A campaign aimed at young victims of domestic violence titled ‘No More Violence, We’re Breaking The Silence’, has been recognised for marketing excellence at the StateWest Achievement Awards.
A campaign aimed at young victims of domestic violence titled ‘No More Violence, We’re Breaking The Silence’, has been recognised for marketing excellence at the StateWest Achievement Awards.
Domestic violence affects about one in three young people, according to research, either through direct abuse or by witnessing behaviour within the home, and can adversely affect their future relationship choices and behaviours.
Motivated by an early intervention and prevention strategy, the new campaign was the result of collaboration between the Family and Domestic Violence Unit (FDVU), part of the Department for Community Development, and the Office for Children and Youth.
The first of its kind in WA, the campaign was intended to increase awareness of family, domestic and dating violence, and its impact on children and young people.
The campaign is specifically targeted at young people affected by family and domestic violence, dating violence and those who have friends affected by these.
Campaign materials packaged in colour-coded kits, containing a booklet, postcard, bookmark, safety plan and card, have been distributed to all Western Australian high schools, women’s refuges, children’s counsellors, youth services and emergency accommodation agencies.
Nearly 60,000 kits have been distributed to service providers so far, with 51,000 produced initially and an additional 9000 on demand, and have been used to develop programs for young people at risk.
A key element of the campaign was the creation of a website with the domain name ‘youthsayno’, which incorporates the content of the materials and has averaged 300 hits per month to date.
In order to make the campaign relevant to youth, a Youth Working Group was established, comprising eight members within the target age group of 14 to 22 years, who advised on the design of campaign resources.
Jordan Fogarty, a representative of the Youth Working Group, said in a letter to the FDVU that the campaign had visual appeal, and that it was rewarding to know something effective was being done in the community to combat domestic violence.
The campaign is being used as a reference for the development of the Family and Domestic Violence Peer Education Program, a pilot program aimed at raising awareness of family and domestic violence, which is expected to be run in three schools.
A number of government and non-government agencies were consulted in planning the campaign, including the Department of Education and Training, Kids Help Line, Sexual Assault Referral Centre and the CREATE Foundation.
