By Emily Chapman Laing
Family violence is on the rise in Casey, and those aged 25-44 are at the highest risk of being both victim and perpetrator.
The City of Casey ranked highest for family violence incidents in Victoria in the year ending March 2023, with a total of 5417 reported cases.
Casey has seen a 16.5 per cent increase in reported family incidents since 2019.
Nearby government areas have also seen an increase, with Cardinia Shire reporting a 24.9 per cent surge and the City of Greater Dandenong experiencing an 11.3 per cent rise.
Family violence affects all ages, but in all three municipalities, those in the bracket of 25-44 years of age take the largest percentage for those affected and those responsible.
In Casey, this age group makes up 52.5 per cent of those affected and 55.9 per cent of other parties involved.
Those 24-years-old and under make up 19 per cent of affected individuals in Casey, and 20.3 per cent of those offending.
Those 45 and over were victims in 27.2 per cent of cases and perpetrators in 22.2 per cent of cases.
The data also shows a slight increase in the number of women affected by family violence in Casey.
In 2019, 73.4 per cent of victims were women.
This has now risen to 75 per cent in the year ending in 2023.
WAYSS General Manager Robyn Roberts said brokerage spending on women and children experiencing family violence in the Greater Dandenong, Casey and Cardinia areas grew significantly during the last financial year.
“Whilst much of this money is spent on motel accommodation there seemed to be a trend where women are seeking safety and security measures (personal and for their home) more frequently,“ she said.
“We don’t know why but think that this may be because women don’t want to leave the home as they know it because doing so in current difficult conditions will be the start of increased poverty and they are happier to sit with the family violence risk than leave to be broke and homeless.“
Other parties involved in the incidents are disproportionately represented by males.
The data shows a 14.9 per cent increase in the number of family incidents reporting male as the offending party.
At the same time, there has been a 28.3 per cent decrease in the number of female offenders.
In 2023, 75.2 per cent of offenders were male, while 24.8 per cent were female.
“Family violence is the most pervasive and common form of men’s violence against women in Victoria,“ said City of Casey Manager Connected Communities Sara Ball.
“Recognising that gender inequality drives violence against women, the City of Casey is committed to creating a safe and equal community for all residents, and is in the second year of implementing A Safe and Equal Casey: Gender Equality and Prevention of Violence Against Women Strategic Plan 2022-2032.
“This plan was developed in consultation with local residents, community organisations and sector experts and outlines how Council will deliver on its commitment to gender equality and prevent family violence, by addressing the underlying drivers of violence.“
The Andrews Government is funding six new research projects as part of Phase 2 in the Family Violence Research Program.
The $1.2 million package aims to develop “innovative solutions“ for best practice family violence intervention.
The investment builds on the $2.5 million provided under Phase 1 of the program in 2022.
The Victorian Government said research topics for Phase 2 will address “evidence gaps in priority research topics, including children and young people, multicultural communities and embedding lived experience in research“.
Members of the Victim Survivors’ Advisory Council have been part of the team developing and guiding the selection of research topics.
Successful project themes include access for children and young people to crisis accommodation, multicultural community services for family violence and a service feedback model with victim-survivors of sexual violence .
The six research projects will be conducted by five grant recipients – University of Melbourne, RMIT University, Deakin University, La Trobe University, and Monash University – partnering with 15 sector organisations and peak bodies.
“Informed by real-world experience and voices of victim survivors, these research projects will bring together universities, communities and the family violence, sexual violence and harm sectors to address evidence gaps and share learning which should inform best practice,“ said Minister for Prevention of Family Violence Ros Spence.
“The evidence will be used to tailor policies and programs which better support people and help put a stop to family violence in our communities.”
