New data from Centre for Non-Violence’s Safe Homes. Safer Futures campaign shows that children and young people made up 54 per cent of all victim survivors supported by the service last year.
That figure should stop us in our tracks.
Family violence can profoundly affect children’s safety, wellbeing and development. Children need support that recognises them as victim survivors in their own right – and responds to their individual experiences and needs.
As Victoria heads towards the election, children and young people must be at the centre of the next phase of family violence reform.
Safe and Equal is calling for the next Victorian Government to:
- Invest $33 million a year in core funding for specialist services for children and young people experiencing family violence
- Invest $12 million over five years to drive innovation and develop new programs tailored to children’s needs across Victoria
- Build a family violence system that centres children and young people as victim survivors in their own right, with access to specialist support to be safe, recover and thrive.
Victoria has built a family violence system worth protecting. Now, the incoming Victorian government must make children and young people a priority in the investment and reform that comes next.