Workstream 1 – Desk research: legal and policy framework

The objectives of this workstream are:

• To improve the knowledge and understanding of the legal and policy framework and the available support structures for women who experience/ experienced violence
• To assess the legal and policy context concerning protective measures against violence for women
• To assess the specialised victim support structures provided by governmental and non governmental actors for women
• To provide four national reports and one comparative report on the results of these assessments

Methodology: Desk research

Workstream 2 – Empirical research phase: assessment of accessibility

The objectives of this workstream are:

On the level of specialized victim support services:

• To know which support and counselling services are offering services for women with disabilities and to investigate if the services perceive women with disabilities as a target group
• To get information if women with disabilities are making use of the offered services
• To find out what support services would need to be able to meet the needs of women with disabilities who experienced/ experience violence

On the level of women with disabilities who experienced/ experience violence

• To investigate to what extent women with disabilities who experienced/experience violence access the range of support services
• To better know what women with disabilities expect from these services
• To find out challenges and obstacles women with disabilities experienced in case they were not getting appropriate supportive assistance
• To find out specific concerns and needs of women with disabilities in relation to violence

Methodology: Online questionnaire, Interviews with experts from support services, Focus Group Discussions with women with disabilities, analysis

Workstream 3 – Empirical research – Case studies

The objectives of this workstream are:

• To collect and analyse qualitative data focusing on the experiences of women with disabilities who experienced/ experience violence – in a variety of social contexts
• To improve the knowledge based on barriers to support services
• To improve the knowledge based on how women with disabilities can access support services
• To draft conclusions concerning possible relationships between living environment, attitudes, support networks and successful access to support services
• To explore the real life impacts of policies, environments, institutions and relationships

• To provide four national reports and one comparative report on the results of these assessments

Methodology: In depth interviews with women with disabilities, analysis

Workstream 4 – Good practises and recommendations

The objectives of this workstream are:

• To identify good practise examples in the field of support services for women with disabilities
• To develop recommendations for stakeholders and policy makers
• To strengthen the network between DPOs, disability service providers and women’s support organisations
• To finalize a comparative report on the basis of all national reports

Methodology: analysis

Workstream 5 – Finalisation of studies, dissemination and final conference

The objectives of this workstream are:

• To provide the main target groups with accessible and practically efficient information about the main results and good practise examples documented in the comparative reports
• To raise public awareness
• To contribute to a better understanding of the complex living situations and barriers that women with disabilities are confronted with
• To facilitate and strengthen the network between disability service providers and women’s support services

Methodology: provision of short reports and brochures, public conference, dissemination

Monitoring of the project:

An advisory board, consisting of three representatives from support services and three women with disabilities will monitor the implementation process of the whole project.

An external evaluator will support the self-evaluation process.