Page 3656 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 24 November 2021
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Violence Crisis Service to improve responses to children and young people and their families experiencing domestic and family violence.
We recognise that we need to hold perpetrators accountable and we have committed $1.2 million in this budget to extend the Room4Change program, which is a men’s behavioural change program run by the Domestic Violence Crisis Service, with a residential component. Room4Change also supports partners and children to stay safely in the home.
We are committed to supporting people to leave violence. We are investing $817,000 over four years for additional support for women and children to leave violence, including continuing the Safer Families Assistance program, which provides $2,000 to support people to sustain or to re-establish a family home in the private market following the experience of family violence.
Through this financial year we will continue to expand and strengthen initiatives that are having a real impact for people experiencing domestic and family violence and we will continue to advocate in national forums for inclusive and effective approaches to domestic and family violence that centre on lived experience.
Madam Speaker, turning now to the women aspect of the budget, we know that gendered violence stems from a lack of gender equity. In addition to specific measures aimed at responding to domestic and family violence, the ACT government is committed to removing structural barriers that prevent women from fully participating in society.
Now, more than ever, there needs to be support for women as well as initiatives in place to address systematic causes of gender inequality. The longer term societal impacts of COVID-19, economic disadvantage, poverty and low income are more likely to be experienced by women than men. This can result in poorer health and wellbeing outcomes for women.
In this budget, $420,000 was allocated to continue the Women’s Return to Work Program. The program supports women who have been out of the workforce for an extended period of time due to caring responsibilities. It helps them prepare for, obtain and maintain employment with a one-off individual grant of up to $1,000. Madam Speaker, speaking as myself, Tara, I know people who have accessed this program and received support through these grants. They have been life changing. I commend Minister Berry and this budget allocation. It really changes people’s lives. We have also allocated $100,000 each year for four years for the Women’s Safety Grants program to support projects by community groups and organisations that make Canberra safer for women and children.
Initiatives in other portfolios demonstrate the government’s commitment to enabling full participation of women. For instance, in Australia, women are underrepresented in organised sport. This budget commits $1.6 million over four years to continue to support elite women’s sport in the territory by providing ongoing funding to the Canberra Capitals and Canberra United.
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