Who is leading the change
- Family Safety Victoria
The Victorian Government ensure funding of specialist family violence and sexual assault services to facilitate their collaboration by:
- promoting and, if necessary, resourcing shared casework models
- establishing secondary consultation pathways
- participating in the recommended Support and Safety Hubs
- developing guidelines and protocols for facilitating information sharing
- participating in joint education and training
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Our response to the Royal Commission into Family has supported greater collaboration and better coordination between family violence and sexual assault services across a number of areas of reform. Key areas of focus include:
- identification of interdependencies and opportunities to strengthen collaboration through mapping and consultation with family violence and sexual assault services
- implementation of the Family Violence Multi Agency Risk Assessment and Management (MARAM) Framework, considering the interrelated roles and responsibilities of sexual assault services
- reform of the information sharing regime with sexual assault services as a prescribed organisation within the legislation
- development of The Orange Door network with opportunities to build greater understanding about the occurrence of sexual assault in the context of family violence.
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Work undertaken to support this recommendation has established a strong foundation for collaboration and alignment between specialist family violence and sexual assault services. A range of reforms will continue to strengthen and build on the foundational work done in response to this recommendation, including:
- development of a 10-year whole of Victorian government strategy to prevent and address sexual violence, abuse and harm
- development of training for specialist family violence workers that will improve their capacity to identify and respond to sexual violence
- development of tools and resources to support shared approaches where family and sexual violence co-occur
- strengthening the interface between sexual assault services and family violence services including The Orange Door network
- strengthened shared risk assessment, information sharing and joint case work practice between family violence and sexual assault services.
Sexual Assault Services and Safe and , as the peak bodies for specialist sexual assault and family violence services, will continue to work collaboratively to ensure that this focus is sustained over time.
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Implemented.
Reviewed 27 January 2023