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Safe Shelter from Domestic Violence An initiative of the Northern Victoria Domestic Violence Housing Group

Family violence and the lack of crisis accommodation is a concerning issue across the local government areas of Swan Hill, Gannawarra and Buloke. This region lacks suitable accommodation for these victims. We can and must address the accommodation issue !
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Our aim is to raise an estimated $3 Million to establish purpose-built crisis accommodation for family violence victims.

Our Request

Our aim is to raise an estimated $3 Million to establish purpose-built crisis accommodation for family violence victims. The accommodation is envisioned to be built across multiple sites to service the targeted LGAs of Swan Hill, Gannawarra and Buloke. Crisis accommodation will help to ensure victims fleeing family violence can safely stay living locally and connected to their supports and networks, including critical services and educational settings.

The SAFE SHELTER from Domestic Violence Project is the initiative of the Rotary, Inner Wheel, Business and Professional Women, and Lions Clubs from the region, working as the Northern Victoria Domestic Violence Housing Group (NVDVHG). Each of these local organisations have identified the urgent need for crisis family violence accommodation in their communities.

Therefore, we are seeking donations and support from individuals, Government, Corporate Australia, philanthropic organisations and our host organisations to make this a reality.

“Families fleeing violent relationships across the Mallee Shires of Buloke, Gannawarra and Swan Hill are being forced to leave their communities and support networks because we cannot house them safely locally.”

Trish Polglase, Unit Manager – Southern Mallee. Mallee Sexual Assault Unit Inc. Mallee Domestic Violence Services

Family violence and/or intimate partner violence is the leading cause of serious injury, disability and death for women in Australia.
On average, one woman a week is killed by her intimate male partner.

In the 10 years from mid 2002 to mid-2012, 488 women in Australia were killed by their intimate partner (Cussen & Bryant, 2015; Bryant & Bricknell, 2017)

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The Housing Issue

“Our local motels go above and beyond to support our families at their crisis point, but motel rooms are not a long-term recovery solution for victims of family violence.”

Trish Polglase, Unit Manager – Southern Mallee.
Mallee Sexual Assault Unit Inc.
Mallee Domestic Violence Services

Victims escaping family violence in the Swan Hill, Gannawarra and Buloke LGAs are left with little choice but to relocate to crisis housing in other Local Government Areas, enter ad hoc accommodation, descend into homelessness, or return to violent homes. 

The nearest purpose-built family violence refuges are in Mildura and Bendigo (~200km away) and it is here that our families must go to access appropriate and longer-term crisis and refuge accommodation. This relocation isolates our families from their support networks – their families, friends, services and schools. 

We know firsthand from our local victim-survivors, from international research and more than a decade of National and State Commissions and Inquiries that the victims fleeing family violence recover more quickly when they stay in their communities and connected to their support networks.

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The Human Face

We can no longer ignore the prevalence or severity of family violence across our communities.

In Australia, we know that on average, one woman a week is murdered by her current or former partner. This understanding makes purpose-built crisis housing especially critical as most of these murders occur in the weeks and months immediately after separation.

The Victorian Systemic Review of Family Violence Deaths between 1 January 2011 to 31 December 2015 found 42.1% of family violence intimate partner homicide incidents in Victoria involved individuals who had separated, 23.7% of these in the three months preceding their death, and 15.8% involved individuals with intention to separate or separation pending.

The data confirms what family violence victim-survivors and family violence service staff know to be true – proportionally across the Mallee, our women and children are more heavily impacted by family violence than most of their Victorian peers. The period of highest risk is at and immediately following their decision to leave.

In the targeted LGAs of Swan Hill, Gannawarra and Buloke the higher rate of family violence and known high-risk period is compounded by a deeply inadequate supply of emergency and refuge housing purpose-designed and built for victims escaping violence.

“If (my family violence case worker) had not got me into the safe house I would have just kept staying at my partner’s house…. Now I would say to any woman living with abuse that the important thing is you really have to walk out, you walkout from that partner…. most of the women think that after they leave they can’t live by themselves …. but after you DO leave you have many ways to live by yourself and you will be more happy and you will know how much you can do without your husband and how far you can go.”

Victim-survivor supported by MDVS, Swan Hill

The Evidence

Family Violence data is ‘measured’ through several key services for victims – most notably Victoria Police Family Incidents and Family Violence Specialist Services. Significantly, compared to their Victorian peers, the Swan Hill and Gannawarra LGAs both experience higher incidents and assistance rates in the 2019-2020 reporting period.

The Family Violence Specialist Services data for Swan Hill, Gannawarra and Buloke LGAs reinforce the gravity of the issue with Swan Hill and Gannawarra LGAs ranked 1st and 5th among the 79 Victorian LGAs respectively

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