Carinya therapeutic program evaluation: Approaching evaluation with flexibility and a culturally safe, trauma-informed lens

How do we go beyond ‘doing no harm’ to consider broader social justice issues in program evaluation? This article explores a transformative and collaborative approach to evaluating a holistic, therapeutic, arts-based pilot program for women and children experiencing family violence. It describes the intricacies of designing and implementing an evaluation approach that respects diversity across (1) trauma experiences of participants, (2) children as victim-survivors in their own right, and (3) culturally and linguistically diverse participants, including Indigenous peoples. The Carinya therapeutic program was developed by The Salvation Army's Carinya Women and Children’s Services, in partnership with Women Illawarra, to support victim-survivors unable to access timely therapeutic interventions due to long waiting periods in the Illawarra and Shoalhaven (NSW). This article details how Carinya staff and social workers collaborated with researchers from The Salvation Army to conduct a trauma-informed, strengths-based evaluation of the program, guided by a Cultural Advisory Group. The group consisted of representatives with lived experience, cultural diversity, and Indigenous backgrounds, involved in the design and implementation of the evaluation methodology. The data indicated improvements in healing, safety, and community connections. The therapeutic program effectively supported the recovery and empowerment of victim-survivors, aligning with existing research on trauma-informed support services.