Family Violence Initiative Evaluation, Final Report

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1. The Family Violence Initiative

The Family Violence Initiative (FVI) is a horizontal initiative of 15 federal departments and agencies, led by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC). The goal of the federal FVI is to enhance awareness of family violence issues; build the knowledge base that will help to address these issues; and contribute to a strengthened ability of the communities and the justice, housing and health systems to prevent and respond to family violence.

The Department of Justice Canada (Justice) is a long-term partner in the federal FVI and one of eight departments receiving an initiative-specific funding allocation. In recent years, the resources allocated for the Justice FVI have included an annual budget of $1.13 million and a staff of 3.64 full-time equivalent employees (FTEs). These resources support a range of FVI activities (legal policy development and law reform, strategic coordination and partnership development, investments, and information and educational supports) involving various stakeholder groups including other federal government departments, provincial and territorial governments, Public Legal Education and Information (PLEI) organizations, and other non-government organizations.

2. Purpose of the Evaluation

The purpose of the evaluation is to examine the continued relevance of the Justice FVI; its design and implementation; the accomplishments and achievements of activities implemented within the scope of the Initiative, and the demonstrated efficiency and economy. The results will be used by Justice for planning and reporting purposes. The evaluation was completed over a nine-month period. The scope of the evaluation encompasses projects funded from 2005-2010 and policy activities undertaken from 2000-2010.

3. Evaluation Methodology

Reflecting the range of activities and stakeholder groups involved in the Justice FVI, the evaluation methods incorporate multiple lines of evidence including a review of literature and legislation; interviews with 33 key informants including Justice employees, representatives from Justice FVI federal partners, provincial/territorial justice officials, and other stakeholders; a document review of funded projects; and six case studies.

4. Findings and Conclusions

4.1. Relevance

The major findings and conclusions of the evaluation with respect to relevance are as follows:

There is a continuing need for the Justice FVI. Family violence is prevalent in Canada, particularly in certain regions and communities. In 2009, 6% of the Canadian adult population reported having experienced spousal violence, including both current and previous relationships, while 17% reported having been victims of emotional and financial abuse. In 2008, there were 235,842 child maltreatment-related investigations conducted in Canada, which represented a rate of 39 per 1,000 children. In 2009, there were more than 2,400 people over 65 years of age who were victims of violent crimes committed by family members, which represented about one-third of all violent incidents against older adults. Moreover, the prevalence of family violence within Aboriginal communities is much higher than the national average.

Family violence and bullying have devastating social, health and economic consequences for families, communities and society. Family violence places a significant economic burden on Canadians. Moreover, research has shown that children exposed to violence are 10 to 17 times more likely to have serious emotional and behavioral problems later in life compared to children who are raised in a non-violent setting.

The relevance of the Justice FVI has increased over time as the result of increasing attention given to family violence issues at the provincial and territorial levels; broader recognition of the different types of family violence (e.g., domestic abuse, bullying, elder abuse, etc.); enhanced understanding of the underlining causes of family violence; increasing awareness of and demand for services for victims of family violence; increasing population diversity, which has increased the need for culturally appropriate responses to domestic violence; a growing proportion of older Canadians, which has contributed to the prevalence of issues related to elder abuse; and the impact of new technologies such as the Internet, which has given rise to issues such as online sexual exploitation of children by family members.

Even though there are indications that rates of family violence have declined somewhat in recent years, the need for the Justice FVI may have increased because the issues have become more complex and the types of family violence have become more broadly recognized (i.e., domestic abuse, bullying, and elder abuse).

