Respect Ballarat aims to reach the whole Ballarat community in all the places that people work, learn, live and play. To achieve a ‘saturating’ effect, we also need to get targeted – which means building on prevention and early intervention work in specific places, with specific groups of people. This will have a ripple effect; when prevention threads are effectively woven into these spaces and communities, change will ripple out.
Through 12 months of co-design and collaboration, engagement and evidence-building, several priority places and groups of people have been identified as the starting point for this work. These places and people have been chosen based on what we learned, what work is already happening, where the gaps are, and where the evidence tells us the most impact can be achieved.
Places
Community sport
“It means sporting clubs taking a stand…Need to hear from them all and how they are working to change men’s and boy’s attitudes”– community member
Community sport is woven into the culture of Ballarat. Many women, men and gender diverse people of all ages play sport, with the highest levels of participation from young people under 14 and people in their 30s.
Many local clubs are working hard to create inclusive, safe environments for everyone - where coaches and leaders are trained to support people who disclose violence or harm, or to safely challenge harmful attitudes. However, we also heard about misogyny, homophobia and excusing of violence on and off the field, as well as structural and cultural barriers to participation.
Community sports provide an opportunity to create inclusive, respectful and safe environments for everyone. The evidence tells us that a whole-of-sport approach will have the most impact on preventing gendered violence. This means tailored approaches with players, coaches, administrators, volunteers, and families to help challenge harmful behaviours and set positive expectations.
What’s next
Respect Ballarat aims to strengthen and build on great working already happening in community sport, which could include:
- implementation of policies that support safe, inclusive and respectful environments for women and gender diverse people in all roles across sporting organisations and clubs
- recruitment approaches to ensure there are more women and gender diverse people in leadership roles in clubs
- community-wide campaigns to encourage inclusion, recognition and celebration of women and gender diverse people in sport
- training for staff and volunteers to respond to disclosures of violence and manage backlash
- work with leaders in clubs to address the gendered drivers of violence and foster a welcoming and inclusive culture.
Early years, pre and neo natal
“Most men lack knowledge around the more nuanced drivers of gender inequality and do not have the language to discuss these issues." - Man, community connector participant
Parents and carers shape how gendered norms, respect and safety are modelled in families. There are more than 11,000 couples with children in Ballarat, and we heard that many families and parents are looking for more support.
Through consultation, we consistently heard that heterosexual couples in particular are struggling to create equitable partnerships, particularly when they have children. We heard that fathers are searching for spaces to connect with other parents and want to build connections with other fathers to learn from each other and share their experiences.
Working with the whole family in the early years of a child's life offers a unique opportunity to interrupt harmful gender norms before they are entrenched, or to intervene early when needed. This work can happen in parenting groups and online spaces, and across early learning and care services, maternal child health services, libraries and playgroups. For some families, this can be provided through response services and other tailored support.
What’s next
Respect Ballarat aims to strengthen and build on work happening across sectors in Ballarat to support families, and to trial a whole-of-setting approach. This work will ideally reach as many families as possible and be tailored for different communities where needed (for example, in-language resourcing and education). This could include:
- work with parents and carers to build an understanding of how gender roles can influence parenting, and to promote the equal sharing of care roles and responsibilities
- promoting gender equality through physical and social environments and teaching practices, in pre and neo natal services and in early years settings.
- engaging with parents, carers, educators and children to build understanding of body safety and consent
- targeted intergenerational learning in early years settings; for example, playgroups to support shared learning and positive reinforcement across different generations of carers
- supporting parents to build skills in conflict resolution, the division of labour in the home and joint financial decision-making
- building more family-friendly community spaces, inclusive parenting groups and opportunities for fathers to connect.
Education
“Recently in health we’ve done some stuff on gendered violence, talking about men and how they disrespect women, the boys just laugh when they brought up violence against women.” - young woman, community connector conversation
From both young people and adults, we consistently heard about the need for a community-wide prevention approach, across the life span. This means supporting people of all ages to learn about respectful relationships and preventing gendered violence – in schools, higher education, and across the community.
Young people told us that often they are receiving the right messages at school, but when they go home, to their local sports club, or out into the schoolyard they are hearing the opposite. This was amplified for young people from marginalised communities, who often face additional discrimination including racism, homophobia, and/or ableism.
Encouragingly, there are 62 schools in Ballarat, and every single one is now signed up to deliver Respectful Relationships education. In August, a new code was passed requiring all higher education institutions to prevent and respond to violence.
What’s next
Respect Ballarat will support parents, grandparents, aunties and uncles, sports coaches, and local leaders to reflect, learn and build their skills in understanding respectful relationships, and preventing and responding to violence.
Respect Ballarat will work to wrap around and reinforce existing work happening in education settings, as well as seed and amplify work in the broader community.
This could include:
- an intergenerational prevention approach to support education and understanding for parents, carers and communities across Ballarat
- work to build the confidence and understanding of teachers and educators who are delivering Respectful Relationships education with an intersectional approach
- support to embed the new higher education code to prevent and end gender-based violence in Ballarat universities and TAFEs
- tailored Respectful Relationships education approaches for young people who are disengaged from formal education settings
- training for staff and volunteers across all education settings to respond to disclosures of violence and manage backlash
- changes to organisational policies, practices and cultural norms to ensure safe and appropriate responses to disclosure.
