SEXUAL assault counselling services for women in prison may end next month.
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The Loddon Campaspe Centre Against Sexual Assault is hoping to learn this week whether the State Budget included a commitment to ongoing funding for the Department of Justice Better Pathways program.
The program works with women at Tarrengower Women’s Prison and Dame Phyllis Frost Centre.
The Loddon Campaspe Centre Against Sexual Assault has seen just over 160 women prisoners at Tarrengower who are victims of sexual assault for counselling during the past eight years.
Counselling delivered by LCCASA is the only therapeutic counselling available to women in the prison.
CASA executive officer Michael Beaumont-Connop said there were more women accessing the service than ever before and the counsellor, who visits the prison one day each week, had a waiting list.
He said that for many women it was the first time they had spoken about their experiences of abuse.
He said more than 90 per cent of all inmates had experienced sexual assault during their lives.
"For some women it is the beginning of an end to their offending behaviour,'' he said.
"For others it is a first step in a journey where they will take both forward and backwards steps.''
The Better Pathways Strategy is funded until June 2014.
The strategy was developed in response to the growing number of women entering the Victorian corrections system and aimed specifically at women. The goal was to deliver a range of projects aimed at reducing the number of women who offend, go to prison, or re-offend. It also had a focus on reducing victimisation.
Mr Beaumont-Connop said there was much research that showed high prevalence rates of childhood and adult sexual assault amongst women in prison.
"Victims of childhood sexual assault often experience re-victimisation in their adult lives and relationships,'' he said.
"We know that the impacts of complex trauma often mean women are vulnerable to offending behaviour and violence.
"Research shows that women who have experienced childhood sexual assault are six times more likely to have contact with police and subsequent higher rates of incarceration.
"Those women with a criminal history are also more likely to have mental health issues.''
Mr Beaumont-Connop said counsellors helped given women hope and offered clinical interventions that assisted in understanding and managing behaviour.
Bendigo refuge overlooked A REFUGE for women and children fleeing violence, which has been in the pipeline for five years, is unlikely to be funded in the State Budget.