Tuesday 5 May, 2026
Statement attributed to Carolyn Hodge, Acting CEO, DVNSW
As the peak body representing more than 200 specialist domestic violence services across NSW, we agree that there needs to be a significant increase of funding into the Domestic and Family Violence (DFV) sector to ensure specialist services can meet demand.
However, we don’t agree that moving to a public service model is an appropriate solution and find the timing of the Public Services Association campaign deeply disappointing, particularly as NSW heads into a critical state budget period and the specialist DFV sector is united in calling for a 50% increase to core funding.
This campaign undermines 50 years of specialist, trauma and domestic violence-informed service delivery to victim-survivors. It risks dismantling an existing system that, while underfunded, already reaches thousands of victim-survivors every year.
There is no evidence that replacing the existing specialist sector with a single, centralised model would improve outcomes. Rather, transitioning to a single, government-run provider would be costly, highly disruptive, and would likely reduce service capacity in the short to medium term.
At a time when frontline services are stretched beyond breaking point, this campaign risks diverting attention from what actually saves lives. Services are already being asked to do more with less – with many operating at up to nine times their funded capacity after more than a decade of stagnant funding.
That issue is exacerbated in regional areas where services and victim-survivors face compounding issues such as geographical isolation, vast service delivery areas and structural barriers. This too, is a significant funding issue, one felt across many sectors like health and justice, not exclusive to the domestic violence sector. Our research shows that country areas require up to nine times the funding of a metro service to overcome these barriers.
Greater impact is far more likely to be achieved by properly funding and strengthening the specialist DFV sector that is already in place.
It’s not accurate to suggest that NGO or community-based DFV services are unregulated or lack accountability. The current system already embeds multiple layers of oversight, including contractual and legislative requirements.
For many victim-survivors, particularly Aboriginal women, there is a well-founded mistrust of government systems due to ongoing experiences of systemic racism and the legacy of policies that have contributed to the over-surveillance and removal of children. Fear of child protection services and policing remains a significant barrier to seeking help. Independent services often act as trusted points of engagement – removing that independence can reduce help-seeking.
This proposal risks shifting focus away from what we know works. It overlooks decades of evidence and could undermine specialist services, as well as the independence that is critical to system accountability and victim-survivor trust.
Alongside our members, we are united in our aim to end domestic and family violence. If we believed this approach would get us there, we would support it. The reality is we know what’s needed, there is decades of research across the country and internationally.
In NSW, the priority must be strengthening the specialist DFV sector so it can meet demand. That means a 50% increase in core funding to ensure victim-survivors can access timely, specialist support when they need it most.
Without that, we risk further entrenching the very crisis we are all working to end.