Long-term support services for survivors of domestic violence are few and far between. In the western Sydney suburb of Penrith, Survivor Vision Australia (SVA) runs A Stronger Me, a six-week program to help women survivors start rebuilding their lives.
Like many not-for-profit organisations, SVA is predominantly staffed by volunteers, with a slim budget underpinning its life-changing programs. The organisation depends on government funding to keep its programs running, but the costs of demonstrating its effectiveness, reach and impact can be prohibitive.
Dr Sonika Singh, a Senior Lecturer at the UTS Business School, had a solution: supported by a Social Impact Grant Program and matched funding from her faculty, she embarked on a program to help SVA strengthen A Stronger Me’s evaluation processes, promotional messages and referral pathways to reach greater numbers of women survivors.
As part of UTS, I thought I could connect this organisation with academics in the Business School through our social impact program.
The results have been remarkable: thanks to the work of Dr Singh and her collaborators, Dr David Waller, Dr Kaye Chan and Dr Mihalja Gavin, SVA now has precise data demonstrating the effectiveness of A Stronger Me.
The project has also led to a significant increase in website traffic, including views of the A Stronger Me web page (+65%), home page (+191%) and Contact Us page (+53%). In the coming weeks and months, these statistics are expected to translate into increased numbers of clients gaining access to A Stronger Me.
Hearing, reaching and connecting with survivors
The research team had three goals: to improve A Stronger Me’s evaluation data collection processes, identify the program’s most effective promotional messaging, and create new promotional materials to make the program even more accessible to women in western Sydney.
The first step was to gather pre- and post-program survey data from participants of A Stronger Me. While this data was already being collected, the team identified opportunities to improve its breadth and quality so that the results would paint a clearer picture of how the program impacted participants.
There were questions around psychological safety, physical safety and emotional safety; they were all intermingled, and there were inconsistencies in how the questions were being asked before and after the program. – Dr Singh.
The researchers revised the questions, creating a structure that would encourage participants completing the post-program survey to reflect on their emotional state before the program started and adding questions about participants’ subjective feelings and future plans. Results from updated post-program surveys showed that:
- women benefitted from the program’s education about the cycle of domestic violence
- women felt more able to create boundaries, communicate, and foster resilience in their children
- participants’ friends and families noted a change in the women’s happiness levels after completing the program
- most women left the program with clear, actionable strategies to move forward.
Getting the message out
The next step was to strengthen SVA’s marketing activities by reviewing and refining the promotional materials that connect women in need to A Stronger Me. This included creating targeted communications for survivors and supporting stakeholders, two groups with different informational needs, and strengthening the wording of key promotional messages.
The third and final stage of the project was to develop a new suite of collateral to spread the word about A Stronger Me to even greater numbers of women. A significant portion of the Social Impact Grant went towards redesigning the program’s website, making its content more accessible and adding a referral form that created a confidential and more streamlined process of getting women in.
The last of the grant funding was then used to print a series of new QR-coded program flyers that were distributed to counsellors, doctors and psychologists in the western Sydney suburb of Penrith. Nine-hundred flyers, accompanied by small bags of lollies to encourage people to pick them up, were also dropped off at locations women were likely to frequent — hairdressers, beauticians, grocery stores and BBQ events at the local Bunnings.
This initiative generated significant community engagement, including four expressions of interest in volunteering at SVA and more than $200 in donations from people with lived experience of domestic violence. SVA has also been contacted by various Penrith businesses, including a barber shop team who are passionate about getting men involved in the conversation about ending violence against women.
Paving the way to a stronger future for SVA
These outcomes have painted a clear picture of A Stronger Me’s impacts and have led to massively increased engagement with the program, particularly via website traffic. Dr Singh suspects the engagement is a combination of the website’s improved design; its improved organic searchability; and engagement with the flyers, lolly bags and other marketing collateral.
'Working with Sonika and UTS has really made a difference to SVA. The partnership has provided the data we need to strengthen our program and clearly demonstrate positive impact,' says CEO of SVA, Cheryl Gabin.
We’re confident that we can now secure additional funding and continue helping even more women rebuild their lives.
The problem:
Domestic violence survivors, particularly in western Sydney, face limited access to long-term support services, which can be critical in rebuilding their lives. Survivor Vision Australia (SVA) provides a program called A Stronger Me, but it struggled to reach and demonstrate its impact effectively due to limited resources and evaluation capacity.
The response:
Dr. Sonika Singh from the UTS Business School, and with support from a Social Impact Grant and faculty funding, partnered with SVA to enhance A Stronger Me’s outreach and data collection. Dr. Singh’s team helped refine program evaluations, strengthen promotional strategies and redesign the SVA website, making support more accessible to survivors.
What helped accomplish this?
The project leveraged survey improvements, targeted messaging, a redesigned website and a new suite of printed materials. The marketing collateral, including QR-coded flyers, boosted local awareness and created a secure referral pathway for women to join A Stronger Me. Collaboration between UTS researchers and SVA led to these positive outcomes.
What has changed as a result?
The improvements have increased A Stronger Me’s reach, with website traffic and engagement significantly boosted. Community interest in supporting SVA has grown, reflected in volunteer inquiries and donations. SVA now has stronger data on program impact, positioning it to secure additional funding and expand support for survivors of domestic violence.
