The NSW Government will provide $230 million over 4 years as part of an emergency package to enhance support for domestic, family and sexual violence (DFSV) victim-survivors and expand programs that reduce the rate of violence against women and children.
Approximately 1 in 4 women and 1 in 8 of men in Australia have encountered violence perpetrated by a domestic partner or family member since the age of 15. The NSW Labor Government is responding to this alarming rate of violence by implementing the state’s inaugural Primary Prevention Strategy aimed at curbing domestic, family, and sexual violence (DFSV). Additionally, the government will undertake long-term reforms to combat these forms of violence in NSW. These initiatives will be guided by the experiences of survivors and expert recommendations.
The package will include:
Crisis response
- $48m to implement the Staying Home Leaving Violence (SHLV) program state-wide and to expand the Integrated Domestic and Family Violence Service (IDFVS).
Improving the justice system for victims including:
- $45 million to improve bail laws and justice system responses to domestic violence,
- approximately $24 million for specialist domestic violence support workers within the justice system,
- $2 million over 4 years to support the Domestic Violence Death Review Team, and
- $2.1 million over 2 years to improve and continue the Corrective Services program EQUIPS Domestic and Family Violence, “delivered to offenders in custody and under supervision in the community to prevent reoffending”.
Early intervention
- $48 million to secure and increase funding for workers who support children accompanying their mothers to refuges, and
- $700,000 in support for the NSW Domestic Violence Line (DV line).
Primary prevention
- $38 million for the implementation of NSW’s first dedicated Primary Prevention Strategy. The Pathways to Prevention: NSW Strategy for the Prevention of Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence 2024-2027 will develop a range of initiatives to address the drivers of domestic, family and sexual violence, and
- $8.1 million over 4 years for the ‘All in’ early childhood pilot, to prevent domestic violence by teaching young children about healthy relationships”.
Strengthening the sector
- $5 million for workforce training on the implementation of a risk assessment framework, and quality standards, and
- $3.6 million to expand Domestic Violence NSW (DVNSW).
Research
- $5m for research into perpetrators and effective interventions.
This funding announcement represents an important step towards reducing the rate of DFSV in NSW, and acknowledging that domestic violence support must include a focus on early and lasting intervention in order to disrupt the cycle of domestic and family violence.