❓ Hon Michelle Hofmann questions the Minister regarding the sufficiency of refuge capacity for family and domestic violence victims in WA, given the lack of up-to-date data on unmet demand. The Minister responds by highlighting government investment in crisis accommodation and other support services.
AnsweredQoN 525Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
Family and domestic violence—Refuges
525. Hon Michelle Hofmann to the minister
representing the Minister for Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence:
I refer to the
minister's response to the member for Vasse during estimates in the Legislative
Assembly on 2 July 2025 in which the minister confirmed there is no up-to-date
data on unmet demand for refuge beds in Western Australia.
(1)
Can the minister confirm whether existing refuge capacity is sufficient to meet
current demand?
(2)
If the answer to (1) is no, what steps is the government taking to address the
downfall?
525. Hon Michelle Hofmann to the minister
representing the Minister for Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence:
I refer to the
minister's response to the member for Vasse during estimates in the Legislative
Assembly on 2 July 2025 in which the minister confirmed there is no up-to-date
data on unmet demand for refuge beds in Western Australia.
(1)
Can the minister confirm whether existing refuge capacity is sufficient to meet
current demand?
(2)
If the answer to (1) is no, what steps is the government taking to address the
downfall?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the
honourable member for some notice of the question. The following response has
been provided by the Minister for Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence.
(1)–(2) As explained during estimates hearings
in the Legislative Assembly, data is collected nationally and is publicly
available. Since 2017, the state government has invested more towards the
prevention of family violence than any previous government. This includes
increasing crisis accommodation capacity by 41%. WA now has 45 refuges and safe
houses providing 315 crisis accommodation rooms or units per night. An
additional 88 units are in the pipeline for delivery over the next four years.
In addition
to crisis accommodation, the state government has invested in a range of community-based
supports and services and other types of legal responses to assist with supporting
victim-survivors to stay safely in their own home or to access safe accommodation.
This includes an amendment to the Residential Tenancies Act to enable
victim-survivors to remove themselves from a tenancy agreement or to seek to
have the perpetrator excluded from a tenancy agreement; family violence
restraining orders, which can prevent a perpetrator from accessing a home; Safe
at Home programs that work intensively with victim-survivors to enable them to remain
safely in their own home after the perpetrator has been removed; the Rapid ReHousing
and Family Housing programs, which support access to private rental
accommodation; the Safer Pathways program, which assists victim-survivors to
maintain public housing tenancies; brokerage or flexible support package funding,
held in multiple specialist services, which can support access to short-term
accommodation like hotels or motels; and domestic violence helplines, which can
also support access to short-term accommodation.
honourable member for some notice of the question. The following response has
been provided by the Minister for Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence.
(1)–(2) As explained during estimates hearings
in the Legislative Assembly, data is collected nationally and is publicly
available. Since 2017, the state government has invested more towards the
prevention of family violence than any previous government. This includes
increasing crisis accommodation capacity by 41%. WA now has 45 refuges and safe
houses providing 315 crisis accommodation rooms or units per night. An
additional 88 units are in the pipeline for delivery over the next four years.
In addition
to crisis accommodation, the state government has invested in a range of community-based
supports and services and other types of legal responses to assist with supporting
victim-survivors to stay safely in their own home or to access safe accommodation.
This includes an amendment to the Residential Tenancies Act to enable
victim-survivors to remove themselves from a tenancy agreement or to seek to
have the perpetrator excluded from a tenancy agreement; family violence
restraining orders, which can prevent a perpetrator from accessing a home; Safe
at Home programs that work intensively with victim-survivors to enable them to remain
safely in their own home after the perpetrator has been removed; the Rapid ReHousing
and Family Housing programs, which support access to private rental
accommodation; the Safer Pathways program, which assists victim-survivors to
maintain public housing tenancies; brokerage or flexible support package funding,
held in multiple specialist services, which can support access to short-term
accommodation like hotels or motels; and domestic violence helplines, which can
also support access to short-term accommodation.
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