Workplaces
“The future needs to be driven by men with an agenda of equality, who are shifting old ideals to bring intergenerational change. Taking responsibility leads to accountability, which leads to social change." - co-designer
There are over 5,000 workplaces in Ballarat, with large workforces in healthcare, manufacturing, education, transport and local government. Prevention approaches in workplaces, particularly male-dominated workforces, offer the opportunity to reach many people and build intergenerational prevention learning in a structured environment.
Throughout consultation, we heard that the majority of leadership roles in Ballarat are held by men, and that gendered power dynamics are continuing to play out in many workforces and industries. Women and gender diverse people are experiencing sexism, homophobia, ableism and in some cases harassment and violence. Women from culturally and racially marginalised communities are facing racism and discrimination in these workplaces.
Significant work is happening across many industries and organisations, particularly with the implementation of the Gender Equality Act and more broadly many adopting policies and practices to enable prevention. For many workplaces, the next steps include translating policies into practice, fostering positive cultures and more diverse leadership representation across workplaces, while also addressing harmful gender norms and masculinities in the workplace.
What’s next
Respect Ballarat will work to define which workforces and workplaces are ready for prevention work, wrap around and strengthen work already happening in these workplaces, and support tailored approaches for workforces that are ready and committed.
This could include:
- building the capacity and readiness of organisations and leaders to carry out prevention work internally and externally
- identifying specific workplaces or workforces to build readiness, including support for all leaders and staff to understand gendered violence, be able to respond to disclosures and manage backlash
- support identified workplaces to put gender transformative policies in place and into practice
- work tailored to men in workplaces to build their capacity to identify and challenge sexism, discrimination and gendered violence
- strategies to challenge workplace sexual harassment, particularly that experienced by women and gender diverse people from racially marginalised communities.
People
Respect Ballarat aims to mobilise all communities across the city to learn, reflect and act. The approach will work with and for four groups of people in the first instance, defined through months of consultation and evidence-building. This work will align directly with the outlined places. Working with the below groups across all local communities will have a ripple effect and seed an intergenerational prevention approach.
Men
"I've talked to my girlfriend about it; she's experienced some violence and talked to me about it. I didn't know how to respond really. If I understood more, I'd understand what to say." - young man.
Many men in Ballarat want to play a role in preventing gendered violence – but they need support to reflect, learn and act. Many told us that they want more education and community-wide learning to support them to understand what daily actions they can take, how to challenge harmful attitudes amongst their peers, and how to respond to disclosures of people experiencing or using violence. They spoke about wanting to challenge harmful attitudes and comments, but fear backlash, isolation or saying the ‘wrong thing.’
We heard that many men in Ballarat have developed a greater understanding of and openness towards talking about their mental health and wellbeing, with education and workplace or peer-led campaigns proving effective. This provides a foundation on which to build opportunities for prevention efforts. We also heard that many men want more support to understand how to safely express their emotions.
What’s next
Respect Ballarat will focus on working with men to build their capability and confidence to challenge harmful norms and prevent violence. This work will aim to reach men as workers, grandparents, parents, family members, friends, partners, community members and include strategies and capacity building for organisations and communities to manage backlash and resistance.
New parents, with a focus on fathers
"[A safer Ballarat looks like] Heterosexual couples sharing the mental load of raising children or sharing a life together. Adequate parental leave provided for all parents, and societal expectations that parents of all genders will take leave for new children." - community member.
Parents in Ballarat told us that in many households, housework, the mental load, parenting and care are not equally shared - particularly for heterosexual couples. We also heard that it’s still challenging for men in some workplaces to take longer parental leave, and that women are often juggling the bulk of paid and unpaid work in households.
Fatherhood is a critical transition point for many men, and evidence shows that men are more likely to show vulnerability and be more open to reflecting on their attitudes in relation to gendered norms, parenting and relationships at this time.
What’s next
Respect Ballarat will build the knowledge and capability of new parents, particularly fathers, to understand how the gendered drivers of violence can play out in their relationships and families and how they can take action. It will also encourage workplaces and industries to provide parental leave in both their policies and practice that does not differ by gender.
Children and young people
"What is taught in the classroom is not reinforced throughout the school. What happens in the yard or the corridor is a different story and no one really cares." -young person.
Young people in Ballarat told us that most of the time, they are getting Respectful Relationships education –but there's work to do to achieve a whole of school, and whole-of-community approach. Young people spoke to us about experiencing or witnessing misogyny, transphobia, racism and ableism in school, at home, in the community and online.
What’s next
Respect Ballarat will aim to work with and for young people to reach them and engage them in developing a stronger understanding of gendered violence, how to identify relationship ‘red and green flags,’ and how to seek support or support their friends.
Leaders, existing and new
"[A safer, respectful future] Is a world where I'm listening to leaders who are promoting kindness, compassion and equality." - co-designer.
We heard consistently that community-wide, intergenerational education and action on preventing gendered violence is critical. People told us that they want to be guided by those who they trust – friends, family, community and faith leaders, coaches and teachers. They want to hear and learn from people who are relatable, close to home, and putting prevention into action in their everyday lives. These may be people who already hold formal leadership roles in the community, or other community members who people gravitate to and listen to.
What’s next
Respect Ballarat will support community mobilisation approaches with new and emerging leaders across communities, workforces, faith groups, and with people who have the opportunity to shift norms in their spheres of influence. This will also include work with leaders in workplaces to create pathways for genuinely inclusive leadership, power-sharing and diversity in decision-making.