Policy Priority: Violence against women and their children
Policies, processes and programs for people with disability that promote gender equality and prevent violence against groups at heightened risk, such as woman and their children, are essential to improving the safety of people with disability.
The Strategy should be considered in conjunction with other plans such as the next National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022–2033 and the Safe & Supported: The National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children 2021–2031.
The purpose of the “Violence against women and their children” policy priority is to provide timely support to women and children with disability experiencing domestic and family violence who need assistance. There are 2 measures under this policy priority area:
- Access to safe and secure housing (updated)
- Experience of domestic violence (baseline added).
The updated measure is discussed below.
Measure: Access to safe and secure housing
People with disability may have a greater exposure to risk factors associated with homelessness than the general population. Domestic and family violence can result in people with disability, including those with severe or profound disability, seeking homelessness services (AIHW 2025).
Specialist homelessness services (SHS) provide accommodation-related and/or personal assistance to people who are experiencing or are at risk of homelessness. For more information, see Data Dictionary: Access to safe and secure housing.
The measure looks at the percentage of SHS clients with disability who experienced domestic and family violence who are provided assistance for accommodation when needed.
Access to safe and secure housing
Latest update: 76% (2023–24)
Baseline: 82% (2020–21)
Progress status: Regress
In 2023–24:
- 79% of First Nations clients with disability were provided assistance with accommodation when needed, and 75% of non-Indigenous clients
- 83% of clients aged 0–14 were provided assistance with accommodation when needed, compared with 71% in both the 15–24 and 45–64 age groups
- 82% of clients with disability from CALD backgrounds were provided assistance with accommodation when needed, compared with 75% among the non-CALD group
- 92% of clients with disability from Remote and very remote areas were provided assistance with accommodation when needed, compared with 69% in Inner regional areas.
Figure 4.2: Proportion of SHS clients with disability (all ages) experiencing domestic and family violence who are provided assistance for accommodation when needed, 2013–14 to 2023–24
The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of specialist homelessness services clients with disability (of all ages) experiencing family and domestic violence (FDV) who are provided assistance with accommodation when needed. Data from 2013–14 to 2023–24 are used. In 2023–24, 76% of clients with disability were provided assistance with accommodation when needed, compared with 87% in 2013–14.
| Year | Proportion (%) |
|---|---|
| 2013–14 | 87% |
| 2014–15 | 87% |
| 2015–16 | 84% |
| 2016–17 | 81% |
| 2017–18 | 81% |
| 2018–19 | 81% |
| 2019–20 | 82% |
| 2020–21 | 82% |
| 2021–22 | 79% |
| 2022–23 | 78% |
| 2023–24 | 76% |
Notes:
- A client is identified as experiencing family and domestic violence if in any support period during the reporting period:
- the client was formally referred from a non-Specialist Homelessness Services (SHS) family and domestic violence agency to an SHS agency, or
- 'family and domestic violence' was reported as a reason they sought assistance, or
- during any support period they required family or domestic violence assistance.
- A client is identified as having disability if they reported a limitation in core activities (self-care, mobility and/or communication) and also reported that they always or sometimes needed assistance with one or more of these core activities.
- 'Provided with assistance' means the client was provided with services at the agency at which they presented.
- Assistance for accommodation includes: short term or emergency accommodation, medium term/transitional housing, long-term housing, assistance to sustain tenancy or prevent tenancy failure or eviction, assistance to prevent foreclosures or for mortgage arrears.
- Data for 2013–14 to 2016–17 have been adjusted for non-response.Due to improvements in the rates of agency participation and Statistical Linkage Key (SLK) validity, data for 2017–18 onwards are not weighted. The removal of weighting does not constitute a break in time series and weighted data from 2011–12 to 2016–17 are comparable with unweighted data for 2017–18 onwards.
- The proportion of SHS clients without disability experiencing domestic and family violence who were provided assistance for accommodation needed has also decreased across the period 2013–14 to 2023–24 (from 85% to 74%).
- Disability status was unknown for 21% of SHS clients experiencing domestic and family violence who needed, and were provided with, accommodation assistance in 2013–14. Between 2014–15 and 2023–24, disability status was unknown for between 4.1% and 6.7% of clients experiencing domestic and family violence who needed assistance with accommodation.
Source: AIHW Specialist Homelessness Services Collection.
Source:
Specialist Homelessness Services Collection (SHSC).
|
Data source overview
For figure notes, see Appendix B: Figure notes and sources.
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