Survivor Advisory Group Reflections

Being part of the Survivor Advisory Group has been one of the most grounding experiences of my life. It’s not just a space to share—it’s a space where lived experience is respected, valued, and used to drive real change. GenWest didn’t just invite us to the table—they made sure our voices shaped the agenda.

Since joining, I’ve grown in ways I didn’t expect. Professionally, I’ve refined trauma-informed intake tools, strengthened documentation practices, and supported others to do the same. Personally, it’s helped me reconnect with my own journey not just as a survivor, but as someone who can lead, influence, and reform systems. This group gave me the confidence to speak publicly. I’ve spoken at rallies, recorded a podcast and video with my brother Phil Cleary on justice reform, and begun other media projects involving further podcasts. It’s emotional, yes, but also empowering reclaiming space and turning pain into purpose.

One of the most meaningful contributions I’ve made was to GenWest’s policy submission on service gaps for women experiencing family violence. Drawing from lived experience, I helped shape survivor-informed recommendations. It felt like everything I’d been through was being channelled into something that could make a difference.

Survivor voice is incredibly precise. We know where systems fail because we’ve lived it. When supported to speak, we don’t just raise awareness we raise standards.

The connection between members is powerful. We hold space for each other, challenge systems together, and celebrate growth. It’s not just a group, it’s a community of reformers and truth-tellers.

I encourage others with lived experience to get involved. It takes emotional preparation and strong boundaries, but the impact is real. You’re not just telling your story you’re helping shape the future.

To policymakers and service providers: groups like this aren’t optional. They’re essential. If you want ethical, effective systems, you must centre survivor voices in co-design, decision-making, and accountability.

This course also inspired me to pursue further study. I’m close to completing my Advanced Certificate in Community Services, which has deepened my understanding and strengthened my ability to advocate for ethical, trauma-informed practice. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my involvement with GenWest.

I was hesitant when I saw the job posting for GenWest’s Victim Survivor Advisory Group. I was still grappling with naming my experiences of family violence, and I didn’t have service user experience. I felt insecure about my experience, my latency in understanding my childhood abuse, and it felt dizzyingly counterintuitive to choose to take up space in that way.

I sat with it, forgot about it, and the job posting came up again. Two years and some months later I know fate nudged me into this group. Two years later and I’ve hardly begun. I am now a family violence professional, and have been appointed to the Victim Survivor Advisory Council. I am proud to represent GenWest, who I feel truly and deeply listen to the voices of victim survivors. Being a victim survivor advocate has felt crystallising, like something truly clicked and settled within me. People often think victim survivors are weak; vulnerable, needing protection from a familiar world. I hope to destigmatise the role of lived experience in the workforce, to have difficult and uncomfortable conversations with heart and to change the way we see victim survivors. I hope to be an advocate that listens more than I speak, and to be someone that uplifts and makes space for the voices we don’t often hear and to whom we owe the most.

I would like to end with a note of gratitude to the people in this group: I have learned so much from each and every one of you. It is not easy work, but you make it feel safe and palpably possible. We are not similar in many ways, and for these differences I am so grateful. You bridge service gaps, build wisdom and bring others along with you. You make me think bigger and you make me bolder, it is a privilege to do this work alongside you.

Being part of the Survivor Advisory Group has been deeply meaningful, both personally and professionally. Coming together with others who share lived experience created a space of genuine understanding and safety, where our voices weren’t just heard but valued as integral to shaping better outcomes for those affected by violence.

Through this experience, I’ve grown by both sharing my story and insights but also by listening to the experience of the other women. We may all come from different walks of life, but lived experience ties us together, giving each of us a sense of unity, sisterhood, and we are transformed simply by listening.

The Survivor Advisory Group allowed me to transform difficult past experiences into a source of purpose and advocacy. I’ve learned that healing doesn’t always happen in isolation, sometimes, it’s found in collective voice, collaboration, and being part of change that reaches beyond ourselves.

One project that stood out to me was our contribution to GenWest’s submission into the Victims Charter Review. It was powerful to see our input directly influence the language, tone, and approach of what it truly means to ‘see’ victim survivors, and help shape that submission to change the Victims Charter. Ensuring that language and definitions reflect compassion, dignity, and real-world understanding. That sense of tangible impact reminded me that lived experience is not a story of survival alone, but a source of wisdom that can guide systemic reform that will last beyond the Advisory Group’s lifespan. It’s truly a beautiful opportunity to be able to assist in shaping such valuable work.

Being part of the group has strengthened my ability to advocate with clarity and confidence. Personally, it’s deepened my healing, simply as a by-product of participation. Being in unity with the other women has helped me see how my journey can create ripples of safety, hope, and empowerment for others. I’ve learned that advisory groups like ours are vital. They ensure the systems that aim to protect and support are informed by the people who’ve actually walked the path and used them.

To policymakers and service providers, I would say this: the inclusion of lived experience voice isn’t optional, it’s essential. It bridges the gap between intention and impact, policy and person.

I would absolutely encourage others with lived experience to get involved. It’s not always easy to revisit parts of your story, but the process is profoundly empowering. Its healing by sharing. You’re not only reclaiming your narrative, you’re helping to build a future where others may not have to endure what you did.