Sexual Violence Working Group

Angela Lynch is an admitted lawyer and a sexual, domestic, and family violence prevention advocate and is currently employed as the Executive Officer for the Queensland Sexual Assault Network Secretariat, which is a peak body for specialist sexual violence services in Queensland.  Angela is also concurrently undertaking research activities with Associate Professors Michael Salter and Molly Dragiewicz (and others) pursuant to a research grant from the National Centre on Action on Child Sexual Abuse on ‘Improving legal, policy and practice responses to the intersection of domestic violence perpetration and child sexual abuse offending’. 

Angela is Chair of the National Women’s Safety Alliance’s (NWSA) Sexual Violence Working Group and a member of the Policy Advisory Committee, and a board member of the National Association of Services Against Sexual Violence (NASASV). Previously, Angela was the CEO of the Women’s Legal Service QLD.  Throughout her time in the sector, she has been involved in advocacy for significant law reform at a State and Federal level, and in the development of policy and community education initiatives. 

Professor Jan Breckenridge is the Head of the School of Social Sciences UNSW, Sydney and is the Academic Lead and Convener of the Gendered Violence Research Network, UNSW, Sydney. Jan leads an evidence-informed knowledge exchange stream ‘Gendered Violence and Organisations’, which provides expert advice to government, private and third sector organisations on best practice policies, organisational responses to employees and the management of customers and clients affected by domestic and family violence, sexual assault and sexual harassment.

BSpPath (Hons), GCert Health Services Management, Dip ECEC, GAICD 

Kathryn Fordyce is an experienced executive leader and non-executive director with extensive expertise in the for-purpose disability, health, early childhood and sexual violence sectors. Kathryn is currently the CEO of Laurel House, a specialist sexual assault service in Northern Tasmania. Kathryn has played a key role in the establishment of Tasmania’s multidisciplinary Arch Centres for sexual violence. Before joining Laurel House, Kathryn had worked within the disability sector with a particular focus on support for autistic people. Kathryn holds qualifications in speech pathology, early childhood education and care, health services management, and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Kathryn has co-authored peer reviewed papers on autism, early intervention and evidence-based practice. Kathryn currently serves on the boards of National Association of Services against Sexual Violence (NASASV), Speech Pathology Australia, and Playgroup Tasmania. Kathryn is a member of the National Advisory Group for the National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse, and is also actively involved in other committees that focus on the health and wellbeing of children and young people, and people with diverse lived experiences. 

With over 5 years of experience in senior leadership roles within the field of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), they possess a proven record in designing and executing effective DEI strategies to foster inclusive workplace environments. Their expertise extends to developing comprehensive D&I training programs and formulating culturally sensitive policies and procedures, consistently driving organisational change, and advancing DEI efforts across all operational aspects. 

They previously held the position of Director of Diversity and Inclusion at the Australian Academy of Science, where they led the organisation’s efforts to establish itself as a leading advocate for equity, diversity, and inclusion within the STEM sector. This role allowed them to provide strategic guidance to the President and Executive Committee of the Academy, leading to the successful implementation of the organisation’s objectives. Before this, they served as Membership and Partnership Manager at Diversity Council Australia, contributing to the delivery of innovative D&I resources to member organisations, facilitating their journey towards improved inclusive practices. 

Dr Jennie Gray is the Chief Executive Officer for Women’s Legal Service WA.

Jennie previously worked at the Western Australian Council for Social Service, where she was Deputy CEO overseeing the organisation’s social policy, special projects, and business development work. She is passionate about women’s social inclusion and safety, economic justice, and cultural security, and brings a combination of work experiences and knowledge aimed at ensuring better outcomes for women. Jennie’s professional career in the community sector has spanned practice, management, and research roles, in a variety of contexts. This includes many years based in the Kimberley as Anglicare WA’s Regional Manager coordinating services delivered across the North West. It has also included working as a sessional educator and research assistant at Curtin University and the University of Western Australia. In addition to her broad experience, Jennie is highly qualified with a Doctor of Philosophy from Curtin University, a Bachelor of Social Work from the University of Western Australia, and a Bachelor of Business from Curtin University

Rhiannon is a dedicated and extremely passionate activist and advocate. Drawing on her professional, academic and volunteering background within feminism, disability and policy she combines this with her lived in experiences as a victim survivor of gender based violence, as a member of the LGBTQIA+ community and her experiences as a young disabled woman. Rhiannon works as a Project officer at Women With Disabilities Australia. She is a proud volunteer with She’s A Crowd, UN Women, a Young Women’s Council member with YWCA, Youth Activist with Plan International Australia and runs her own socio-political blog site called Perform Reform. 

