Response to the Rapid Review into Prevention Approaches

Safe and Equal notes the release of the report of the Rapid Review into Prevention Approaches, Unlocking the Prevention Potential.

We welcome and commend a greater focus on targeted efforts to address gaps and further work needed to prevent the deaths of women and children, and the significant harms of gender-based violence.

A woman is murdered at least every week in Australia, many at the hands of her current or ex-partner. A quarter of Australian women have experienced family violence, almost exclusively at the hands of men. For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, the situation is even worse; they experience eight times the rate of homicide of non-indigenous women. The impacts on many communities, and children and young people, need more attention.

We welcome further discussion about how we, as a sector and as a society, can stop existing violence and best prevent future violence.

As a peak body, Safe and Equal and our members work across the continuum of family violence from primary prevention to early intervention, to response and recovery. We believe whole-heartedly in the need for a comprehensive approach across these domains, as outlined in the National Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children.

CEO, Tania Farha, says “While it’s always important to assess our effectiveness and the evidence that informs our work, we have to ensure that the work being done on the ground across the country is recognised and valued.

We welcome the focus in the report on the prevention potential that could be realised by investing in family, domestic and sexual violence services, and addressing unmet demand. Our frontline services play a critical role in responding and preventing, saving the lives of victim survivors and helping them and their families to move on and thrive.

We also recognise and value all those primary prevention practitioners and organisations working tirelessly to change attitudes, systems and structures, those working in perpetrator services, and those working intensively with those most at risk of future perpetration.

While our sector in Victoria has always recognised the contribution of many services and organisations to prevention of violence, there is value in policy frameworks and funding that specifically focus on different parts of this work, but which work together.

We stand behind Change the Story, as an evidence-based and shared national framework that identifies the deep, underlying social drivers of violence against women and guides work to address these in order to prevent violence from happening in the first place. A greater policy and programmatic focus on early intervention to prevent violence from becoming a possibility or escalating, is greatly welcomed, but this needs its own framework, with a particular focus on practice and workforce development”.

The Review’s recommendations are intended as an accelerant, but this must start from a solid foundation in existing work and expertise. Given the rapid timeline, we must acknowledge concerns that have been raised about the lack of inclusion of a range of communities and community-led prevention work in the process. We must all continue to listen and respect these concerns moving forward together.

Safe and Equal welcomes the recommendation for a Prevention Innovation Fund as a positive step, and looks forward to working with colleagues across the country to ensure maximum impact to prevent family and gender-based violence into the future.