Manual" for use in the shelter.

The project assisted in increasing awareness about family violence issues in the community and enhancing community coordinated approach to domestic violence prevention/intervention.

Title: Supporting Child Witnesses of Family Violence

Applicant/Beneficiary: Big Brothers Big Sisters of Canada (BBBSC)

DESCRIPTION: The project supported the development of a training program to be used to train both BBBSC casework staff and program volunteers across Canada to provide more detailed understanding and information to help them appropriately support children who witness domestic violence. The project will utilize existing resources that can be easily incorporated into the current orientation and training material delivered by BBBSC. Through the development and piloting of the training package in some member agencies and shelters for battered women, the BBBSC helped to increase the knowledge and ability of service providers to support child victims/witnesses of family violence.

The project will improve both the BBBSC's and the community's response to family violence and increase the capacity of service providers to address family violence issues.

Title: National Forum on Family Violence

Applicant/Beneficiary: Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police

DESCRIPTION: This national forum provided the police executives an opportunity to better educate themselves on family violence facts and initiatives, to explore approaches and profile good practices in the police and community response to family violence, and to network with other police chiefs, professionals and government agencies in relation to the issue.

The forum will help to promote responsiveness of the criminal justice system to family violence by increasing awareness among police executives of the problems affecting the responsiveness of criminal justice system to family violence. Also, the forum helped to increase the profile of this issue among leaders in the policing community and provided them with the necessary tools (including information, contacts, research and ideas) to effectively address the issue in the context of their work.

Title: Family Law and Family Violence Tool Kits

Applicant/Beneficiary: Public Legal Education of Alberta (PLENA)

DESCRIPTION: This project supported the reprint of the Family Violence information to be included in the family law tool kit for distribution to service providers, particularly in rural Alberta. The project will also support a follow-up evaluation of the toolkit in 2003/2004.
This project built upon PLENA's original distribution of the Family Law/Family Violence tool kit. Since the limited distribution last year and the follow-up training for the service providers, requests for additional tool kits have increased. The Family Law and Family Violence Tool Kit brochures and booklets provide service providers with the information, knowledge and capacity to meet client needs and deliver services to Albertans more effectively.

Title: Newsletter: Abuse of People with Disabilities

Applicant/Beneficiary: The People's Law School

DESCRIPTION: The project supported the development of a special edition of PIP (Provincial Innovations Program) newsletter to raise awareness of public legal education services and other resources available around the issue of the abuse of people with disabilities in the province of British Columbia.

The People's Law School partnered and consulted with service providers throughout BC to help in identifying the most important issues and the best way to address them in print. The Newsletter is distributed throughout BC with emphasis on distribution to service providers. Through feedback received, the People's Law School will evaluate the Newsletter and report back on findings.

This project will help to increase awareness of the issues surrounding abuse of people with disabilities and of provincial resources and services available to address this issue.

Title: Domestic Violence Online Project

Applicant/Beneficiary: Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO)

DESCRIPTION: The project supported the creation of an HTML version and a revised and improved PDF version of the publication " Do you know a woman who is being abused? A Legal Rights Handbook ". It also supported reprinting some hardcopies of the document as this handbook is consistently one of the publications that is most in demand. Through this project CLEO also reprinted the handbook " Elder Abuse - The Hidden Crime ".

Title: Evaluation of Correctional Services Canada Family Violence Prevention Programs

Applicant/Beneficiary: The British Columbia Institute Against Family Violence (BCIFV)

DESCRIPTION: This interdepartmental partnership project intended to support the evaluation of Correctional Services Canada's Moderate and High Intensity Family Violence Prevention programs. The project will consist of 6 phases over two years. The final phase will consist of a safety planning interview pilot, where BCIFV will test victim safety planning guidelines.

Results and recommendations of the evaluation will help to improve prevention treatment programs for offenders and improve safety planning guidelines for victims.

Title: Conference - A Practioner's Guide to Intimate Partner abuse/femicide

Applicant/Beneficiary: Metro Interagency on Family Violence

DESCRIPTION: This conference in Atlantic Canada will present a diagnostic tool for assessing the risk of intimate partner femicide and present safety planning guidance in conjunction with the risk. The conference is intended to educate service providers about a diagnostic tool to estimate the risk of intimate partner femicide, and safety planning to reduce that risk and thus enhancing responsiveness of the criminal justice system and community organizations to family violence.

This project provides enhanced access to, and community support for proven family violence prevention, intervention and protection measures.

Title: Family Violence Resource Printing

Applicant/Beneficiary: PLEA Saskatchewan

DESCRIPTION: This project provided financial support for the printing of a number of family violence brochures. The publications focus on specific areas of concern within the family violence initiative objectives. The publications will serve to inform the people of Saskatchewan on family violence issues and enhance their involvement in the response to family violence.

Title: Intermediary Training Guide Pilot Project

Applicant/Beneficiary: PLEA Saskatchewan

DESCRIPTION: This project supported the development and piloting of a Family Violence Intermediary Training Guide. This Guide will provide persons working with victims of family violence with information and resources related to domestic abuse, such as accessing help in the community, accessing the criminal and civil court systems, The Victims of Domestic Violence Act, as well as the legal system as a whole. A corresponding workshop outline and promotional materials will also be developed for piloting in 2003/2004. This project will contribute to increased capacity of intermediaries working with victims of domestic abuse to respond to the legal information needs of their clients. It will also help to enhance ability of victims of domestic abuse to participate in the legal process by providing information regarding court proceedings, extra-judicial measures and opportunities for their involvement in the process.

Title: FAQ's Law and Abuse of Older Adults

Applicant/Beneficiary: University of Alberta

DESCRIPTION: This project provided funding for the development and pilot testing of 60 new legal FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) on laws and the abuse of older adults. These FAQs is posted on the Canadian Legal FAQs web site (www.law-faqs.org) and also printed in a booklet for distribution to those who do not have easy access to the Internet. These FAQ's will result in better informed intermediaries working in the area of elder abuse as well as a better informed senior population.

The project will contribute to increased public awareness of abuse of older adults and public involvement in the response to this problem.

Title: Creating a National Link between Front-line Legal Educators/Researchers on Anti-Violence Centres

Applicant/Beneficiary: Canadian Association of Sexual Assault Centres (CASAC)

DESCRIPTION: This project supported the development of a communication/computer linkage between anti-violence centers across Canada to facilitate information sharing about research, legislation and effective interventions in legislative reforms in relation to violence against women; and a pilot project aimed at addressing systemic issues of inequality in cases of violence against women and ways in which the justice system can better protect and serve victims of violence against women.

The established computer link has assisted in improving capacities of anti-violence centres across Canada to address family violence issues and enhancing improved response to the needs of women and children victims of family violence. The results of the pilot project will offer ways in which the criminal justice system's response to violence against women can be improved.


		Last Updated: 2006-07-06		Important Notices