Organisations Across the Globe: VisAble

PEGS Admin • January 30, 2025

VisAble

For this blog, we head oversees to New Zealand to shine a light on an incredible organisation, VisAble. To learn more, read the below guest blog below and see the end of this post for a downloadable report:




Kia Ora


Lee Tempest is Child to Parent Violence and Abuse lead with VisAble in Aotearoa New Zealand. The lack of awareness, knowledge and support for CPA here means that parents are often blamed and the violence in their homes minimized. Sadly, whatever country we live in this seems to be the common thread that unites us internationally as we all fiercely advocate for change. VisAble believes that this form of family violence needs to urgently be addressed through policy, research and support.


We are a disabled person-led organisation who work to strengthen national capabilities across agencies and sectors to prevent and respond to violence, abuse, and neglect affecting disabled people and their whānau. Our focus includes tāngata whaikaha Māori and their whānau, tagata sa’ilimalo and āiga-tele, d/Deaf, neurodivergent, and Adults at Risk. Any parent experiencing child to parent violence and abuse can be an Adult at Risk.


VisAble equips organisations and individuals to make their services inclusive and accessible for disabled people impacted by violence. This includes and family/whānau living with child to parent violence. We provide:


  • Safeguarding Adults Response: Guidance and coordination for multi-agency responses to protect Adults at Risk.
  • Prevention and Response Support: Tailored advice, programmes, and services to identify and respond to violence, abuse, and neglect.
  • Cultural and Inclusive Safety: Strategies to ensure culturally safe, family/whānau-centred responses.


2024 was a busy year for VisAble. We published a comprehensive report Child to parent violence and abuse: New Zealand’s invisible family violence which has been shared on many platforms nationally and internationally. Booklets to support parents/caregivers and professionals were also published. A monthly peer support group was established and as our numbers grow we hope to set up further groups for parents/caregivers. We started to build a roundtable community group with professionals and of course the experts - those with lived experience where we work collaboratively together to drive for the much need change to recognise and respond supportively to families/whānau experiencing CPA.


In 2025 we will continue to develop our resources and are excited to be sending out our first CPA survey to parents/caregivers. This will begin to generate prevalence data which can then be used to advocate for changes in policy, practice and funding.


At a Government level -Te Puna Aonui is responsible for implementing Aotearoa New Zealand’s national strategy to eliminate family and sexual violence. One of their chief principal advisors recently visited the UK and Australia to explore how these countries were responding to CPA. PEGs was part of this exploration. We hope that the information from this fact finding mission signals a shift in 2025 in recognising and responding to CPA in our country.


Fostering international collaboration is important, especially when we are building the capability of services up from the ground level. Linking in with others around the globe who ‘get it’ is a huge support. Shout out to PEGS and founder Michelle John who have been inspirational in guiding us, sharing hard-won knowledge and resources and connecting for an online chat. We look forward to strengthening our connection with PEGS and sharing our own resources as we grow, learn and develop.


Ngā mihi nui


https://www.visable.co.nz/


Image on left below: Lee Tempest

Image on right below: A Pohutukawa tree fondly known as Aotearoa New Zealand’s Christmas tree as it flowers in December.


VisAble Report: Child to parent violence and abuse: New Zealand’s invisible family violence

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Celebrating 5 Years of PEGS: A Milestone Moment

By PEGS Admin • April 22, 2025
Celebrating 5 Years of PEGS: A Milestone Moment On 21st March, we marked a special occasion, PEGS turned five ! Reaching this milestone is something we’re incredibly proud of, and we couldn’t let it pass without celebrating the journey, the impact, and the incredible people who’ve been part of it all. To mark the occasion, we held a celebration in our office , not just to recognise five years of PEGS, but to reflect on the meaningful work that’s been achieved during that time. There was plenty of coffee, cake, and conversation, but most importantly, we shared heartfelt messages from parents about how PEGS and our team have made a difference in their lives. March was a busy month for PEGS. We’ve seen a huge increase in awareness, more media coverage, and a rapidly growing demand for our free services and workshops. We’ve now supported over 10,000 referrals , a number that speaks volumes about the need for continued awareness and action around Child to Parent Abuse (CPA). Without forgetting that during April 1st - April 9th we had over an 112% increase, which is over 220 referrals processed in 9 days. We’re incredibly honoured to have the ongoing support of the amazing organisations and individuals who’ve stood by us from the very beginning. Your partnership, encouragement, and belief in what we do has helped us grow from a small organisation into a nationally recognised voice for parental figures affected by CPA. Throughout the week, we shared some of the wonderful celebratory messages we received across our social channels, and we can’t thank you enough for your kind words and continued encouragement. As we look ahead to the future, our mission remains the same: supporting parental figures, raising awareness of CPA, and driving change in regional and national policies. From day one, that’s been our focus and none of it would have been possible without your support, your listening ears, and your shared understanding of why this work matters. From all of us at PEGS, thank you for being part of our journey. Here’s to the next five years and beyond!