Background Paper to Time for Action: The National Council's Plan for Australia to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children, 2009-2021 

5.1 Overview

The following table provides a high level overview of the support systems for victims/survivors of sexual assault and domestic and family violence in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) in terms of Amnesty International’s principles for action plans that are referred to as the ‘three S’s’ – structural, strategic and sustained.

The following table provides a high level overview of the support systems for victims/survivors of sexual assault and domestic and family violence in the ACT in terms of Amnesty International’s principles for action plans that are referred to as the ‘three P’s’ – prevention, provision and prosecution.

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5.2 Profile

This section outlines in further detail the ACT’s current response to violence against women, using Amnesty International’s principles for action plans known as the ‘three S’s’ – structural, strategic and sustainable, – and ‘three P’s’ – prevention, provision and prosecution.

5.2.1 Structural

The structures put in place in the ACT that seek to harmonise responses to violence against women across government include the following:

• The ACT Office for Women is a core agency involved in preventing violence against women. Its role is to: provide advice to the Minister for Women on issues affecting women; provide an across-Government strategic direction and oversight of policy and program development for issues relating to women in the ACT; and develop and promote links between key stakeholders and the Government in working to improve the status of women.
• The Family Violence Intervention Program began in 1998 after a recommendation by the ACT Law Reform Committee in 1995. The coordinated inter-agency response to family violence involves the ACT Magistrates Court, the Australian Federal Police, Domestic Violence Crisis Service, ACT Corrective Services, Director of Public Prosecutions, ACT Legal Aid and the Department of Justice and Community Safety.

5.2.2 Strategic

The ACT has the following strategies and plans in place to guide efforts to reduce violence against women:

• The ACT Women’s Plan¹⁷³ is a five-year plan (2004-2009) by an inter-departmental committee in collaboration with the Ministerial Advisory Council on Women. It provides a framework for developing strategies to improve the quality of life of all women. The plan is structured around six objectives:
  • representation and recognition;
  • good health and wellbeing;
  • responsive housing;
  • safe, inclusive communities;
  • economic security and opportunities;
  • flexible education and training.
• Within ‘safe inclusive communities’ there are four identified areas for action:
  • women’s rights;
  • freedom from violence;
  • community participation;
  • valuing diversity and progressing reconciliation.
• Action plans are developed for each year and responsibility for these actions is assigned to an agency. Cabinet recently agreed to a whole-of-government statement on family violence (as of October 2008). The ACT soon will also develop a domestic violence prevention strategy, looking to the Victorian example.
• The Family Violence Intervention Program began in May 1998 and ran as a pilot project funded by Partnerships Against Domestic Violence until June 1999. The core agencies participating in the program are:
  • Australian Federal Police;
  • Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions;
  • Magistrates Court;
  • Corrective Services;
  • Department of Justice and Community Safety;
  • Victims of Crime Coordinator;
  • Legal Aid;
  • Domestic Violence Crisis Service.

  The intervention program has a pro-arrest, pro-charge and presumption-against-bail philosophy as well as a pro-prosecution policy. This places ACT in a unique position. The pro-prosecution policy is promoted through improved evidence collection by police, improved information provided to the courts and case management and tracking. This occurs within an environment of continuous data collection, monitoring and evaluation. During the pilot project, government and non-government organisations involved in family violence developed common approaches to family violence, outlined in common purpose protocols. Through these protocols, organisations commit to:

  • work together cooperatively and effectively;
  • maximise safety and protection for victims of family violence;
  • provide opportunities for offender accountability and rehabilitation;
  • seek continual improvement¹⁷⁴.
• The program is inter-agency in nature, with all relevant agencies participating in ongoing policy, procedural and operational development of the program. It has been evaluated and has proven to be effective in increasing the proportion of cases prosecuted that involve a family violence offence as well as in securing a high conviction rate for these offences.
• Memorandum of Understanding between ACT Policing and the Canberra Rape Crisis Centre. This provides a coordinated, collaborative approach in support of victims and investigations of sexual assault and child abuse matters.
• ACT Children’s Plan. This plan was launched on 15 June 2004 and not only outlines ACT’s 10-year vision for children but acts as a guide for decision-making by government and non-government sectors about policies, programs and services for children up to 12 years of age. One of its main activities is to help schools address bullying and violence and provide safe school environments. This will include expanding the Protective Behaviours Program in primary schools to improve children’s self-esteem and sense of safety.

