Cultural Awareness and Training
Victorian Disability Worker Commission (VDWC)
Who funded the project
Karabena Consulting was commissioned by the VDWC to strengthen the relationship between the Commission and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community by embedding cultural safety and promoting inclusivity in its operations and service delivery.
To achieve this, Karabena implemented a three-phased approach, including the design and delivery of cultural awareness training modules for VDWC staff, a review of policies and practices to enhance cultural safety, and conducting comprehensive community engagement.
Karabena partnered with Jody Barney from Deaf Indigenous Consulting to undertake community engagement activities.
Summary
The primary aim of the project was to assist the VDWC achieve its aim to improve cultural safety within the Commission and its processes.
Project Aims
To achieve the project aims, Karabena:
Undertook a policy analysis of internal VDWC policies across three main areas: workforce registration, complaints handling and resolution, and recruitment practices.
Facilitated policy analysis workshops with VDWC staff who conducted activities governed by the aforementioned policies.
Co-facilitated three community outreach and engagement workshops with Jody Barney and the VDWC. These workshops explored participants’ perceptions, preferences, fears, experiences, and communication with disability support services.
Designed and delivered two-day in-person cultural awareness training sessions to all VDWC staff. The program was informed by the findings from the community engagement and policy review, and the through co-design sessions with key VDWC representatives. This process ensured that the training sessions combined the cultural, curricular, and educational expertise of Karabena Consulting with the disability sector expertise of the VDWC.
Feedback emerging from the two initial training sessions will be used to inform future developments to the cultural awareness training program at the VDWC.
Methodologies
Outputs
The core outputs of this project were:
Policy analysis report.
Community engagement report.
Bespoke cultural awareness training program for the VDWC.
The findings from the policy and community engagement report are being addressed by the VDWC in amending its policies and procedures. This will be complemented by ideas arising from the whole-staff cultural awareness training sessions.
Staff evaluation of the training sessions will inform future iterations of the cultural awareness training program, designed to be delivered to new staff at VDWC.
Project Outcomes
Cultural safety
Disability sector
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
Policy analysis
Community engagement
Cultural awareness training
Workforce registration
Complaints handling
Inclusive practices
Co-design