Page 572 - Week 02 - Thursday, 24 March 2022
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Council be supported to deliver such effective leadership and governance. These reforms will achieve this. The reforms proposed in this bill will revitalise the scope and membership of the Domestic Violence Prevention Council to further align the council with the contemporary domestic and family violence landscape in the ACT.
The amendments clarify the Domestic Violence Prevention Council’s remit, purpose and focus to reinvigorate the council’s objective and functions. The Domestic Violence Prevention Council’s clarified objective will be to provide advice—to myself as Minister for the Prevention of Domestic and Family Violence—that identifies gaps and opportunities in the ACT’s responses to domestic and family violence to enable constant improvement of our responses. The council will also function as a conduit between the community sector and government, enabling greater collaboration and integration.
The bill also introduces a new membership model for the council. This is made up of identified and standing members who have extensive experience in, knowledge of, and connectedness to, domestic and family violence responses, including service delivery, advocacy, policy and research. This new membership structure brings together experience and expertise across government and non-government organisations and our diverse Canberra community to guide our response to domestic and family violence.
To ensure that the Domestic Violence Prevention Council hears and responds to diverse and intersectional voices, the bill also enables the Domestic Violence Prevention Council to establish and convene reference groups. This will ensure the council can engage directly with diverse groups across the Canberra community and undertake focused work on identified themes. This will include continued engagement with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander reference group.
These reforms will enhance the Domestic Violence Prevention Council’s capacity to serve as a statutory leadership and governance body driving collaboration between government and the community sector to provide strategic guidance which informs and improves our response to domestic and family violence. The reformed council will be able to provide whole-of-government and sector-wide approaches to responding to and preventing domestic and family violence, supporting victims-survivors and providing intervention for perpetrators. This strong sector leadership and clear source of guidance is absolutely critical as we build a more cohesive and integrated response to domestic and family violence.
The need for reform is even more pressing given the increased demands and complexities that services are experiencing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. As we know, domestic and family violence increases in occurrence, severity and complexity during and after lockdowns. To assist our critical domestic and family violence services to respond to these increasing challenges and to support victims-survivors across our community, clear leadership through the Domestic Violence Prevention Council is required.
This bill is a vital part of the ACT government’s broader work to prevent and respond to domestic and family violence and build a Canberra community that is safe for all.
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