Dear valued stakeholders, colleagues and friends of Relationship Matters,
Welcome to the first edition of our 2023 e-newsletter. We are pleased to share with you highlights about some of our services, programs and activities.
In this issue you will also hear more about our Workplace Services that include Employee Assistance Programs and business services, such as training, coaching, supervision and mediation. We have been providing these services since 2013 and we currently work with more than 170 organisations to support their employee wellness and create mentally and psychologically healthy workplaces.
I came on board as CEO of Relationship Matters in November 2022. As I enter my 5th month here, I want to say that I feel incredibly privileged and honoured to play a role in guiding the organisation’s way forward. My intention is to lead Relationship Matters to its next stage with passion, transparency, a lot of listening, and commitment to the best outcomes for people that we support. We already have the foundation – 75 years of extraordinary service. The next step is to strengthen and improve our existing services and pursue new pathways and opportunities.
Please feel free to reach out to me by email mavdibegovic@relationshipmatters.com.au – I would love to meet and hear about your work and any potential partnership opportunities.
Warm regards
Maya Avdibegovic (she/her)
Chief Executive Officer
Relationship Matters |
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| | Family Dispute Resolution The process of family separation can be a daunting and intimidating process for children, so Relationship Matters offers Child Inclusive Practice within the Family Dispute Resolution service. This service is designed to enhance collaboration between parents and keep the best interests of the children at the forefront of the mediation. It also helps separated parents develop cooperative parenting strategies for the future. Child Inclusive Practice provides an opportunity for children to talk independently with a trained consultant in a safe, supportive, and comfortable space that is well-resourced for these sessions.
This service is provided when both parents agree and following an assessment by the FDR Practitioner that it may assist the parents in deciding on appropriate arrangements for their children. During their session, the children will have the opportunity to express themselves, to talk about how they are feeling about the separation and other related concerns with an impartial child consultant. The consultant then provides verbal feedback and recommendations to the parents in a separate session. This service allows the children’s voices and perspectives to be considered as part of the decision making processes for parenting arrangements. |
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| | Relationship Learning Relationship Matters offers a range of programs to assist parents, couples and individuals across a range of different topics. We have just started running the Parenting After Separation Program face-to-face again, with a successful full room at our City Office last month. Our next program will be held at our Geelong office (details below).
Upcoming Relationship Learning Programs
Tuning in to Kids – This 6-week evidence-based program is for parents of children aged 2-11 and focuses on emotional intelligence and emotion coaching skills.
Next start date: Mondays from 10am-12pm starting 1st May 2023 (online)
Tuning in to Teens – This 6-week evidence-based program is extremely popular for parents of children aged 12-17. It focuses on adolescent development and relationship-building skills.
Next start dates: Tuesdays from 5.30-7.30 pm starting 1st May 2023 (online) OR
Mondays from 5.15-7.15 pm starting 22nd May 2023 (online)
Parenting After Separation (Geelong) – This in-person full-day program provides separated parents with the skills to assist their children to successfully adjust to separation and any associated conflict.
Next start date: Wednesday 17 May 2023 at 10.30 am -5 pm (Geelong Office)
Roadworthy for Dads – This 6-week program is designed specifically with dads in mind. Join other dads as you learn some helpful parenting skills in a supportive environment.
Next start date: Thursdays from 5.30-7.30 pm starting 4th of May 2023 (online) |
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| | Men's Behaviour Change (MBCP) The MBCP team is pleased to announce that our second South Asian Men’s Behaviour Change Program (SAMBCP) has commenced. It is one of two MBCPs that we offer using an online platform, to increase accessibility for clients.
The program is facilitated by multi-lingual facilitators who were born and raised in south Asian cultures. While the program is conducted in English, clients can use their first (or second) language when their English does not convey what they are trying to communicate.
The Swinburne University Centre for Forensic Behavioural Science has enquired about interviewing the SAMBCP attendees, in relation to the views held by them in relation to family violence in the context of being South Asian men in Australia. Upon consultation with the facilitators, flyers for the project were forwarded to clients for their consideration.
This will help build the family violence sector’s understanding of CALD communities' attitudes to family violence, and how we can address it in a manner that is more culturally sensitive and effective. |
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| | Workplace Services We are excited to invite all our EAP clients to a lunchtime event on the 30th May 12-2pm at the RMIT Storey Hall – Green Brain Room.
We have some interesting workplace topics for conversation and an opportunity to network and meet like-minded businesses in the room.
We are looking forward to running our first Mental Health First Aid training workshop online. We are planning to run them monthly so please contact us if you are interested in signing up for the next one. Or enquire: workplaceservices@relationshipmatters.com.au |
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| | Prepare-Enrich Client Journey Brooke and John were referred to Relationship Matters for Prepare/Enrich program by their marriage celebrant, who was also a close relative. They ‘actually didn’t want to attend’ and enrolled ‘purely out of respect for her’.
Brooke says they found the Prepare/Enrich program very enlightening and useful. ‘The questionnaire exercise was really good to identify how your partner perceives the love you think you are portraying, and understanding what is important to them. We were able to identify similarities and differences, and it reinforced our common strengths while understanding our differences.
‘There were two topics in which we were polar opposites in our responses, and to this day those topics are still the ones that cause 90% of the arguments in our relationship. However, at least we know to tell each other “Remember how we were polar opposites on this? Well, this is how it makes me feel.” We don’t end up dwelling too much on them because we understand what is driving the emotional response. We can resolve it a lot quicker than we would have if we had not attended the program.’
Brooke and John can resolve conflicts because they understand each other’s trigger points. ‘We recommend the Relationship Matters Prepare/Enrich program. After listening to friends who got married through religious ceremonies and went through premarital sessions, we discovered that we learned so much more about each other through Relationship Matters.’ They now have two children and they look forward to their relationship growing stronger over the years. |
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| | Relationship Matters, Western Region Offering a range of services to those living and/or working in the Western Region, we are conveniently located at 1 Johnson Avenue, Hoppers Crossing, not far from the Pacific Plaza, Werribee.
Some of our services in the Western Region include:
Individual, couple, and family counselling
Life can get a little bumpy and challenging at times. Our qualified family relationship counsellors work with individuals, couples, and families to help nurture and improve relationships. Counselling is a non-judgmental, safe, and confidential space to talk through issues and concerns that can be affecting our relationships.
Mediation
Relationship Matters offers a safe and neutral space for a range of dispute resolution services designed to resolve identified issues, including Family Dispute Resolution (FDR). This can help resolve conflicts around parenting arrangements, property, and money through a respectful, professional, and structured process.
https://relationshipmatters.com.au/all-services/mediation/
Relationship Learning Programs
We offer a range of learning programs to support people through life’s stages, including programs to assist with separation, parenting, and other relationships.
https://relationshipmatters.com.au/program-type/relationship-courses/
Upcoming Parenting After Separation Program in Geelong – we are running this as a face-to-face program at our Geelong Office on Wednesday 17 March 2023 from 10.30 am-5 pm. Learn the skills to assist you and your children in successfully adjusting to separation and any associated conflict.
Men’s Behaviour Change Program
Men’s Behaviour Change Programs provide the opportunity for men to acquire new skills that help change destructive behaviour and abusive reactions. Programs are conducted in a safe environment and model respectful ways of relating. The safety and wellbeing of partners, ex-partners, children, and other family members are paramount in the provision of our services. Relationship Matters staff maintain contact with partners and other family members as part of the program.
Would you like to know more about how we can assist you? We’d love to hear from you.
Contact Vivianne Watson, Manager Western Region on 1300 543 396, or access our website www.relationshipmatters.com.au |
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