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5.2.3 Sustained

Arrangements in place to lead and fund ongoing efforts to reduce violence against women in the ACT are as follows:

• The Family Violence Intervention Program is overseen by a Coordinating Committee. Evaluation has shown the program to be effective and it has been funded since the cessation of funding from Partnerships Against Domestic Violence. In the 2005-06 ACT Budget, the program received recurrent funding for two caseworkers for four years (to 2009/10).
• In November 2007, the ACT Government provided nearly $4 million over four years to the Department of Justice and Community Safety and non-government agencies to improve ACT’s response to people who have been sexually assaulted. The ACT Government granted $581,000 in the 2007 08 Budget to support the Victims Support ACT agency in providing a seamless service with reduced waiting times for victims seeking counselling.

5.2.4 Prevention

The Domestic Violence Prevention Council intends to develop a community domestic violence campaign.

5.2.5 Provision

Key services and programs provided in the ACT include the following.

• The Family Violence Intervention Program, which provides an integrated and coordinated response to victims of family violence. The Australian Federal Police work in conjunction with the Domestic Violence Crisis Service to ensure victims can access support early. The Domestic Violence Crisis Service maintains its support throughout the criminal justice process, if appropriate. The Australian Federal Police also have a Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Team which contains experts in both adult sexual assault and child abuse. The Department of Disability, Housing and Community Services also funds caseworker support to people affected by domestic violence and their participation in an integrated and coordinated criminal justice and community response to family violence.
• High-priority categories for urgent housing include women and children who have experienced domestic and family violence. The Department of Disability, Housing and Community Services has set a target that 85 per cent of applicants will receive housing within three months (the current average to date is 60 days).
• Several programs funded through the Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP) including:
  • the ACT Debt Review, which collaborated with the Department of Disability, Housing and Community Services to better respond to victims of domestic violence and vulnerable tenants who have incurred debt through the misbehaviour of others (such as property damage as a result of violence). The Commission has discretionary power to waive accrued debt for women who have experienced domestic violence;
  • the Domestic Violence Christmas Initiative, which is a collaborative project between government and the sector to meet increased need for services over Christmas. It involves injecting an extra 1,000 beds during Christmas for people in crisis. This program started in 2005-06 in recognition of the increase in demand for crisis accommodation services over the Christmas/New Year period. It provides interim crisis accommodation for six weeks to women and children escaping domestic violence. An extra 1,197 bed nights were provided in 2006-07. The Domestic Violence Crisis Service manages the intake to the properties, which enable women and children to be supported and accommodated after-hours, with the SAAP service providers taking over support the next day. In 2007-08, the department gave $64,000 to nine families in crisis through this program;
  • women’s refuges and women’s services;
  • the Couch Surfing Program, which is an innovative program to provide young homeless people who have not entered the SAAP crisis accommodation system with alternative housing options. It is likely that some of these young people have experienced or witnessed domestic and family violence and or sexual assault. It has a particular focus on young people who are couch surfing with friends, relatives or other people. Alternatives to the ‘refuge roundabout’ prevent young people’s adaptation to homelessness and the homelessness system that often occurs within weeks of entering the crisis system.

  The program is designed to provide flexible, individual support to the family or person who is supporting the young couch surfer or to the young person. This support can include direct counselling, information and referral, and liaising with schools and health providers. There is a brokerage component to allow for the purchase or provision of items that will help the young person or the family/person to maintain the relationship and or strengthen the young person’s capacity for independence. The program aligns with the ACT Homelessness Strategy and the Youth Homelessness Action Plan. It is managed by Barnardo’s, and is an important link to the non-profit sector.

