Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence Minister Simone McGurk has announced a package of funding initiatives to address family and domestic violence and improve community safety in the Kimberley region.
Ms McGurk met with members of the Kimberley Joint Response and West Kimberley Family and Domestic Violence Response teams in Broome today, to discuss their work and rollout of the additional resources.
The initiatives have been funded through the WA Recovery Plan, which includes $28.1 million in additional supports for victims of family and domestic violence across Western Australia.
The support package includes increased funding for the Kimberley's family and domestic violence response teams, with two extra community sector workers to bolster responses to police call-outs that are related to family and domestic violence.
The State's family and domestic violence response teams, which received a total of
$6.7 million for 17 additional staff across regional and metropolitan areas, are a partnership between the Department of Communities, WA Police and the community services sector.
As part of the Government's $8.6 million commitment to employ 23 additional outreach workers in the State's women's refuges, two extra outreach workers will be funded to enable Kimberley refuges and safe houses to provide additional support to women and children experiencing or at further risk of family and domestic violence.
They will expand on the valuable work that the region's outreach workers do to support women and children once they leave a refuge.
A further $2.6 million will extend the Kimberley Family Violence Service trial by two years.
The Department of Communities will be seeking proposals to develop place-based, evidence-based family violence interventions that are flexible, culturally responsive, informed by local needs and designed by or in partnership with Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations.
Six refuges and safe houses in Broome, Kununurra, Derby, Fitzroy Crossing, Halls Creek and Wyndham will also be supported by $150,000 in Commonwealth funding top-ups, in acknowledgement of resourcing pressures experienced due to COVID-19.
These services will also each receive $10,000 for additional casual child support workers, to help minimise the impact of violence on children and young people accompanying mothers in family and domestic violence crisis accommodation.
Delivery of the increased funding supports is being guided by the State Government's long-term strategy to address family and domestic violence across WA, Path to Safety: Western Australia's strategy to reduce family and domestic violence 2020-2030.
As stated by Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence Minister Simone McGurk:
"Family and domestic violence has had devastating impacts on the health and wellbeing of families in our regions over many years.
"These additional funds to address family and domestic violence in the Kimberley, delivered as part of the WA Recovery Plan, respond to identified need in the community and will help to ensure that people experiencing violence can get the help they need, when they need it.
"Earlier this year, State Parliament passed a comprehensive law reform package through our Family Violence Legislation Reform Bill, which was the culmination of a significant collaborative effort across government, police, the legal system and other key agencies.
"The reforms were designed to increase protections for victims of family and domestic violence and ensure that perpetrators are held to account.
"We recognise that we need to do things differently if we want to have an impact on domestic violence in the Kimberley.
"The McGowan Government is committed to supporting victims of family and domestic violence and will continue to work across a range of areas to keep women and children safe - in their own homes and out in the community."
