New research reveals critical gaps in family violence support for young Victorians
New research has revealed young people experiencing family, domestic and intimate partner violence are consistently falling through the gaps of adult-centric support services.
A decade after Victoria’s Royal Commission into Family Violence, experts say little has been done to make the system more accessible and safer for children, and are calling for the establishment of a dedicated digital national youth service.
The research, led by Dr Kate Fitz-Gibbon, is one of the first in-depth Australian qualitative studies on the experience of young victim-survivors of family violence. It was commissioned by Victoria’s 24/7 statewide family violence response centre, Safe Steps, which provides safety planning, risk assessment and crisis accommodation. Safe Steps also operates part of the 1800RESPECT national counselling and support service.
‘The experiences young victim-survivors shared for this research tells us clearly that Victoria’s crisis support systems are missing opportunities to identify risk and support earlier intervention,’ Dr Fitz-Gibbon said.
‘If we are serious about achieving the stated national goal of reducing family and domestic violence in one generation, we need to significantly uplift responses to young victim-survivors, including by supporting them to heal from trauma.’
The ‘Seeking help in their own right’ report found young victim-survivors sometimes fail to access help when they are not accompanied by an adult, and where they seek help independently from their parents – this is particularly fraught in instances where the parent may be using violence.
The report also found:
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In some cases, effective intervention for young victim-survivors often only came after a significant escalation of risk or harm.
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Young people struggled to find services and information that were accessible, age appropriate and relevant to them.
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School-based education on family violence and respectful relationships was often described as superficial or absent, failing to meet the needs of young victim-survivors.
‘More than 11 years after the horrific killing of Luke Batty, there is still much work to be done to improve early intervention and system responses for child victims of family violence,’ Dr Fitz-Gibbon said.
CEO of Safe Steps, Dr Chelsea Tobin, highlighted the urgency of the findings and the need for structural change in how the crisis response sector responds to young people who seek help independently of an adult.
‘On any given night, 43 per cent of people Safe Steps places in crisis accommodation are under the age of 16. Children who experience family violence have unique needs, but what this research tells us is that they are repeatedly falling through cracks in a system not designed for them,’ Dr Tobin said.
Safe Steps is calling for the establishment of a dedicated national youth service for young people experiencing domestic, family and intimate partner violence.
‘The gaps in services for children and young people that have been highlighted in this research are not unique to Victoria. That’s why Safe Steps is calling for a national service to be created, co-designed with young people to embed specialised support in the digital spaces young people use,’ Dr Tobin said.
Dr Tobin said the next generation of help-seekers is less likely to dial a phone helpline when they have questions or need support.
‘We need to create a digital front door for young victim-survivors that connects them to traditional services. The crisis response supports available to young people need to change. If not, we risk family and domestic violence staying at devastating levels for another generation.’ Dr Tobin said.
