14 May 2024
In the lead up to the Federal Budget, Not to Violence, the largest peak body for organisations and people working to stop men’s use of family violence, is concerned men’s violence is falling off the Government’s national agenda.
“Over the past month, the Prime Minister and the Attorney-General have both emphasised the crucial need to address violence,” said Phillip Ripper, CEO of No to Violence.
“Yet in the wake of the National Cabinet meeting this month, decision makers seem to be walking back this language.”
“While it’s critically important to continue supports for women escaping violence, we are missing the focus on stopping men’s violence in the first place.”
“We need radical change and investment in a clear strategy to focus on stopping men’s use of violence.”
“We are looking for concrete commitments to increasing resources for frontline services that work with men’s violence day in day out, to change their behaviours.”
“We are in the grip of a national crisis of gender based violence. Doing more of the same is not the answer.”
“You can’t stop family violence until you stop men’s use of violence. And we won’t stop that without increased investment in a broader range of interventions to assist men to change their behaviour.”
If the Federal government is serious about ending family violence, tonight it needs to:
- Provide sustainable funding for critical intervention services via the National Partnership Agreement. Funding allocations via the National Partnership Agreement need to reflect the real cost of delivering services. This means appropriately resourcing staffing costs, clinical supervisin, family saftey contact work, training and professioanl development, responding to legislative and policy reforms, data collection, reporting and information sharing, cross-sector collaboration and administrative costs
- Commit to developing a comprehensive National Perpetration Strategy that ensures a co-ordinated national approach to ending men’s use of family violence. Right now we have a fragmented approach to working with men to end violence, we desperately require co-ordination.
- Fund a national peak body for services working with people who use violence to ensure frontline practitioner knowledge of what interventions work best for whom, are centred in policy and legislation decisions. It would also ensure vital sector issues are addressed, including building crucial workforce capabilities.
Please contact David Sutherland at davids@ntv.org.au or 0405 354 343.
About No to Violence
No to Violence (NTV) is Australia’s largest and only national peak body for organisations that work with men who use family violence, providing training, sector development and advocacy across the sector.
NTV also operates the Men’s Referral Service, providing a counselling service and referral pathways directly to men who use violence.