The Justice FVI is aligned with federal government priorities as well as Justice strategic outcomes and is consistent with the federal government’s role and responsibilities in addressing family violence. The Justice FVI goals are consistent with the Government of Canada priorities identified in the Speech from the Throne in recent years. The activities of the Justice FVI contribute to the departmental strategic outcome, “A fair, relevant and accessible justice system that reflects Canadian values”, by implementing law and legislative reforms; enhancing coordination and partnership, which strengthen the justice system; and supporting information, knowledge and awareness projects, which facilitate equitable access to the justice system. There is an important role for the federal government in ensuring that family violence issues have a high profile at the federal level, raising public awareness, and providing coordination, collaboration and information sharing among jurisdictions. Over the past several decades, there has been a growing trend to tackle violence against women and children in the international arena. The departmental component of the FVI is consistent with national and international trends in family violence policies and legislation. The objectives of the Justice FVI are consistent with the Government of Canada’s commitment under the United Nations General Assembly Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women and Commission on Human Rights resolution 2003/45 on Elimination of Violence against Women.

The Justice FVI is consistent with the federal government-wide FVI. Federal partners indicated that the Department plays an integral and complementary role in the federal government-wide FVI as a subject matter expert in the areas of criminal and family law as well as a facilitator of public and legal education. The Justice FVI contributes to the federal government-wide FVI by increasing public and professional awareness; enhancing the ability of the criminal justice system to respond to family violence; contributing to the development and implementation of policy and legislation; and supporting data collection, research and evaluation efforts to identify effective interventions.

4.2. Program Implementation

4.3. Effectiveness

The major findings and conclusions of the evaluation with respect to performance are as follows:

The activities carried out within Justice as part of the FVI, including the funded projects, have made progress against the targeted outcomes. The Justice FVI is designed to improve the responsiveness of the justice system. In reviewing the progress made, it is important to recognize that the Justice FVI does not provide direct family violence services. Rather, it works to influence the policies, regulations, laws and practices that are in place as well as to increase the level of awareness, knowledge and skills amongst those operating in the system. That being said, the results of the evaluation demonstrate that progress has been made in improving the responsiveness of the justice system by:

Strengthening the capacity of the justice system.
Research projects have identified best practices across the country and internationally while conferences and support for professional development have helped to increase knowledge of emerging issues and have enhanced efforts in addressing various aspects of family violence. Other Justice FVI activities such as evaluations, support for changes in legislation, research on policies, and development of resources have also contributed to strengthening the capacity of the justice system to address family violence.
Enhancing public and professional awareness, understanding and skills to address family violence.
Justice has developed materials that are language-specific and culturally appropriate; it has supported the development of resources to provide the public with current information about family violence issues, including information about the justice/legislative responses to these issues. Justice has also made public legal educational material and information available through its website; it made materials available through other means including the National Clearinghouse on Family Violence, the websites of PLEI organizations, and conferences; and it worked with other organizations such as Citizenship and Immigration Canada, which distributed targeted materials to newcomers. Funding of PLEI groups resulted in the production and distribution of information and materials raising public awareness and educating people on family violence issues and the law. Support for community workshops raised awareness of specific issues such as elder abuse, child sexual abuse, family violence in Aboriginal communities, and abuse in rural areas. Funded projects improved the visibility of family violence issues within targeted communities, increased knowledge of issues and individual rights and responsibilities, and improved the ability of community organizations to respond effectively to family violence. The development of tools, training materials and resources for professionals has led to more informed decision making by courts, police officers and other justice system professionals, and increased capacity of those involved in various justice system processes and services to better address the needs of the victims of family violence.
Enhancing the ability of stakeholders and communities to address needs and issues.
Through pilot projects and other activities, Justice has acted as a catalyst bringing together stakeholder and community representatives, thereby creating opportunities for information sharing and dialogue, showcasing effective approaches and best practices, and working together on issues of shared concern. The collaborative approach has resulted in a better, more holistic understanding of the dynamics of domestic violence on the part of each partner as well as higher success rates with victims in terms of obtaining evidence and testimony, which, in turn, has contributed to the effectiveness of the criminal justice system in addressing family violence.

4.4. Efficiency and Economy

The Justice FVI is delivered efficiently. The level of investment in the Initiative is very small relative to the cost of family violence in Canada. The Justice FVI has made efficient use of the modest resources available, which have declined in recent years even though the demand for project funding and other support has increased. The activities supported through the Justice FVI have adopted measures such as leveraging and in-kind contributions to ensure that outputs and outcomes are generated at a low cost.