Our impact

2,140 victim survivors were supported by our family violence service in 2022-23.

This does not include victim survivors who were supported by GenWest staff based at the Orange Door.

From their commencement in 2022 to June 2023, the two Orange Door locations in Melbourne’s west received over 20,000 referrals.

In 2022-23 we saw a 100 percent increase in requests for sexual and reproductive health education sessions, compared to previous years – including pre-pandemic years.

This year, our sexual and reproductive health teams doubled the reach of their work and focused on expanding our ability to consult with young people and schools to understand their needs.

We grew the valuable Human Relations program, which provides culturally safe, tailored and in-language education to newly arrived young people. The sessions cover complex topics including puberty, healthy relationships, safer sex, pregnancy, body image and gender. This year, the program was expanded to additional campuses of the Western English Language School (WELS).

In December 2022, GenWest’s new refuge property opened its doors. Since then, it has provided a safe and comfortable place for 17 households to escape from family violence.

The name of our refuge property, Marrageil Manggi (pronounced Marra-jal Man-gee), means ‘divine within’ in the Woi Wurrung language of the Wurundjeri people, the Traditional Custodians of this part of Melbourne’s west. The new refuge moves away from traditional communal living arrangements.

Marrageil Manggi was operating at full capacity in recent months, with every unit full. The team there have worked hard to create a welcoming environment for victim survivors – both adults and children - and link them into local services and supports depending on their needs.

This year, the Sunrise program had over 2,750 contact hours with women and gender diverse people with disabilities and welcomed 20 new group members.

Sunrise, one of GenWest’s longest running programs, continues to have a significant positive impact on the lives of participants.

Sunrise groups are for women and gender diverse people who have a disability, chronic health issue and/or mental health challenges. The group’s activities are planned in collaboration with its members, through a series of planning and co-design sessions.

GenWest’s Children’s and Youth Counselling team provided counselling to 308 families this year, the most they have ever supported in a single year.

Our Children’s and Youth Counselling program assists adults to create a supportive environment for children who have experienced family violence. The program supports parents and carers to understand and respond to their child’s behaviours, which may be resulting from trauma. Building trusting relationships with children and their families is central to the team’s work.

This year, GenWest's multilingual health education team delivered over 30 health information sessions to 463 people from a range of backgrounds.

GenWest’s multilingual health education team has grown and expanded this year, reaching more community members with vital health and wellbeing information.

The team create connections through long term engagement with community groups, building trust through shared language, culture and lived experience. These connections have enabled them to refer women experiencing family violence for support, when they had previously been too afraid to seek it due to language or cultural barriers. The program supports the mental health and wellbeing needs of migrant and refugee women in Melbourne’s west.