Experiences of youth, disability and family violence

Connecting the dots: Understanding the domestic and family violence experiences of children and young people with disability within and across sectors

Published by
Australia’s National Research Organisation for Women’s Safety (ANROWS)

September 2022

What it’s about
The report identifies a range of challenges and barriers that children and young people with disability face in accessing support related to domestic and family violence, and makes a number of recommendations for improving service delivery and support.

My takeaways

• Children and young people with disability are at increased risk of experiencing domestic and family violence, but are often not identified as victims or survivors.

• Service providers need to have a better understanding of the intersecting impacts of disability and violence, and to develop more accessible and inclusive services that can respond to the diverse needs of children and young people with disability.

• We need to provide more opportunities for children and young people with disability to participate in the development and evaluation of services and support programs.

• We need to support children and young people with disability to develop their own self-advocacy skills and to have greater control over decisions about their own care and support.

• The importance of providing communication supports and accommodations to ensure services are accessible and inclusive

Final thoughts

It is important to understand the voices of young people who are facing intersectional barriers to support - particularly when there is a general lack of awareness and understanding of their experiences across the sector. These barriers can interact with and exacerbate with one another - which creates complex challenges and requires us to have a holistic approach and coordinate with other organisations.