Mission
Hope and Heal is a not-for-profit organisation providing weekend rehabilitative retreats for women who have survived intimate partner violence (IPV).
Hope and Heal is tackling the ambitious goal of closing the gap in women’s trauma recovery in our community, and have big dreams for the future. As the national conversation about domestic violence grows, but funding remains proportionately insufficient, we believe everyone has a part to play in helping women take back control of their recovery, health and wellbeing.
Hope and Heal supports women’s long-term needs and potentially lifelong impacts of trauma, beyond the immediate crisis period.
Alongside a team of trauma recovery and wellbeing experts, small groups of women are provided with ‘women-central’ treatment, which experts agree continues to be the best-practice model.
Through a 3 day trauma informed residential retreat, we provide a safe space for 12 women to recover and revitalise. The daily program has been developed in consultation with survivors and industry experts, to provide education and equip participants with tools to help them confront and overcome the enduring effects of trauma.
The survivors conclude the three day program with a deeper understanding of themselves, a shared sense of empowerment, connections to communities and take home information for long-term use, as they continue the recovery process.
“Intimate partner violence (IPV) produces fear and self-doubt; it threatens a person’s life goals, safety and even survival; and it is associated with lost agency and ability to control the world”
WHAT ELSE DO WE DO?
ADVOCACY
Advocacy is a big part of what Hope and Heal does. The way we have done this is:
Presenting to Federal Circuit Court and Family Court judicial audiences at the request of the National Judicial College of Australia under their Family Violence in the Court Training on ‘the experience of the complainant’
Lobbying within the Department of Health to improve human resource policies in relation to staff who are experiencing domestic and family violence.
Assisting with policy and law reform submissions with DV NSW to improve processes and outcomes for women and their children impacted by domestic and family violence.
There is still a long way to go, but we will keep fighting.
COMMUNITY
VIGILS
Hope and Heal unites and supports a collective community of women with the lived experience, who come together to support one another. This is promoted through our retreats and online community.
Post retreat support where we connect women with support services to further their healing journey, including financial support, legal services and counselling.
We believe community is vitally important and the back bone of the women building new lives.
We lead a group of like minded organisations to host a vigil every year in Sydney.
On International Elimination of Violence Against Women, 25th November, we gather to honour the lives of women and their children who have been killed by domestic homicide.
This event is attended by leaders in our community, such as Police representatives as well as local MP's, who stand along side each other in solidarity.
