Mon Feb 11

Funding to support women and children escaping domestic violence

Written by Scott Morrison

Hundreds more women and children escaping domestic and family violence will have a safe place to sleep with a $78 million investment by the Morrison Government.

This investment includes a $60 million grants program for eligible organisations to provide new or expanded emergency accommodation facilities for those escaping domestic and family violence.

This program will build up to 450 safe places and assist up to 6,500 people per year. The grant program will be structured to encourage contributions from other levels of government, and from private and philanthropic sources.

A further $18 million will be invested in the Keeping Women Safe in their Homes program, which has assisted over 5,200 women since 2015-16, providing security upgrades and safety planning so women and children can remain in their own homes, if it is safe to do so.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said this investment was a key commitment to the Fourth Action Plan 2019-2022, the final plan under the National Plan to Reduce Violence Against Women and their Children 2010-2022.

“The first priority of my government is to keep Australians safe and secure,” the Prime Minister said.

“I am focused on providing more support to women and children escaping domestic violence.

“The National Plan is one of the best examples of governments working together and the more we work together to solve this problem as partners, the better the outcome for victims and survivors of domestic violence.

“This is the third significant initiative we’ve funded for domestic violence support in as many months, following $67.2 million committed as part of the Women’s Economic Security Statement and a further $10.9 million towards 1800RESPECT, announced in late November.”

Minister for Families and Social Services Paul Fletcher said that this investment is designed to significantly increase our national stock of emergency accommodation for women and children escaping domestic violence.

“When a woman needs to escape domestic violence, often she has very little chance to plan – she may well have raced out of the house and jumped in the car with just the clothes on her back.

“That is why it is so important there is emergency accommodation available – so a woman in this situation can have a safe place to live while she works out what she will do next.”

“I have seen in my own electorate the vital work done by the Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Women’s Shelter, which has provided emergency accommodation to nearly 300 women, 72 per cent of whom needed help due to domestic violence.

Minister for Women Kelly O’Dwyer said women had the right to be safe in their homes, in their communities, online and in their workplaces.

“The Government has zero tolerance for violence against women and this new package will make a very real difference to women and children right across Australia.”

“Today’s announcement comes on top of the more than $350 million the Government has invested to improve women’s safety since 2015.”

If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit www.1800RESPECT.org.au.