WHAT: Press conference re new approach to DV prevention
WHEN: Noon, May 5, 2026
WHERE: Tree of Truth, behind NSW Parliament House
WHO: Domestic Violence Survivors + DV Professionals
MORE INFO:
PSA: Domestic Violence Safety Must Be a Core Public Service, Not a Lottery
The Public Service Association of NSW (PSA) has launched a statewide campaign calling on the NSW Government to establish fully public, properly staffed domestic and family violence services delivered as a core government function alongside policing, housing, health and child protection.
The union says Australia’s domestic violence response is failing women despite record spending commitments, because services remain fragmented, inconsistent and too often outsourced.
A woman is killed every week in Australia by a current or former partner. More than half of all assaults, around 120,000 incidents every year, are domestic-violence related.
“Women are still being killed in their own homes. That is the most basic test of whether a system works, and right now the system is failing,” said Stewart LIttle, PSA General Secretary.
Last year federal and state governments committed $4.7 billion over five years following nationwide protests. But the PSA argues the problem is not only funding levels, it is how services are structured and delivered.
The union pointed to the killing of young mother Molly Ticehurst, allegedly by a former partner who was on bail for serious offences. Safety upgrades including security screens, lighting, CCTV and duress alarms had not been installed by a private provider weeks before her death.
“When safety is outsourced, accountability is outsourced,” Mr Little said.
“A domestic violence response should never depend on whether a contractor turns up.”
Domestic violence support in NSW largely relies on a patchwork of community-run refuges, and faith based NGOs many originating in the 1970s and historically sometimes staffed by volunteers. While vital, the PSA says they are under-resourced and inconsistent.
Refuges survive on short-term grants and fundraising, meaning services vary widely from suburb to suburb and town to town. Because they are not government agencies, oversight and consistency of service quality can be limited. And much valuable time and energy is lost applying for government grants and fundraising from the community.
“Right now protection depends on postcode” Mr Little said.
“Some women get comprehensive support. Others get a phone number and a waiting list.
“Safety should not be a postcode lottery.”
The PSA noted recent moves to bring previously privatised services back into government hands, including elements of child protection and hospital support systems, following cases of neglect and system failures. The deprivatisation of North Shore Hospital after the death of a toddler is a prime example.
The union is calling for Integrated Domestic and Family Violence Services to be rolled out across NSW, creating government-run “one-stop-shop” centres bringing together police, child protection, housing, health and specialist support workers.
NSW already operates a successful multi-agency model to protect children, the Joint Child Protection Response Program, which coordinates Police, Child Protection and NSW Health.
“The blueprint already exists,” Mr Little said.
“We know integrated public services save lives in child protection. Domestic violence victims deserve the same level of coordinated protection.”
The PSA says the government-run Mt Druitt Family Violence Service demonstrates what works. The centre, staffed by child protection professionals who liaise directly with police, has been described by Treasury Secretary Michael Coutts-Trotter as the “gold standard”.
“Domestic violence is not a niche welfare issue. It is a public safety issue,” Mr Little said.
“You would never outsource policing, and you would never crowd-fund a fire brigade. Domestic violence protection is just as fundamental. It must be core government business.”
Media Contact: Tim Brunero 0405 285 547
