This webinar will present key findings from the Survivor Experiences Report, prepared by the ARC Centre of Excellence for Children and Families over the Life Course (Life Course Centre), and discuss insights and opportunities resulting from the interviews with survivors who had engaged with the Domestic Violence Action Centre (DVAC) services over a 12 month period.

DVAC operates from two locations in South-East Queensland and provides a range of specialist services to survivors of gender-based violence. In 2023, DVAC engaged Life Course Centre researchers from The University of Queensland to conduct an analysis of their service. The report can be found here.

Beck O’Connor

Beck is Queensland’s first Victims’ Commissioner and is driven by the belief that everyone deserves a life free from violence and fear. She supports the recovery, justice and dignity of all people impacted by crime, through strong partnerships with community groups, government agencies and cultural leaders. Beck’s extensive experience spans health, mental health, child protection, social and disability support. She has a multi-sector and intersectional understanding of some of the challenges that victims of crime face.

Amie Carrington

Amie is the CEO of the DVAC, providing specialist domestic, family and sexual violence services, supporting 9,000 people yearly in South East Queensland. Amie is a passionate leader for gender equality and the prevention of gendered violence and holds roles as Co-Chair of the Independent Ministerial Advisory Council, Board Chair of Women's Services Network Inc. and Co-Chair of Ending Violence Against Women and Children Queensland.

Shayne Probert

Shayne is an advocate and secondary victim of homicide. Shayne fights for all victim-survivor voices to be heard and know they are not alone. Shayne’s motivation is honouring “invisible victims” and raising community awareness that all victim-survivors and their networks have the same rights to healing and justice.

Dr Alice Campbell

Alice is a Lecturer in Social Research at the University of Tasmania (formerly a Research Fellow at The University of Queensland).
Her interests fall under the broad themes of the sociology of gender and sexuality, family dynamics, social inequalities, and longitudinal and life-course studies. Her current projects are focused on the feminisation of poverty in Australia, the expropriation of women’s care work, and post-separation family dynamics and outcomes.

Dr Ella Kuskoff

Ella is a Research Fellow at The University of Queensland. Her research focuses on social and policy responses to inequality and disadvantage, and how these responses may be changed to more effectively address social issues. Her particular areas of interest include domestic violence, gender, and homelessness.

PANEL CHAIR

Cathy Hunt AM

Cathy is the Founder of the WOW Women of the World Festival in Australia, part of the global WOW movement for action and change. She is a consultant, researcher in the area of arts, culture and gender justice.