Women who have an intellectual disability are overwhelmingly represented as victims of gendered violence. However, they are very rarely involved in discussions around the prevention of violence against women and the children, or how services/systems could better respond to their needs.

 The Listen up!  project aims to rectify this by highlighting the expertise of women who have intellectual disability, through the creation of a podcast in which they lead discussions around disability, accessibility and violence.  

To do this, WWILD employed peer workers (women who have intellectual disabilities) to assist in the development and facilitation of workshops that discuss rights-based information for women with intellectual disabilities. During these workshops, we consulted with 32 participants about what makes accessible services for those who have experienced violence, particularly domestic and family violence/and or sexual violence.   

 Based on these consultations, we created a podcast, hosted by the participants and the peer workers. The podcast has highlighted the importance of working alongside people who have intellectual disability, ensuring projects are accessible and informed by lived experience.  The learnings from these consultations have allowed for a better understanding of the needs of this group when seeking support after an experience of violence.

 
We hope the learnings from this project help to debunk stereotypes surrounding women who have intellectual disability that contribute to their experiences of violence; improve responses to reports of violence; and contribute to knowledge around employment of peer workers.