ECEC on the frontline in new Family Violence strategy in NSW

Early learning settings will join workplaces and sporting clubs in being ‘on the frontlines’ when it comes to combating family violence and creating safer communities for women and children in New South Wales. 

Launched on Friday 13 September, the new strategy aims to ‘stop violence before it starts’ and alter community perceptions about community attitudes, allocating more than $38 million in funding, with a separate allocation for early childhood. 

In the early learning space an additional $8.8 million has been allocated to expand the early childhood ‘all-in’ pilot which empowers early learning professionals and families to actively challenge the gender stereotypes which drive gender-based violence.

For schools, specialist respectful relationship educators will support NSW teachers to deliver age-appropriate and evidence-informed respectful relationship education.

“When young people are taught in their early formative years about resilience, respect and safety in relationships, it has an incredible impact on the people they grow up to become,” NSW Education Minister Prue Car said.

“When you teach a child respect and resilience at an early age, and build their self-esteem, it becomes a part of the fabric of who they are.”

The strategy was developed in consultation with more than 200 individuals and organisations, including Domestic Violence NSW, Aboriginal stakeholders and Our Watch.

It identifies three priorities for prevention including progressing prevention in priority settings such as schools and sporting clubs and providing centralised support to prevention efforts across the state.

Aboriginal-led prevention will also be supported, with Aboriginal women in NSW eight times more likely than the general public to be victims.

Premier Chris Minns noted several domestic violence attacks as well as the high-profile femicidal stabbing in Bondi Junction as being indicative of the need for urgent responses from the government. 

“This framework will be the foundation of our efforts to not just respond to violence once it has occurred, but to stop it before it starts,” he said.

An evaluation of the primary prevention work will be published annually by the NSW Women’s Safety Commissioner Dr Hannah Tonkin, with the NSW government’s approach coming a week after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced a $4.7 billion package backed by the national cabinet to fund critical services.

That package includes $351 million of federal funds for a national partnership on domestic violence prevention, to be matched by the states and territories.