About Us

What is the Program About?

The Men and Relationships Program - MARP -  is funded by the Federal Department of Family, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) and auspiced by Lifeline Darling Downs and South West Queensland Limited to provide a range of excellent programs and training opportunities for addressing Men and Relationship Issues.   

 

MARP's overarching goal is to enable and facilitate the building of relationships between men, young men and their ‘significant others' that are trusting, not controlling and mutually beneficial.   To do this MARP is guided by approaches which;

 

• Are client-centred and deal without judgment with the person of the client
• Locate the client within their social, cultural and political context
• Nurture the capacity of men in their context to engage in an authentic, rich and varied emotional life
• Appreciate that the vast majority of people are doing the best they can while deploring abusive behaviour. Here MARP seeks to distinguish between the person and the behaviour. The behaviour doesn't define who they are
• Balance the competing but equally valid priorities of supporting the person and challenging the destructive behaviour
• Encourage taking responsibility for actions and believe in the capacity for change
• Facilitate processes of self discovery and self growth through a variety of means
• Build a sense of greater connectedness simultaneously to self, to others and to broader community processes
• Offer a variety of entry points to access services and support and link to a variety of external opportunities to build on the client's personal and social growth.

 

MARP is therefore a space of respect and opportunity.  It recognizes the multiple truths of our lives and offers an opportunity for change at an appropriate time and place. 

Who does the Program Work With?

MARP works with men of all shapes, colours and sizes.  We actively develop connections with groups of men who may otherwise be marginalised, paying particular attention to indigenous men, gay and bisexual men, men from CALD and refugee backgrounds, men with disabilities, isolated and rural men, and to cooperatively develop strategies of assistance to these groups.  We seek to identify the specific needs of young men, with particular attention paid to suicidal, risk-taking and self-harming behaviours, and develop strategies for working with young men.

What are the Program's Activities

 

MARP offers:

• OutRage    -   A program to assist Men with managing strong emotions including anger management;
• Dad'sTalk   -   A Program to assist Fathers with Parenting;
• Boy'sTalk   -   A program to assist Boys in addressing life skills;
• Keeping the Body in Mind   -    A program to assist Men in engaging embodied information;
• Individual, Couples and Family Counselling
• Yarnin' Up  -  A program to build positive aboriginal and Torres Srait Islander masculinities
• GetOverIt   -  A program to assist young men with managing strong emotions including anger management
• Training, resourcing and support to service providers working in this field.  We have conducted training seminars across the Darling Downs, Maranoa and Western Queensland.
• Sudanese Cultural Troupe - A project sponsored by the State Department of Education and the Arts for strengthening Sudanese Australian Cultural identities.

Disclaimer: Users of this facility should take note that Lifeline Darling Downs and South West Queensland Ltd provide this facility for the purpose of general access to and information about Lifeline services. E-mail to this site is not made available for the purposes of providing Internet counselling or other therapeutic services. Should you require such assistance then contact 0746389208 during office hours, 131114 outside office hours or the email address associated with this website.