Jess is a journalist, author and speaker who focuses primarily on social issues and gendered violence. She started her career almost 15 years ago as a producer for ABC Radio, went on to become a Middle East correspondent for The Global Mail, and then an investigative journalist for Background Briefing. Her reporting has won two Walkley awards, an Amnesty International award and three Our Watch awards. Her first book, SEE WHAT YOU MADE ME DO, on the phenomenon of domestic abuse and coercive control, was released in 2019 and was awarded the 2020 Stella Prize. In 2021, it was adapted into a series on SBS. Recent projects include a podcast series on coercive control and patriarchy called The Trap, and a Quarterly Essay on how #MeToo has changed Australia, titled ‘The Reckoning’. Since the book was released, Jess has spoken at almost 300 public events about coercive control, and regularly conduct training and education for groups as diverse as magistrates, high school students, workplaces and local councils. 

Karen is the founder of Violet Co Legal & Consulting.

Karen Iles is a lawyer, consultant, board director, sexual assault survivor and Dharug Aboriginal woman.

Karen Iles is the Founder and Principal Solicitor of Violet Co Legal & Consulting – a woman-led, Indigenous-led, social enterprise. Violet Co’s purpose is to create radical solutions and just outcomes for women and First Nations people.

In 2023 Karen was awarded Private Practitioner of the Year by Women Lawyers Association of NSW. In 2022 Karen was awarded the inaugural NSW Law Society Pro Bono Service Award (2022) in recognition of her outstanding service to the NSW Legal Profession and the Community. Karen’s advocacy work was recognised in the Australian Human Rights Commission 2022 Annual Oration delivered by Professor Larissa Behrendt.

Nicci has been the CEO of Allambee, a specialist Sexual Violence and Domestic and Family Violence therapeutic service in the Peel region of WA since 2013.  She is a Counselling Psychologist with over 20 years of practice experience having worked in various specialist areas including sexual violence, domestic and family violence, child protection, and alcohol and other drugs.  

Nicci has been a member of the Board of the National Association of Services Against Sexual Violence (NASASV), the national peak body for sexual violence services since 2016 and is the current NASASV Chair after spending several years in the Vice Chair role.  She has represented NASASV on various national projects and working groups including the National Plan Advisory Group and the development of the National Standards of Practice Manual for Services Against Sexual Violence 3^rd.

Nicci is also the Deputy Chair of the Centre for Women’s Safety and Wellbeing, the WA peak body for sexual violence, domestic and family violence and women’s health services and currently Chairs the Reference Group for the development of Western Australia’s inaugural Sexual Violence Prevention and Response Strategy.

Sharon Lockwood is passionate about working to address the broader social context which enables the occurrence of violence against women.  She currently works part time across two roles, with the University of South Australia as Counsellor and Training Coordinator (Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment) and as Survivors’ Advocate for the Anglican Diocese of Adelaide on initiatives to prevent and respond to sexual harm.

Sharon brings 30 years of experience in social work practice with survivors of sexual harm, having previously worked in a variety of settings including Victim Support Service, The University of Adelaide and Yarrow Place Rape and Sexual Assault Service, where she worked for over 21 years.

Sarah Rosenberg is Director and Co-Founder of With You We Can, a national online resource demystifying the police and legal processes for victims of sexual violence while working to improve them. She pulls together advocates, experts and services to amplify the work of others and encourage streamlining and collaboration. Aside from using her living experience in this way, she is Impact & Evaluation Officer at 10×10 Philanthropy, and Head of Policy & Research at Run For It Australia. Sarah also volunteers as a support worker for people living with a disability, like her.

Camille Schloeffel is a passionate activist for the prevention of sexual violence and promotion of sexual wellbeing. She is the Founder, Director and Safeguarding Manager of The STOP Campaign, a grassroots intersectional feminist organisation addressing sexual violence in tertiary learning communities through empowerment, education, activism and awareness. Camille was awarded the 2020 Peter Mitchell Churchill Fellowship to explore ways activists and universities can work together to prevent sexual violence on campus, and traveled to the US, Canada and the UK in late 2022 to undertake this research. Camille has worked in Government across sexual violence, online harms and child abuse policy areas, and is now working in the community sector in sexual violence prevention for people with disability. As a survivor herself, she is passionate about ending sexual violence in all its forms and has dedicated her time to leading various prevention initiatives and supporting others to share their truths.