Children and Young People Bereaved by Domestic Homicide

In the past two decades, probably over 1,000 Australian children and young people have lost a parent due to domestic homicide. They often experience multiple losses: one parent is deceased, the other is detained, on the run or has died by suicide, and in many cases the home has become a crime scene.

In the aftermath of a domestic homicide, far-reaching decisions about the future of these children and young people are made by family, the police, child protection and other professionals. This project aims to contribute to improving support for children and young people who have lost a parent due to domestic homicide.

Our objective is to generate a better understanding of children and young people's living arrangement experiences, family and peer relationships, and identity development. An important focus of the project is on hearing the perspectives of young people and adults with lived experience. This knowledge is relevant to policy makers and other professionals working with families affected by domestic homicide, as well as to family members looking after children and young people who have been bereaved.

Recent resources

• Listen: A resource for practitioners 
• Children and young people bereaved by domestic homicide: A focus on Australia
• Homicide at home: A series of blogposts

Other publications

• The children left behind by domestic homicide
• Children bereaved by fatal intimate partner violence: A population-based study into demographics, family characteristics and homicide exposure.
• Children’s perspectives on life and well-being after parental intimate partner homicide
• Children’s mental health and well-being after parental intimate partner homicide: a systematic review.

Go to full list of references.

Project team

Our team, led by Eva Alisic, brings academic and clinical expertise from the University of Melbourne and the University of Edinburgh, lived experience, and artistic input. The core members of our team are (in alphabetical order): Lisa Albert, Anna Barrett, Rowena Conroy, John Devaney, Oliver Eastwood, John Frederick, Claire Houghton, Cathy Humphreys, Kathryn Joy, Zain Kurdi, Vincent Lamberti, Katitza Marinkovic Chávez, Hannah Morrice, Ashwini Sakthiakumaran and Mira Vasileva.

Funding

This project is funded by the Australian Research Council Future Fellowship scheme, a University of Melbourne Establishment Grant, and a one-year grant from The Myer Foundation.