Foundation backs family violence project

A PROGRAM designed to support Indian women in Ballarat facing family violence has won major funding support from the Ballarat Foundation.

Project Sitara will be delivered by the Ballarat Regional Multicultural Council (BRMC) and will train between eight and 12 Indian women as ‘community champions’, equipping them with the skills to provide trusted referral support.

The program was one of three shortlisted by the foundation’s Ballarat Women’s Fund, created as a direct response to ongoing and growing issues of gendered violence in Ballarat.

Fund members have a say in where and to whom funding goes.

Along with Project Sitara, the other shortlisted initiatives were the Ballarat Perinatal Educational Pilot Program (designed to help new and expecting mothers, particularly in disadvantaged areas, access perinatal care) and Changing the Game (a Western Bulldogs Community Foundation initiative tackling gender-based violence through local football clubs).

The BRMC program was named as the recipient of $30,000 at a Pick Our Project event soon after International Women’s Day.

It will include workshops and awareness campaigns, contact with 50 women with survivor stories and insights, and will provide ongoing peer support to strengthen referral pathways.

BRMC’s aim is to create a model for culturally specific family violence prevention and response initiatives in the future.

“Sexual and family violence doesn’t discriminate,” BRMC chief executive Suzanne Ryan-Evers said.

“It’s happening right across every culture and every community, and we needed to play a part to make sure the multicultural group was getting access to the help they needed.

“We want to note that family violence isn’t worse in the Indian community, but it is Ballarat’s fastest growing community.

“For the past 18 months, working in the area of family violence has shown us there is so much work to be done.”

Ballarat Foundation chief executive Andrew Eales said the Ballarat Women’s Fund continues to grow as a powerful force for change in the community.

“The generosity and commitment of our members show that collective giving can make a real impact in addressing gender inequality,” he said.

“The Pick Our Project event is not just about funding, it’s about building a movement for lasting change.”