Preventing family and sexual violence

Prevention initiatives aim to prevent harm before it happens, which leads to widespread benefits and reduces the heavy cost of violence on our social, justice and health systems. 

Prevention initiatives take time and dedicated investment. They aim to ensure that, over time, children and young people grow up in nurtured and safe environments, and families, whānau and communities are protected from experiencing or using violence. 

MSD’s prevention initiatives focus on changing social norms and behaviours

A person’s social environment can have a profound effect on their life. MSD leads the design, development and implementation of national and community-led approaches to change social norms and behaviours. 

We know that to bring about sustainable behaviour change we need to work directly with communities and deliver national social change campaigns. 

Both social change campaigns and community development responses can be highly effective at addressing what drives family and sexual violence: 

• exposure to violence, neglect and trauma as a child 
• harmful gender norms and gender inequities 
• social norms that excuse perpetrators, blame victims and stigmatise both 
• social acceptance of violence as a way to discipline and solve conflict 
• a lack of social and community cohesion.

National and community-led solutions

MSD’s family violence prevention approach is pioneering and aspirational; it is also informed by international community development practice and by emerging local evidence about what works.

E Tū Whānau  

E Tū Whānau is a grassroots movement founded on tikanga and Māori values. Its vision is of whānau that are strong, safe and prosperous – active within their community, living with a clear sense of identity and cultural diversity, with control over their destiny. E Tū Whānau's strengths-based approach is proudly kaupapa Māori but also inspires and supports former refugee and migrant communities in Aotearoa New Zealand. 

Pasefika Proud 

Pasefika Proud is a social change movement by Pacific for Pacific. Pasefika Proud has been developed in partnership with Pacific communities in New Zealand. It supports ethnic-specific leadership and acknowledges that Pacific cultures (including faith) are strengths that can maintain and restore wellbeing to children and their families and prevent violence. Pasefika Proud’s framework ‘Pathways for Change’ provides a foundation for mobilising Pacific communities with an ethnic-specific focus. It’s about building capability for leadership and communities to address violence, and transform attitudes, behaviours and norms that enable violence in Pacific families. The framework focuses on clear, consistent messaging around building strong families, and prevention initiatives designed, delivered, and led by Pacific peoples. 

Ethnic Communities Violence Prevention

Budget 22 provided investment to support an ethnic communities family and sexual violence prevention initiative. The programme focused on delivering culturally sensitive and responsive approaches to preventing family and sexual violence for ethnically diverse communities, developed with communities. It contributed to the growing evidence base of the issues related to family and sexual violence in our diverse ethnic communities in Aotearoa New Zealand, and developed resources to address and prevent violence and abuse.

Campaign for Action on Family Violence 

The current phase of the campaign, Change is Possible, aims to support change in men using violence against their partners or children. It does this through: 

• Campaigns that engage individual men around getting help and that promote the Change is Possible website and stopping violence services 
• Community “changemakers” that disrupt harmful narratives around masculinity, promote new norms that support men to change, and hold men accountable around violence.  

The Change is Possible website shares men’s stories of change, tools for managing your behaviour, and connects you to help – 0800 or webchat, or to services in your region.

Love Better – youth campaign  

Love Better is a primary prevention campaign that aims to foster safe, positive, and equal relationships for young people aged 18-24. The campaign aims to disrupt and shift harmful narratives and behaviours around relationships that can affect young people.