Bugalma Bihyn First Nations Women’s Refuge project joined WUNH First Nations wellbeing and housing support programs in November 2014. Together we have been working with our communities to ensure appropriate strengths based client centred services are delivered to First Nations women and their families. We would like to thank elders Dorothy Gordon, Laurel Moran, Julie Knight and Irene Greene for their great leadership assisting us in bringing our services together. Together we are able to offer integrated Domestic and family Violence services to our community.

This bringing together of Women Up North and Bugalma Bihyn has been enabled and enhanced by our membership of the SHS consortiums Alliance that provides First Nations Services and Women’s Domestic Violence services. These SHS services cover from Tweed to Grafton.

We also continue to work closely with services within the NSW Northern Rivers area such as, the Aboriginal Legal Centre, Aboriginal Medical and Health Services, Jarjum our local preschool, Rekindling the Spirit, Child and Family Health, Bunjum, Brighter futures, Family Support, Staying Home Leaving Violence and Verto.

Through our First Nations Family Well-being and housing focus. WUN works to ensure that families receive culturally appropriate services and referrals that are made based on clients’ needs and the needs of their child/ children. We carry awareness and focus on being sensitive to the impact of Sorry business and the burden of trans-generational trauma that the First Nations community carries. For this reason, we participate in culturally focused interagency, gatherings and meetings of community in order to ensure that our services remain linked to the needs of First Nations women and children.

A painting by local artist developed as part of the Indigenous 16 Days of Activism 2015

Up to 80 % of our clients are First Nations and many of them enter our service as self-referrals. For this reason, we hold gatherings that enabled us to yarn with our community. For example, we hold a service review using our Yarning and Weaving project and community meeting days called Yarning with community.

WUN really gets a lot out of holding our Yarning and weaving activities. At least once a year we use these activities to bring our stakeholders together to discuss the needs of women and children who have experienced domestic violence.

While engaging with clients, our project focuses on person-centred case management principles such as empowerment, self-determination, and confidentiality. The project is strengths-based and encourages women and children to attend groups and services that are tailored to their needs.

One of our proud outcomes is working with local training and employment agencies to encourage our clients to attend driver education, for independence, and to reconnect our clients with training and work opportunities. This is and has been a huge step towards independence and self-determination for our clients.

Future planning for our First Nations Family Well-being and SHS work continues to place importance on collaborative work and partnerships. These linkages and our commitment to community and cultural sensitivity are an invaluable and enduring resource for our future work.

Bugalma Bihyn First Nations Support Workers: Rebecca , Meg and Portia