New Leaf Counselling & Wellbeing provides individual counselling to people who have become victims of crime that occurred in NSW. I have experience in working with victims of crime and aim to assist victims recover from the psychological and emotional impacts the crime has had on them. The service is available to people of all ages and backgrounds.
Counselling is provided on a short-term basis of up to 22 hours, with a clear focus on rehabilitation. While recovery responses are generally positive for victims who access counselling soon after the incident has occurred, people who have been victims of events many years earlier can find several benefits through counselling. This includes those people who have been too afraid to open up about the incident before, or who feel they were not understood by others when they previously tried to.
Who can apply for counselling?
To be eligible for Victims Services support, you must have experienced an act of violence in New South Wales. This includes sexual assault and/or domestic violence. There does not need to be a charge or a conviction. Support is available for primary, secondary or family victims.
Primary victim
The primary victim is a person who was injured, either psychologically or physically, as a result of a violent crime, or someone who gets injured while trying to stop violence from taking place, or get injured while rescue a victim of a violent crime.
Secondary victim
The secondary victim is a person who was injured as a direct result of witnessing a crime that was violent, or it could be a parent who was injured as a result of becoming aware of the crime.
Family victim
The family victim is the immediate family of a homicide victim. This could include a spouse, siblings, step-siblings, children, parents/guardians, or a de facto partner who has lived with the victim for 2 years.
Being impacted by a crime can be a terrifying experience and it can cause related ongoing physical and psychological effects. It is for this reason that the New South Wales Government created Victims Support for those individuals who have experienced violence during their lifetime. Getting the help you need is an important step towards psychological and physical rehabilitation.
You are eligible to receive free counselling from an Approved Counsellor if you are psychologically, emotionally and/or have been physically injured:
- as a result of an act of violence (assault) in NSW; or
- as a result of witnessing an act of violence; or
- as a result of learning of the act of violence and you are the parent or guardian of a primary victim who was under the age of 18 years at the time of the act of violence; or
- preventing someone from committing an act of violence in NSW, or
- arresting someone who is committing, or has just committed an act of violence, or
- helping or rescuing someone against whom an act of violence is being committed, or has just been committed.
- Family members of homicide victims where the offence occurred in NSW. A family
member is:- the victim’s spouse
- the victim’s defacto spouse, or same sex partner who has lived with the victim for at least two years
- a parent, step-parent or guardian of the victim
- a child or step-child of the victim, or other child of whom the victim was the guardian
- a brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, step-brother or step-sister of the victim.
Applying for counselling
Discuss your needs with the Client Service Team through the Victims Access Line or if you’d like to have Michelle from New Leaf Counselling and Wellbeing as your Victims Service counsellor please contact us on 0422 243 446 or newleafcw2018@gmail.com
Am I eligible for support?
To be eligible for Victims Support, you must be either a primary, secondary, or family victim. There is no time limit to apply for Victims Support after the crime. You can still get help even years after the incident.
Where do I apply for support?
If you are a primary or secondary victim applying for counselling support only, go to the NSW Victims Services application form on the NSW victims services website. If you are a family member of someone who is a victim of crime go to the application form for family members on the NSW victims services website.
New Leaf Counselling and Wellbeing 