Hayley Foster is the CEO of Full Cease Australia, an organisation supporting folks affected by sexual, home or household violence. She’s this week’s Changemaker.
For the previous 20 years, Hayley Foster has labored throughout the enterprise, social providers, well being, and justice sectors, with numerous inhabitants teams throughout metropolitan, regional, rural and distant Australia; advocating for inclusive change with a social justice lens.
Placing the folks with lived expertise on the centre of her work, Foster is keen about turning proof into motion and dealing alongside others to place a full cease to sexual, home or household violence.
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After almost three years of heading up Girls’s Security NSW, Foster joined Full Cease (previously Rape and Home Violence Providers) in 2021, the place she is main the cost on ending gender-based violence by offering evidence-based help, schooling and advocacy round Australia.
She at the moment holds a lot of nationwide advisory positions to help her intention, together with the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Analysis Sexual Assault Advisory Panel, the Australian Institute of Criminology Advisory Group on Targeted Deterrence and Intimate Companion Violence, and the Australian authorities’s Advisory Group on the Nationwide Plan to Finish Home Violence In opposition to Girls and their Youngsters 2010-2022.
On this week’s Changemaker, Foster discusses her path to main Full Cease Australia, staying grounded in powerful circumstances, and why she loves her job.
How did you get entangled with Full Cease Australia?
I joined Full Cease Australia in June 2021 after we had been referred to as Rape and Home Violence Providers. I used to be excited to affix a world-class group of consultants delivering important trauma specialist providers and to develop my advocacy from NSW onto a nationwide degree. On the finish of November final 12 months, we launched our new model as Full Cease Australia, which has allowed us to proceed increase our nationwide status offering help, schooling and advocacy round Australia.
Did you at all times know that you just needed to be a social change chief?
Sure completely. I’ve been concerned on this trade for over 20 years, having labored in frontline specialist sexual and home violence providers, household legislation apply, household disputes decision, accredited behaviour change, violence prevention and coverage and legislation reform. All my advocacy work is undertaken with a social justice lens and is about guaranteeing folks with lived expertise are on the forefront of decision-making.
How do you handle challenges and stay grounded?
I imagine the important thing to coping with challenges and remaining grounded is remembering your objective and why you do the work you do. Ardour and a drive to create systemic change is a giant motivator for my work. I remind myself typically of the ladies all around the nation who will have the ability to stay higher lives as an consequence of the modifications we make on this sector and that motivates me to maintain striving for extra.
What do you like most about your present job?
I really like having the ability to advocate to create lasting change throughout many alternative points confronted by these impacted by sexual, home and household violence throughout Australia. In the meanwhile, I’m extraordinarily keen about our work bettering supporting sexual violence survivors. Specifically, our present efforts advocating for the NSW authorities to adequately fund the NSW Sexual Violence Helpline. While sexual assault reporting has elevated by over 70 per cent prior to now 10 years in NSW, funding for the helpline has not elevated in any respect to satisfy the demand. We’re decided to ensure sexual violence survivors have the help they want, each time they want it.
