As part of the 16 Days of Activism WHGNE partnered with NE Health, Rural City of Wangaratta and Hume Riverina Legal Service to deliver ‘Conversations in the Chair’ a family violence awareness session for hairdressers, tattooists and anyone in the personal care industry.
The session was well attended and all had some level of experience with disclosures from clients who often talk and trust their hairdresser. The session provided a booklet of referral services and information on how to assist clients if needed.
Critically, in the evaluation of the sessions, 100 per cent of participants in this workshop felt more confident identifying family and domestic violence (65 per cent agreed, 35 per cent strongly agreed), while all participants felt more confident referring clients to appropriate family violence support services (59 per cent agreed, 41 per cent strongly agreed).