1. family and parenting
2. children

Practice Based Professional Development Forum
Melbourne
August 18–20
No To Violence is pleased to present this innovative and dynamic practice-based professional
development forum for practitioners by practitioners of men’s behaviour change programs being
held over three days at the Abbotsford Convent in Collingwood.
This forum brings together practitioners from Western Australia, Tasmania, and Alice Springs and of
course Victoria to showcase their innovative practice in men’s behaviour change programs and
partner contact work. The focus is on practitioners demonstrating their practice.
Presentations include:
• Creating a safe structure for participants in MBCP experiencing individual trauma,
• Shame, denial and their bedfellow accountability,
• Doing engagement differently,
• Impact of family violence on children, and
• Feelings.
The full program and session details are on the following pages.
Where: Abbotsford Convent – Community Room
1-16 St Heliers Street, Abbotsford 3067.
When: August 18-20, 2015
Time: 9.15am (for a 9.30am start) – 5.00pm each day
Cost: Early Bird until June 30: $200 for all three days.
After June 30, or for one or two day bookings: $100 per day (incl. GST).
Morning tea, lunch and afternoon teas provided: please advise us about any dietary
requirements when booking.
Numbers will be strictly limited, so don’t miss out.
To book and pay, please use our booking website.
Session details follow.
PRACTICE BASED PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
PROGRAM
Tuesday August 18
Presenter: Mark Kulkens. Victoria.
Introductions to MBCP, expectations of group and considerations of shame.
Build rapport and group cohesion and prepare men for some of the trials of men’s behaviour change
program processes. To introduce the concept of shame and mindfulness of this emotion for change.
Including theories such as Motivational Interviewing – including Preparation for Change, Emotion
Focused Therapy, Humanistic approaches including listening for intent, Behavioural modelling –
accepting, curious, non-judgemental, respectful.
Presenters: Andrea Bowles & Tony Lekkas. Victoria.
Feelings.
Challenge participants to become aware of vulnerable feelings, notice their body signs and discuss
these without resorting to flight/fight response. To notice that it is possible to sit with vulnerability
and positive outcomes may emerge.
Presenter: Adam Hasandedic. Victoria.
Shame, Denial and their bed fellow Accountability.
Highlight a pathway through the acceptance of shame and denial which can lead to a deeper
understanding of men’s accountability in behaviour choices. Demonstrate how denial and shame
create hindrance and barriers to real acceptance for the men’s choices of behaviours. Provide a
structural process for men’s self-reflection and awareness that aligns with NTV guidelines for
practitioners use in their programs. Once these emotional states are experienced, an opportunity is
created to take personal accountability and for positive constructive actions to replace destructive
choices.
Michelle Perry and Robyn McIvor. Victoria.
Creating a safe structure for participants in MBC groups experiencing individual trauma.
Maintaining safety within the group environment for all individual men and group facilitators.
Allowing some individual exploration, assisting in emotional regulation, being aware of other’s
reactions, where appropriate using the individual’s experience in the group learning.
All sessions will be held at the Abbotsford Convent, 1-16 St Heliers Street Abbotsford 3067
Wednesday session details follow
Wednesday August 19
Maree Corbo and Tom Griffiths. Alice Springs.
Doing engagement differently.
In this session we will discuss engaging with Aboriginal men who use violence from Central Australia
perspective.
Wayne Wright and Julie Brett. Tasmania.
Impact of Family Violence on Children.
To provide participants with an understanding of the effects of abuse on children, which greatly
impacts a child’s development, both physically and psychologically and that children learn
behaviours from observation and modelling. To identify and develop strategies that can enhance a
parent-child relationship after abuse.
Rodney Vlais. Victoria.
Reflections from overseas: Implications for Australian DV perpetrator program policy & practice
Rodney will take us on a journey through his experience of some men’s DV programs in the USA
from his recent trip, his thoughts and reflections of the developments in DV perpetrator program
sectors in the UK and NZ, and what this might mean for the future of our work in Australia.
Cate Moloney, Darren Moorhead & Cheryl Munzel. Victoria.
Beyond Men’s Behaviour Change group and Partner Contact.
Demonstration of how the Centre for Non Violence – a regional based Family Violence agency has
utilised six internal agency programs with in the client services program to work with the family
focusing on – Safety and empowerment of women; Safety and wellbeing of children; safety,
accountability, responsibility of men who commit family violence.
All sessions will be held at the Abbotsford Convent, 1-16 St Heliers Street Abbotsford 3067
Thursday session details follow
Thursday August 20
Kate Jeffries & Gary Smith. Western Australia.
Dadworx: Effects of Domestic Violence on Children – Trauma and attachment.
This group session discusses the role of fathers, their value to the family, their hopes and dreams.
Questions are posed such as – What does an ideal family look like? How do fathers take
responsibility? Have children witnessed or heard domestic violence incidents?
Also discuss child development, using children as pawns, using children to gain/retain power and
control. We explore participants understanding and knowledge of: effects of DV in front of children
under 6; the effects of DV in front of children 6 – 15; attachment and trauma.
Joanne Westbury & Cyndee Little. Victoria.
Cycle of Violence and Safety Planning with women partners.
This presentation will focus on providing education about, and exploration of, the cycle of violence
and safety planning and providing an opportunity for women to connect with other women
experiencing male family violence.
Ray Inglis, Amanda Hudson & Kim Storey. Victoria.
Time out Timelines.
Enable facilitators to describe time out strategy in context of an incident
It provides an opportunity for client to verbalise narrative of the incident that “brought him here” or
a recent incident; enables client to explore his behaviours, thoughts and feelings during the
explosion and build-up phases; enable client to identify exit point and implement time out strategy;
assist client to identify ongoing pressures that contributed to him behaving violently; encourage
client to identify and describe the impact his behaviour has had on others; immediate and
subsequent; to provide opportunity for the client recognise alternate responses based on learnings
attained within group; and to create opportunity for group to offer feedback, suggestions and
challenges to individual.
No To Violence.
Wrap up of the 3 days.
We will use this last session of the forum to bring together participants in a discussion of the
learnings from this event.
Evaluations and closing.
All sessions will be held at the Abbotsford Convent, 1-16 St Heliers Street Abbotsford 3067.
To book and pay, please use our booking website.