Be a voice for change

We use our voice to speak out on issues that affect the lives of the women and children we support.

As an organisation that sees the interconnection between family violence and mental health, we are well placed to see system gaps and consequences of policy decisions, and to advocate where we see improvements are needed. We use our knowledge of the lived experience of women and children, and where possible support them to speak directly about those experiences.

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Support us by raising awareness about what more needs to be done to make women and children safe.

Policy gaps and inadequate service provision can make life harder for women and children. We use our first-hand knowledge of what more needs to be done to advocate for systems as a whole to work together better. You can read more about our submissions and advocacy.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and lend your voice to support lasting change and real solutions.

We collaborate with other organisations to draw attention to areas where broader system issues are impinging on individual lives and outcomes.

Our submission to Victoria’s Royal Commission into Mental Health

The experiences of family violence, homelessness and trauma can have devastating consequences...

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Employment is a pathway out of family violence: our submission

Our submission to a Victorian Parliamentary Inquiry into disadvantaged jobseekers explained that financial independence helps women leave violent relationships

There are countless immediate, and longer-term, benefits for the community when women...

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The ‘Everybodys home’ campaign

Everyone needs a home.

But right now, Australia’s housing system is broken. A generation of homeowners has been priced out by investors. There is a shortage of secure, affordable rental properties. And more and more people are being pushed into homelessness.

But the good news is there are simple things our government can do to fix it, and make the system fairer for everyone.

This is why we’ve joined the Everybody’s Home campaign. Its aim is to see everyone working together to call on our government to implement the solutions needed to ensure everyone has a home.

 

Raise the rate

We have joined the Australian Council of Social Services’ campaign, calling on the government to raise the single rate of Newstart, Youth Allowance and related payments.

Over 800,000 people, including parents, carers, people with disability, other people locked out of paid work and students are struggling daily to afford basic essentials like a roof over their head and food on their table.

People are having to make tough choices between eating a meal and paying a bill, buying shoes for their children and maintaining their health.

It is nearly impossible to look for paid work if you are homeless and hungry.

Newstart has not increased in real terms in 24 years, but the cost of essentials has drastically increased.

Already there are 3 million people living in poverty in Australia, including over 730,000 children.

It is time for government to Raise the Rate.