23 September 2026
A 23-year-old woman, a woman in her 70s and a woman in her 90s were killed in separate alleged domestic violence incidents in NSW within hours of each other on Saturday.
Their deaths come as an estimated 120,000 men begin using intimate partner violence for the first time every year, yet just 3.6 per cent of domestic violence funding nationally goes to early intervention, and fewer than two in every 100 people using violence receive any help to stop.
“We’re funding the ambulance and leaving the road unfixed,” No to Violence CEO Phillip Ripper said. “Behind these numbers are women whose lives have been taken, families grieving and communities asking the same question again and again: what will it take to stop this happening?”
No to Violence says Australia needs a genuine early-intervention system between broad prevention efforts and the crisis response delivered by police, courts and hospitals.
The Federal Government is now developing the Second Action Plan under the National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children, which will guide national action from 2027 and provides an immediate opportunity to build that missing layer.
No to Violence says that this should mean substantially increasing early-intervention funding, expanding specialist responses for men and young people using violence, supporting specialist victim-survivor services and equipping frontline services to recognise risk and connect people to specialist help.
NSW’s Domestic Violence Death Review Team examines domestic violence-related deaths to identify where systems could have recognised risk, responded differently or prevented future harm. Its reviews have repeatedly highlighted contact with health, education and other services as important opportunities for earlier intervention.
Yet Australia still lacks a genuine early-intervention system linking those everyday services with specialist support for people beginning to use, or at risk of escalating, violence.
The Federal Government is now developing the Second Action Plan under the National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children, which will guide national action from 2027 and provides an immediate opportunity to build that missing layer.
“We know where the gap is and we know what needs to be built,” Mr Ripper said. “We need the funding and infrastructure to reach people before violence becomes entrenched. A system that reaches people before the police call-out, before the hospital, and before another family is left grieving.”
“We have to stop waiting until the damage is done.”
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Media Contact: Jo Nilsson
Media & Advocacy Advisor, No to Violence
communications@ntv.org.au | 0455666492
About No to Violence
No to Violence is the Australian peak body for organisations and individuals committed to ending men’s use of family violence. We support specialist men’s family violence services and operate the national Men’s Referral Service, a 24/7 telephone and online counselling and referral service to link men to the support they need to get on a pathway of change and end their use of family violence. We undertake research, training and advocacy and work with governments, employers and business to stop family violence at the source.
Please list the Men’s Referral Service with all Domestic, Sexual and Family Violence stories: The Men’s Referral Service provides counselling and referrals for men who are concerned about their behaviour: 1300 766 491
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