Bridget Archer (Bass, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

'You are not what was done to you'—this is the motto of Enterprising Aardvark, a local, free, not-for-profit, counselling service for people in Northern Tasmania who have experienced complex early-childhood trauma and sexual assault, as well as those people who care for them and support them. Enterprising Aardvark was launched by Rachel and Lisa, who both have backgrounds in sexual assault and family violence counselling. 'Six years ago, after noticing a gap in services, we decided it would be useful to support people, particularly people who have more complex reactions to trauma. They may have had long-term trauma from a young age and been retraumatized over the years,' Lisa said.

Beyond offering free therapeutic services for young children, adolescents and adults, they also offer consultancy, training and supervision for professionals. Their work in the community has been rightly recognised, taking out a prestigious award for excellence in community service in 2021. Their approach centres around the belief that, most often, people just want the opportunity to be heard and believed. 'Everyone has their own unique circumstances but a lot of adults who are childhood survivors of sexual assault have found that they are not able to get a service that is right for them,' Rachel said. Funded solely by donations and fundraisers, Rachel and Lisa operate part-time but their impact has been tremendous, working with over 300 people and providing more than 1,500 hours of free counselling a year. I want to thank Rachel and Lisa for their dedication to continuing to support Northern Tasmanians who have experienced childhood trauma.