History of Safer Families Centre

NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence

In 2017 the NHMRC awarded Kelsey Hegarty a Centre of Research Excellence to promote safer families - tailoring early identification and novel interventions for intimate partner violence. In a collaboration between University of Melbourne, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, La Trobe University and South Australia Health and Medical Institute, the Centre was led by Kelsey in a co-directorship with Stephanie Brown and Cathy Humphreys and managed by Simone Gleeson 2017 - 2022. The Centre successfully built evidence for system change to strengthen the health sector as a crucial gateway to care, recovery and healing for women and children experiencing domestic violence.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Leadership Group

The Safer Families Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Leadership group played an important role in the establishment of the Safer Families Centre. During the period 2017- 2022 the Leadership group provided us with invaluable learning enabling us to set research outcomes benefiting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and communities and understand appropriate research protocols for transparency of networking and engagement with communities related to the work of the Centre. We are forever grateful to each and every member of the Leadership group.