About the program
The Sanctuary Model is a workplace culture-change program that teaches people how to cope more effectively with adversity and stress, and aims to prevent trauma symptoms. The Sanctuary model introduces a number of workplace practices to create positive culture change.
Program Outcomes
- It encourages us to rethink the way we manage conflict and crisis intervention.
- It supports staff to form healthy communities and create a culture that prioritises safety and wellbeing at every level within an organisation.
- It creates an understanding of how past adversity can continue to have an impact throughout life.
- It creates organisation-wide understanding that trauma has an impact not only on the people who have experienced it, but also on the staff who work with them and on the organisation as a whole.
Measuring results
The impacts of adopting the Sanctuary model are observable and measurable. Results can include improved communication and morale among staff, fewer incidents of client to staff violence and reduced turnover. When fully embedded, an organisations’ clients will benefit from fewer trauma symptoms, enhanced social skills, improved judgment and decision-making and healthier relationships.
"In my 16 years in this organisation I’ve never seen staff at all levels nod and agree that one approach is the closest model of practice to where we wanted to be."
Sanctuary training participant, Department for Child Protection South Australia
Sanctuary’s four key domains
"“An enjoyable, practical and informative workshop. Useful for the team to grow together in creating a healthy culture. It makes me want to do all the training. I also see a lot utility for clients, modelling safety plans and helping them become curious about creating their own.”"
Sanctuary training participant, Kinetic Medicine NSW
Our faculty
Cameron Burgess
Richard Bullock
Tammy Wallace
Kate Martin
Kellie Goes
Matthew Spicer
Tenille Abell
Annaley Clarke
Molly Madigan
MacKillop Family Services acknowledges the Traditional Custodians and their Elders in each of the communities where we work.