Victoria Police Family Violence Liaison Officer Training
Project Team
Project directors: Associate Professor Emily Berger (Faculty of Education) and Dr Jasmine McGowan (MGFVPC)
Project team: Associate Professor Emily Berger (Faculty of Education), Dr Jasmine McGowan, Associate Professor Bridget Harris and Dr Naomi Pfitzner, Jessica Woolley and Dr Rebecca Stewart (MGFVPC), Members of Victoria Police
Project manager (optional): Claire Elvins (Faculty of Education)
Project contact: Dr Jasmine McGowan, jasmine.mcgowan@monash.edu
Project Partners (optional): Victoria Police
About this project
Victoria Police which Family Violence Liaison Officers (FVLOs) are located at police stations throughout Victoria and are responsible for managing instances of family violence and coordinating referrals for victim-survivors. A Monash University research team, incorporating researchers from the Faculty of Education and MGFVPC, along with Victoria Police including the Centre for Family Violence located at Victoria Police Academy were commissioned to evaluate the knowledge and training needs of FVLOs for the purpose of developing a new training program to meet the needs of FVLOs. The newly designed program will ensure that FVLOs are equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills when managing family violence, whilst ensuring that the scope, content, learning objectives and other aspects of the professional learning are suitable, sustainable and scalable within Victoria Police.
Research aims
To evaluate the knowledge and training needs of FVLOs for the purpose of developing a new training program.
Method
The research project was conducted over two key phases - a program design phase and a program development phase. In the design phase, the Monash team analysed data collected by Victoria Police on the training needs for FVLOs. During this phase, the Monash team conducted focus groups with Victoria Police members to gather new data about the knowledge and training needs of FVLOs. In the development phase, the Monash team and Victoria Police worked together to co-develop a new family violence training program for FVLOs.
Funding Acknowledgment
Monash University acknowledges the funding support of Victoria Police.
More Information
The final training package was submitted to Victoria Police in February 2025.