The Empowerment Circle, a 12-week program by Got Your Back Sista, has reopened this month for the first time post-pandemic with almost $13,000 of funding from Newcastle Permanent employees.
Led by a registered counsellor, the program teaches skills like resilience, self-care and goal-setting to women who have survived domestic abuse.
Got Your Back Sista founder Melissa Histon said participant-driven discussion in the circle was designed to break cycles of trauma.
"We want people to live happy and joyful lives," Ms Histon said. "Each week [the women] cover a different topic ... it's about teaching those women how to manage their mind in terms of the thoughts and emotions they're experiencing."
Participant Frankie (whose last name has been withheld) said the program enabled her to make "big decisions" for herself and her children after spending time in a women's refuge.
"I'm not going to be ridiculed [in the program]," she said. "The welcoming faces at the door just cement that the [Empowerment Circle] is a safe and trustworthy environment."
Newcastle Permanent's manager of partnerships and community engagement, Kirsten Lyndon, said employees were excited to donate to the program via a payroll deduction.
"What we're hoping to see out of that funding is that more women can come together and feel connected and learn the tools and skills they need to start their life free of domestic violence," Ms Lyndon said.
"It's so important for women in that experience to know that they're not alone and to know people that get it," she said.
Frankie said connecting with women of shared experience had improved not just her life, but that of her children.
"You don't feel very anchored when you find yourself in a domestic violence refuge ... any healing that I can do for myself is obviously of huge benefit to my children," she said. "That's a beautiful thing in itself."
Recorded incidents of assault related to domestic violence rose 13.1% from October 2017 to September 2022 (NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research).
The program's relaunch comes after a national 10-year plan to end domestic violence was announced last year, which Got Your Back Sista aims to address.
"The fourth pillar [of the plan] is recovery and healing," Ms Histon said. "This program sits under that pillar ... domestic violence creates long-term impacts on physical and emotional well being."
Support is available for those who may be distressed. Phone Lifeline 13 11 14 or 1800-RESPECT 1800 737 732.
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