Specialist domestic and family violence services have a long history of providing invaluable support to women and children experiencing, or at risk of, domestic and family violence. Services are highly skilled in the provision of advocacy, risk assessment, risk management, safety planning, counselling and a range of other services that support victim safety and perpetrator accountability. They place the needs of victim-survivors at the centre of their practice.
Specialist domestic and family violence services are designed for all women, from diverse backgrounds and individual experiences, and there are culturally secure specialist services available.
There are a diverse range of specialist domestic and family violence services that provide crisis and ongoing services for women and their children throughout Western Australia. Some commonly available services include:
In Western Australia there are also a range of men’s programs and support services for men who use violence. For more information on these programs please visit the Stopping Family Violence website. Stopping Family Violence is the peak body, non-for-profit organisation in Western Australia developed to support all sectors and services involved in responding to perpetrators of domestic and family violence.
Victim-survivors have quite a few options, from obtaining a Family Violence Restraining Order to staying in a women’s refuge, exploring options with specialist agencies who provide advocacy, support and counselling, or making an anonymous call to a crisis line such as 1800 RESPECT.
Are an available option if it’s not an emergency and someone requires support.
These numbers are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
This 24-hour national sexual assault, family and domestic violence counselling line for any Australian who has experienced, or is at risk of, family and domestic violence and/or sexual assault.
Provides support and counselling for women experiencing family and domestic violence (including referrals to women’s refuges)Call 08 9223 1188 Call 1800 007 339 (free call)
Information and counselling service for people in crisis needing urgent help.
Call 1800 199 008
Provides a range of free services to people affected by sexual violence.
Provides counselling and referrals for male perpetrators, as well as male victims of family and domestic violence. Call 08 9223 1199 Call 1800 000 599 (free call)
24/7 support for men and boys dealing with family and relationship difficulties. Support for men who are concerned that their behaviour is hurting the people they care about.
Call 1300 78 99 78
If you are assisting someone who does not speak English, first call the Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS) on 13 14 50. They can connect you with the service of your choice and interpret for you.
Please note there may be a cost associated with this service. More information is available from www.tisnational.gov.au
Women’s refuges provide a safe place to stay for women and their children. These are located across Western Australia and they provide safety, support, advocacy, access to counselling and legal support, and other resources to help women and their children.
Specialist domestic and family violence services are also available in Perth and regionally. They offer a variety of support, advocacy and counselling services.
Technology can be used by victim-survivors to increase safety and privacy.
It can also be misused by perpetrators to harass, abuse, or harm victims and/or survivors.
Find information, including resources and toolkits, related to technology-facilitated abuse and safety at www.wesnet.org.au or the eSafety
Financial abuse is widespread.
Learn more about rebuilding from financial abuse and supports available from www.moneysmart.gov.au/financial-abuse or www.yourtoolkit.com.au
Find state-specific legal information related to family violence restraining orders, child custody, your rights, immigration, and more.
Legal Aid WA www.legalaid.wa.gov.au, Aboriginal Family Law Service www.afls.org.au or Women’s Legal Service WA www.wlswa.org.au or seek out your local community legal centre.
Elder abuse supports and resources can be found at www.cotawa.org.au/elder-abuse
Our key work is to build and maintain our role as a key co-design partner of the domestic and family violence services system, advocate for further development and system reform, and support domestic and family violence sector development and engagement. We provide a coordinated voice to improve outcomes in the prevention of, and response to, violence against women and their children. Our work is based on a feminist philosophy, that is, gender-based violence is largely a product of historical, socially constructed gender roles; specifically, notions of masculinity and the political, economic and social factors that give men power over women.
The Centre for Women’s Safety and Wellbeing does not deliver direct services.
We engage with the specialist domestic and family violence sector to ensure services have the capabilities needed to deliver positive community outcomes and collaborate to achieve greater collective impact. We develop mechanisms to ensure that the voices of victim-survivors are heard and inform the development of best practice, and the evolving domestic and family violence system.
We work as a key partner with the WA Government and other stakeholders to implement Path to Safety, Western Australia’s Strategy to Reduce Family and Domestic Violence. Our work is underpinned by the understanding that the responsibility for preventing and responding to domestic and family violence goes beyond specialist family and domestic violence services and requires a whole of system, whole-of-government approach and an integrated family and domestic violence system.
We recognise domestic and family violence is an intersectional issue driven by complex hierarchies of power, privilege and oppression with far-reaching impacts that reinforce structural disadvantage and marginalisation. We listen, learn from and respond to communities who face particular challenges and whose experiences of violence are shaped by intersecting factors.
Sarah Brown AM is the Chief Executive Officer of Purple House and has been helping the Indigenous Directors to run the organisation since its inception more than twenty three years ago.
Sarah holds a Master of Nursing, a Graduate Diploma in Aboriginal Education, and a Graduate Diploma in Health Service Management. Prior to joining Purple House, she was a remote area nurse and university lecturer.
Sarah has been recognised in many ways for the work she does, being named Hesta’s Australia’s Nurse of the Year in 2017, being listed as one of BOSS magazine’s ‘True Leaders’ in 2018, and in 2020 Sarah received an Order of Australia Medal for “her significant service to community health, remote nursing and Indigenous communities”.
Professor Louise Keogh is a leading voice across women’s health and reproductive rights in Australia. Louise is Deputy Director of the Centre for Health Equity and Chair of the Hallmark Research Initiative in Reproductive Justice at the University of Melbourne.
Louise’s work explores issues that matter deeply to women, and includes the decriminalisation of abortion, contraception, voluntary assisted dying and the growing role of genetics in cancer prevention. Her work aims to make healthcare more equitable, accessible, and responsive to women’s needs.
Louise works with clinicians, policymakers, and communities to translate research into practical change in healthcare practice and policy. She is passionate about fostering open, thoughtful conversations about women’s health, particularly where ethics, rights and emerging technologies intersect.
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