#4 Preparing for the Gender-Based Violence (GBV) Code: Knowledge and Capability

This article is the fourth instalment in a 12-part series supporting institutions to prepare for the proposed National Code to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence in Higher Education.

You can have the best strategy in the world, but if your people don’t understand it, or feel unequipped to act, change won’t happen. The Knowledge and Capability standard of the Code places a clear responsibility on institutions to ensure that all staff, students, and leaders have the skills, knowledge, and confidence to prevent and respond to gender-based violence (GBV) in ways that are trauma-informed, inclusive, and aligned with best practice.

What the standard says

Institutions must ensure that

• All members of the university community (including staff, students, and leaders) receive education and training appropriate to their role;

• Training is regular, evidence-based, trauma-informed, and intersectional;

• Programs are evaluated and adapted to reflect feedback and emerging best practice;

For leaders and decision-makers

Training and education are often treated as a tick-the-box, but this standard pushes for something more meaningful: a culture of capability. Here’s where to focus:

• Mandate role-specific training: Content, duration and format may vary, but all members of the community should be involved. Leadership and executive training should focus on understanding accountability, decision-making influence, and reputational risks. Academic and front-line staff should receive responding to disclosures training, support staff training should focus on referral pathways, documentation, and confidentiality and student training should cover consent, respect, and where to get help.

  
  

• Resource it like it matters: Invest in high-quality training, not just an off-the-shelf module. This might mean partnering with subject matter experts or specialist organisations, paying students with lived experience to co-design content and/or offering blended formats (face-to-face, online, refreshers).

  
  

• Lead by example: If your leadership team hasn’t completed the training, the message to the community is clear: this is optional. Require all senior staff to complete foundational and advanced content.

  
  

• Track and report progress: Establish mechanisms to track participation, feedback, and outcomes. This includes not just attendance but changes in confidence and practice.

For practitioners leading the work:

This standard is your lever to drive real culture change and widen the circle of responsibility beyond your team.

• Audit what exists: Start by mapping what training is already in place. What’s mandatory? How often is it delivered and updated? Are the materials evidence-based, trauma-informed, and accessible? Where are the gaps and what’s needed to close them?

  
  

• Co-design with community: Engage student leaders and peer educators, equity and accessibility teams, First Nations and LGBTIQA+ staff/students, HR and legal advisors. Good design should reflect the realities and identities of your community.

  
  

• Prioritise practicality: Training should equip people to respond to disclosures with empathy, know when and how to escalate, understand institutional processes (and their role in them), and create safer environments in everyday interactions.

  
  

• Keep the learning alive: Make learning ongoing, not just ‘one and done.’ Offer refreshers annually or as deemed appropriate, create short videos or micro-learnings for staff, and embed GBV content into leadership development, student leadership training, and faculty inductions.

The Code recognises that systems and policies won’t work unless the people behind them are equipped to act. This standard reminds us that knowledge is power and when we invest in building it, we empower our whole community to lead change.

Interested to learn more? Read the rest of our series: Raising the Standard: A Practical Blog Series on Preventing GBV in Higher Education