A practical learning and capacity-building workshop convened by the Institute of Domestic Violence, Religion & Migration (IDVRM)

Domestic violence and abuse (DVA) does not take place outside the religious and cultural worldviews and contexts in which people live. Religious beliefs and faith can shape how survivors understand and experience abuse, seek support, cope and recover. At the same time, faith and religious resources can present challenges for DVA responses when practitioners lack the knowledge or appropriate frameworks to engage with them confidently.

Yet there is limited evidence on how DVA service providers in the UK currently engage with clients’ religious beliefs, respond to religious and cultural diversity and work with faith-based resources and organisations. Our recent survey with UK DVA service providers responded to this gap, exploring how service providers understand and engage with religious beliefs and faith in their everyday work. The survey received 24 responses from service providers working across different types of DVA services. 

This workshop will bring the findings of the research into a practical conversation with DVA practitioners. We will use the study’s presentation as a starting point to reflect on current practices, the challenges practitioners encounter when they serve diverse faith communities and opportunities for improvement.

From findings to practice

The research explored several interconnected questions: how do DVA providers consider clients’ religious beliefs in service provision; how do they understand and respond to cultural and religious diversity; how do they navigate the relationship between secular and religious perspectives; what role do they see for religious beliefs and faith-based resources in DVA services; and is there scope for greater collaboration with faith-based institutions and religious leaders and clergy? 

During the workshop, we will present the findings from the research completed and explore the same questions in group discussion with the participants. The discussion will be structured around the following thematic questions:

• How are DVA service providers currently responding to clients’ religious beliefs and religious or cultural identities? 
• What challenges arise when practitioners engage with religious beliefs and practices in DVA work? 
• How can practitioners distinguish between religious beliefs, cultural practices and harmful norms without making assumptions about clients or communities? 
• How can services navigate the secular–religious divide while maintaining safeguarding and survivor-centred practice? 
• What role can faith-based resources and religious actors play in supporting DVA responses? 
• What does meaningful and safe collaboration between DVA services and faith-based organisations look like? 
• What knowledge, tools and organisational support do DVA practitioners need to develop more culturally resonant and faith-responsive services? 

The workshop will combine research findings, practical expertise, discussion and interactive learning, creating space for participants to reflect on their own practice and consider approaches that could strengthen responses to clients from diverse religious and cultural backgrounds.

Learning from practice

The event will build on the work we previously completed at Project dldl, a multicounty project dedicated to promoting culturally resonant and faith-sensitive responses to domestic violence in Africa and European migrant communities. It will build on the discussions achieved at a first workshop we held as IDVRM in 2026 with DVA service providers titled Building Capacity, Influence, and Change Together: A Workshop for ‘By and For’ VAWG/DVA Organisations, focusing on the role of religious and cultural responsiveness in DVA service provision.

The aim is not to present a single model of culturally resonant and faith-responsive practice. Instead, the workshop will create space for practitioners to consider what is currently working, where gaps remain and what practical changes could strengthen the capacity of DVA services to respond to religious and cultural diversity.

Participants will have the opportunity to learn from the speakers’ practical experience and engage with approaches that can inform their own work.

Contributors

Dr Romina Istratii, Founding Executive Director, Institute of Domestic Violence, Religion & Migration (IDVRM) 

Meron Shawel Aychiluhim, Research Associate, Institute of Domestic Violence, Religion & Migration (IDVRM)

Dr Mahmoud Ashal Afifi, Lecturer, International Islamic University of Indonesia

Mayra Teck Ascurra, Non-Executive Director – VAWG & Development, Institute of Domestic Violence, Religion & Migration (IDVRM)

The online workshop will combine short presentations of the research findings, practical contributions from the speakers, facilitated discussion and participant engagement.

Who is this workshop for?

The workshop is particularly intended for DVA practitioners and organisations working directly with survivors and communities, including:

• Generalist DVA service providers 
• ‘By and for’ DVA/VAWG organisations 
• Faith-based DVA organisations and initiatives 
• Practitioners working with migrant and ethnic minority communities 
• DVA managers, trainers and practitioners interested in culturally and religiously responsive practice 
• Organisations seeking to strengthen collaboration with faith communities and religious leaders in their services provision  

Practitioners at different stages of experience are welcome. The workshop is intended as a space for shared learning, practical reflection and capacity-building, rather than as a presentation of fixed or universal solutions.

Who We Are  

IDVRM is a female- and migrant-led organisation. IDVRM was set up by Dr Romina Istratii, a former academic who has been affected by domestic abuse and migration and is comprised of individuals with similar experiences from different religious, ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Dr Istratii serves as Founding Executive Director and Ms Mayra Teck Ascurra, a frontline VAWG worker, serves as non-executive Director for Fundraising and Development. The majority of the IDVRM team are from minority backgrounds, with circa 76% of our team identifying as Black, Asian, ethnic minority and as otherwise underrepresented. This diversity reflects our commitment to building bridges of understanding and solidarity across minoritised communities, being led in our work by lived experience, and leveraging multi-cultural insight to collectively shape domestic violence services and responses in the UK and beyond. 

Contact us

 If you have any questions, you may contact the lead organiser Meron Shawel Aychiluhim at idvrm.info@gmail.com using the subject matter 'Event Query.'