Celebrating Carol Barkwell – a bold leader dedicated to improving women’s access to justice

By Luke's Place | May 30, 2024

We are delighted to announce that Carol Barkwell, founding Executive Director of Luke’s Place, has been recognized with a 2023-24 Ministry of the Attorney General’s Victim Services Award of Distinction.

The beginning

Carol has played a pivotal role in the Luke’s Place story since the beginning.

Luke’s Place was created after the tragic death of Luke, a 3-½-year-old Durham boy who was killed by his father during his first unsupervised access visit. Following his death, professionals and survivors in Durham Region began meeting to explore ways to address the challenges survivors and their children experience after leaving abuse. A working committee, which included Carol, envisioned what was needed:

A safe place for women to learn what they need to know to navigate the family court system
Advocacy, leading safer and fairer court outcomes for women and their children
A new service delivery model

The working committee soon became a working Board of Directors, bringing Luke’s Place to life.

A bold leader

For more than 20 years, Carol has led the organization through steady growth. For example:

The staff team that has grown from two to more than 20
Ontario created the Family Court Support Worker Program, based on the Luke’s Place service delivery model
The Virtual Legal Clinic was created to ensure women in rural and remote communities across Ontario had access to legal advice and information
The Legal Clinic expanded during the pandemic to connect women from across Ontario to summary legal advice and support

Carol has a quiet confidence and strength. She is empathetic and compassionate towards the women Luke’s Place serves. Carol offers her team a caring, capable, and mentoring leadership style. It is because of Carol that the vision for Luke’s Place has grown far beyond being Canada’s first stand-alone legal support centre. Today, Luke’s Place is a national centre of excellence for survivors of intimate partner violence and their advocates.

Carol has a talent for building and nurturing strategic relationships. Under her leadership, the reach and influence of Luke’s Place has grown immensely. She has helped create a network of professionals equipped with tools to represent and support abuse survivors.

Carol has a strong history of advancing women’s access to justice, advocating and raising awareness to the issues women face when leaving violence, and inspiring change. Simply put, her work has saved lives.

Congratulations Carol!

Media Release: Celebrating Carol Barkwell – a bold leader dedicated to improving women’s access to justice
Ministry of the Attorney General’s Victim Services Award of Distinction
Past Luke’s Place awards