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Description
According to the Crime Malta Observatory’s Annual Crime Review, the number of reported domestic violence cases reached an unsettling 1341 cases in 2018 and figures continue to rise. This implies that, even with major awareness campaigns to raise awareness about the issue and try and prevent the occurrence of domestic violence, it remains a major concern. There is growing evidence that domestic violence can have a crucial impact on women’s health, employment and education. It deprives victims of their fundamental ability to live with dignity.
The objective of the project is to use informal education to provide survivors of domestic violence with the tools necessary to empower them to create a better future. The project uses the train the trainer approach and is based on the Triple R therapy-based programme that is currently carried out in the United Kingdom by an independent charity called Safer Places. By using a ‘train the trainer’ approach, individuals who have been taught the programme can then tutor other groups, creating a one-of-a-kind sustainable project in Malta.
By the end of the training programme the survivors will be able to Recognise the abuse and its impacts on them and their children; Recover from the abuse and develop Resilience by building on their strengths. The programme will not only provide powerful coping mechanisms on coping with domestic violence but will also ensure that survivors gain the confidence to go on to engage in paid work, increasing their employability.
An awareness raising campaign will also be designed and implemented to inform the public about this human rights issue and help reduce stigma and discrimination associated with being a victim of domestic abuse.
Summary of project results
The objective of the POW-R project was to use informal education to provide survivors of domestic violence with the tools necessary to empower them to create a better future.
The project used the train the trainer approach to empower survivors of domestic violence and provide them with powerful coping mechanisms to give them the confidence to go out and engage in paid work, thus increasing their independence. The approach was based on the Triple R therapy-based programme that is currently used in the United Kingdom by an independent charity called Safer Places. An awareness raising campaign including a short video was also implemented with the aim of informing the public about this human rights issue and to help reduce stigma and discrimination associated with being a victim of domestic abuse.
Four survivors of domestic violence were trained on how to train other survivors using the Triple R programme - Recognise the abuse, Recover from the abuse and develop Resilience. These four trainers then delivered the programme to forty survivors of domestic violence to empower them to gain the confidence to find work and become more independent.