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Providing Advocacy to Women and Children Not in Shelter

NCJ Number
123276
Author(s)
L D Walker
Date Published
Unknown
Length
27 pages
Annotation
This manual describes the Outreach Advocacy Program for battered women and their children developed as part of the Project for Victims of Family Violence in Fayetteville, Ark.; Guidelines for developing such a program are provided.
Abstract
The Outreach Advocacy Program serves a six-county area of northwest Arkansas, which is predominantly rural. Outreach advocacy is available as followup for women who have lived at the Fayetteville shelter, for women who have never lived in the shelter, and for women who are cohabitating with an abusive partner. In addition to providing individual, face-to-face advocacy meetings for women not living in shelter, the program operates weekly women's and children's groups in surrounding counties. Children may receive advocacy services when coming to the shelter with their mothers for meetings, in the children's groups at the Outreach sites, or at outreach advocacy meetings in their homes or at public places. Outreach advocacy focuses on how the woman is functioning, the family's living situation, and the mother's interaction with her children. The manual offers guidelines for home visits, the establishment of self-help groups, building community support, and security and safety. Appended supplementary information and sample materials, 3 references.