• The Domestic Violence Crisis Service provides crisis support for people in the ACT affected by domestic violence. It is the primary crisis response for women and their children experiencing violence and works closely with SAAP to ensure a smooth transition from the immediate crisis to supported accommodation. The service is a critical participant in the Christmas Domestic Violence Program. In conjunction with the Department of Disability, Housing and Community Services, it assesses and upgrades the security of properties. In the ACT, there is a four per cent turn-away rate for emergency accommodation. The department partners with the service to provide a Brokerage Fund that allocates 300 bed nights (in hotels) annually when other forms of crisis accommodation are unavailable. About $1.23 million was allocated to the service in 2007-08.
• ATSIS Integrated Family Support Program is a partnership between the Department of Disability, Housing and Community Services, ACT Health, and the Department of Education and Training and non-government providers in the ACT, targeting at-risk children in vulnerable families.
• Child and Family Centres are integrated services, bringing together government and non-government services in two ‘hubs’ to improve access to child and family services for vulnerable families. Their main aim is early intervention.
• Young People Outreach Worker (also known as ‘Hope Opportunity and Choice’) is a partnership program between Domestic Violence Crisis Service and the Office of Children Youth and Family Support within the department. The initiative provides a service to young people in the care-and-protection system and youth-justice system, who are using violence in the home.
• Service Level Agreement with the Domestic Violence Crisis Service – includes formal case management meetings for joint clients and a streamlined intake process for child protection reports from the service.
• IMPACT (Integrated Multi-agencies for Parents and Children Together) is a coordination/case management service in partnership with ACT Health for pregnant women, their partners and their young children (less than two years old) who are clients of Mental Health ACT and/or are receiving opioid replacement therapy and require assistance to manage their involvement with multiple services. Many of these families are experiencing significant family violence.
• Education programs and policies are in place, such as:
  • Providing Safe Schools policy;
  • Countering Bullying, Harassment and Violence in ACT Public Schools policy;
  • Countering Sexual Harassment in ACT Public Schools policy;
  • Complex Needs Team for students with significant behaviour difficulties;
  • School Counselling service;
  • Youth Education Support;
  • Youth Work Program focusing on youth who have disengaged from schooling;
  • Interagency programs such as the Turnaround Program for students with multi-agency involvement to better coordinate their case management, and the Children’s and Youth Interagency Network (CYIN) – a collaborative interagency network which develops flexible plans for at-risk students by utilising a full range of government and non-government programs.
• Justice programs administered by the Department of Justice and Community Safety/ACT Police include:
  • Sexual Assault Response Program;
  • Victims Support Program;
  • Wipe Out Program – involves police working with abusers;
  • What About Me Program;
  • The Australasian (Domestic Violence) Policing Strategy.
• Health policies and services administered by the Department of Health/Community Health include:
  • Family Violence Policy – working to ensure that safety/issues, including children’s, are considered when women present to agencies seeking assistance;
  • the Women’s Health Service – provides a free, accessible, ongoing counselling service for women who experience abuse. The service also offers advice on survival skills for women who stay in abusive relationships;
  • the Child at Risk Protection Unit – offers forensic and regular health checks for children.

5.2.6 Prosecution

The ACT’s prosecution environment for domestic and family violence centres on the Domestic Violence and Protection Orders Act 2001, which covers applications for protection orders, conditions governing protection orders, and characteristics of final orders, interim orders, emergency orders and reciprocal arrangements. Schedule 1 lists the domestic violence offences contained within the Crimes Act 1900, including the provision number within the Act. The ACT also offers circle sentencing for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Other key legislation includes the:

• Crimes (Restorative Justice) Act 2004, which provides victims with a forum that focuses on their experiences. In particular, the Act aims to:
  • enhance the rights of victims by providing restorative justice as a way of empowering them to make decisions about reparation;
  • set up a system of restorative justice that brings together victims, offenders and their personal supporters in a carefully managed, safe environment;
  • ensure that the interests of victims are given high priority in the administration of restorative justice under the Act;
  • enable access to restorative justice at every stage of the criminal justice process without substituting for the criminal justice system or changing the normal process of criminal justice;
  • empower agencies that have a role in the criminal justice system to refer offences for restorative justice.
• Domestic Violence and Protection Orders Act 2008 is to commence on 30 March 2009. This Act provides broad relationship definitions to capture the variety of relationships (for example, boyfriend/girlfriend relationships, where they are not living together).
• Children and Young People (Consequential Amendments) Act 2008 reforms the law relating to children and young people in the ACT, particularly in the areas of care and protection, youth justice, the regulation of childcare services and employment. It will replace the Children and Young People Act 1999.
• Sexual and Violent Offences Legislation Amendment Act 2008 is to commence in June 2009.
• Domestic Violence Agencies Act 1986 establishes the Domestic Violence Prevention Council and describes its objective and functions, its membership and details-of-meeting procedures. It also establishes the Office of Domestic Violence Project Coordinator and explains its functions and terms of office.
• Crimes Act 1900 – Part 2 of this Act deals with offences against the person including assault, murder, manslaughter, stalking, kidnapping, and threat to kill. Part 3 deals with sexual offences. Part 10, Division 10.2, Section 192 ‘Seizure of firearms-protection orders’ details police powers to enter a premise and seize firearms, ammunition or a license to possess a firearm.

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173. ACT Office for Women, ACT Women’s Plan, ACT Government, Canberra, 2003.
174. ACT Inter-agency Coordinating Committee, Family Violence Intervention Program in the ACT, ACT Government, Canberra, 2008, viewed November 2008.