How an organisation responds when someone discloses gender-based violence shapes whether that person is protected from further harm, whether their account is preserved fairly, and whether others feel safe to come forward. This article sets out what a trauma-informed, person-centred first response looks like in practice, drawing on the approach behind our Trauma-Informed Responding workshop and the Higher Education Integrated Pathway.
When someone discloses gender-based violence at work or in study, the person they tell first matters enormously. That first response can protect the person from further harm and support their recovery, or it can deepen the harm and discourage them, and others, from ever coming forward again.
Yet most people who receive disclosures have never been taught how to respond. They are managers, supervisors, student leaders, HR practitioners and colleagues who find themselves, often unexpectedly, on the receiving end of one of the most difficult conversations a person can initiate.
From 1 January 2027, the National Higher Education Code to Prevent and Respond to Gender-based Violence requires higher education providers to train all staff, contractors, leadership and students in leadership positions to respond to disclosures, at onboarding and at least annually. The training must be trauma-informed and person-centred, developed with or approved by a person with expertise, safe for participants, and evaluated on an ongoing basis. But the case for this capability goes well beyond compliance. In any organisation, a safe first response is part of managing psychosocial risk, and it is central to the Positive Duty under the Sex Discrimination Act.
Understanding what is being disclosed
Gender-based violence is violence, harassment, abuse or threats directed at a person because of their gender, or that affect people of a particular gender disproportionately. It spans a spectrum, from sexist remarks and sexual harassment through to stalking, technology-facilitated and image-based abuse, coercive control, intimate partner and family violence, and sexual assault. Lower-level behaviours, left unchallenged, create the conditions for more serious harm.
It is a distinct form of harm. It targets a person's identity, body and autonomy. It is often committed by someone known and trusted. It is heavily under-reported, and its effects on mental health, study, work and career can be severe and long-lasting.
It also does not affect everyone equally. Women; First Nations people, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and Māori; culturally and linguistically diverse communities; people with disability; and people of diverse sexual orientation and gender identity are disproportionately affected. Where identities intersect, risk and barriers to disclosure compound.
Myths about gender-based violence silence people. Some blame the person harmed. Others suggest reports are fabricated, although false reports are rare. Others expect victims to behave in a particular way: to report immediately, to appear distressed, to recall events in perfect order. These myths shape who is believed, and whether people come forward at all.
How trauma shapes a disclosure
Trauma is a person's experience of an event, not the event itself, so people respond very differently to similar events. A disclosure may be delayed, partial or minimised. Memories may be fragmented or out of order. The person may seem highly distressed, or calm, flat, or even friendly towards the person who caused harm. None of this signals dishonesty. All of it is consistent with how trauma affects behaviour, memory, health and wellbeing.
Traditional grievance and complaint processes, built for neutrality, can unintentionally amplify harm. Being doubted, questioned about why they did not act sooner, asked to repeat their account to multiple people, or losing control over what happens next can re-traumatise. This is process harm: it discourages reporting and weakens the quality of any account.
The principles of a safe response
A trauma-informed, person-centred response rests on a small set of principles, each of which translates into concrete practice.
Safety. Physical, psychological and emotional safety come first: a private space, a calm response, and a pause if a trauma response occurs.
Trust. Be honest and clear about your role, what happens next and the limits of confidentiality, and do what you say you will.
Choice. The person decides what happens for them: what to share, with whom, and which options to take up.
Collaboration. Work with the person, not for them. Agree next steps together, and seek their views before any action is taken.
Empowerment. Restore a sense of control. Offer clear options verbally and in writing, and record what is needed so they need not repeat their account.
Respect for diversity. Recognise how identity and circumstances shape experience and barriers to disclosure, and adapt the response: gender-safe, culturally safe and accessible.
Across all of these, the person's needs and preferences come first, their dignity is affirmed without blame, and their healing, and the safety of others, guides what happens next.
What the first response looks like
In practice, a safe first response follows a simple structure: listen, acknowledge, support, refer.
Listen without interrupting or probing for detail. You are a first responder, not an investigator or counsellor.
Acknowledge and validate the person's feelings without judging what happened. Something as simple as "Thank you for telling me. What would be most helpful right now?" signals belief and returns control.
Support choice and control over what happens next, within the limits of your role and confidentiality. If there is immediate risk to the person or others, explain when and why you must escalate.
Refer to support and reporting options, in person and in writing. Recording what is needed, once, means the person does not have to repeat their account.
This applies equally to written disclosures. A disclosure may arrive by email or through a learning platform, and the same principles govern the reply.
Looking after the people who respond
Receiving disclosures exposes staff to vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue, which is itself a psychosocial hazard employers must manage. People who regularly receive disclosures need to recognise the signs in themselves, including over-identifying, avoidance, fatigue and intrusive thoughts, and have access to debriefing and support. Staying within the first responder role, debriefing safely while keeping confidentiality, and simple self-care practices after a disclosure all help sustain the people doing this work.
Why this matters beyond compliance
How a disclosure is received is part of an organisation's control of psychosocial risk. A safe, trauma-informed first response prevents further harm to the person who reports, and makes it safer for others to come forward, so incidents surface early and can be addressed. It also produces fuller, more accurate accounts, which makes any later process fairer.
Organisations that build this capability well do not treat it as a one-off. They train the people most likely to receive disclosures in greater depth, refresh all staff annually, use realistic fictional scenarios tailored to their own context and pathways, and evaluate whether the training is working, including by asking the people who disclose how they were received.
Culture Plus delivers Trauma-Informed Responding training for organisations across all sectors, customised to your context and disclosure pathways. For higher education providers, the Higher Education Integrated Pathway connects disclosure response with gender-based violence prevention and psychosocial safety in one program. Get in touch to discuss your needs.