Youth programme participants tell us how they envision safer, healthier relationships
Our youth programme teaches kids affected by family and other forms of violence how to be safe in the first instance. Everyone learns how to prepare and use a safety plan. Evaluations of the programme for the year ended June 2019 show 100% of respondents now have a safety plan and can identify at least one thing they can do to make themselves safe.
When asked what they should stop doing to enable safer, healthier, more respectful relationships, they told us:
Being stubborn to the point of stupidity
Arguing
Yelling
Jumping straight to conclusions
Getting violent with words and anger turning into violence
And what they learned that they want to start doing:
Empathy to others, show at the time
Be honest and truthful
Taking animals for walks or feeding the chooks
Take myself away and have some quiet time alone
Every youth who responded to the surveys told us they now feel positive about their future either most of the time or all the time. What they told us they learned about themselves:
That I can manage my anger
That I can stay in control
I am a lot better with people
That I can be happy 99.5% of the time
And finally, here’s what they said they learned about the impacts of violence on themselves and others:
It is a very hard thing to control
Violence doesn’t end well
Violence is a one-way trip to the youth/justice system
I learned violence is not the answer to everything and that violence and family violence has increased more
Violence is abuse
Violence doesn’t end well
