Call 000 in an emergency or if you or someone else is in immediate danger.
Family violence has a serious impact on our communities, workplaces, families and individuals. Family violence increases the risk of depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress and other health related issues.
Murrindindi Shire Council is committed to prevention of all forms of violence, including family violence and gender-based violence.
In Australia, 1 in 3 women have experienced physical violence since the age of 15. Evidence shows that women with disabilities, LGBTQIA+ and gender diverse people, pregnant women, women from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, older women, First Nations women, women with mental illness and affected by substance abuse are more likely to experience violence. This is why everyone has an important role to play in the prevention of violence against women.
Call 000 in an emergency or if you or someone else is in immediate danger.
Asking for help is never easy, but there are services and resources available to help. Whether you need support personally, for your family or for a loved one, we're here to help connect you to specialised professionals.
Explore the list below for more information.
The Orange Door (Goulburn)
The Orange Door is a way for women, children and young people who are experiencing family violence or families who need assistance with the care and wellbeing of children to access the services they need to be safe and supported.
The Orange Door also works with people who use violence to help them change their behaviour. This is a free service. The Orange Door Goulburn provides services to people living in Moira, Greater Shepparton, Strathbogie, Mitchell and Murrindindi Shires.
Get in touch with the Orange Door between 9.00 am and 5.00 pm Monday to Friday, by calling 1800 634 245 or emailing goulburn@orangedoor.vic.gov.au
For after-hours support, call Safe Steps on 1800 015 188.
If you have been threatened or you are fearful for yourself, a child or family members, please call 000 Emergency or Police.
Safe Steps Family Violence Response Centre
Safe Steps Family Violence Response Centre is Victoria’s state-wide first response service for women, young people and children experiencing family violence. The safe steps 24/7 response phone line connects callers with specialist support workers who can help them explore their options, develop a safety plan, access to support services and provide emergency accommodation.
Safe Steps operates at all hours, every day of the year. If you need support, contact them by calling 1800 015 188 or emailing safesteps@safesteps.org.au
Community Resources Guide to Family Violence
Murrindindi and Mitchell Shire Council's have collaborated to develop a Community Resource Guide to Family Violence.
The guide pulls together information about what family is, what the risk factors and warning signs look like, how to (and how not to) navigate conversations about family violence as well as a comprehensive list of support services available for both Shires as well as National support services.
This resource is available for free download here and will also be available for free in hard copy at various locations in both Shires. In Murrindindi Shire, you can find the guide at Council Library and Customer Service Locations (Alexandra, Kinglake and Yea). We are also distributing copies to various local businesses. If you have any queries or wish to make the guide available at your business, please contact us.
The Community Resources Guide to Family Violence provides:
- information about what family violence is
- help to understand and identify the signs of family violence
- suggestions on respectfully responding to disclosures of family violence
- information about Family Violence Leave entitlements for those in employment
- list of resources and services that are available to support community members
Download the Community Resource Guide to Family Violence
Call 000 in an emergency or if you or someone else is in immediate danger.
It is never easy to talk about family violence. Refer to pages 5 and 6 of the Community Resource Guide to Family Violence for tips on how to speak with someone about family violence and/or how to sensitively handle disclosures of family violence.
The most important thing you can do is let the person impacted know you are there to support them. You can play an important role in someone’s journey to safety.
Other disclosure resources
The 1800 RESPECT guide covers how to respond to people who have been impacted by family and sexual violence.
Quick disclosure roadmap
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Believe the person's experience
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Thanks for sharing your experience with me
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That sounds like a terrible experience
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I imagine it has taken a lot of courage for you to share your story with me
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Condemn the use of violence, but not the person using violence
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No one should have to experience what you have been through
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Be open and honest, including about your skills and knowledge
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I don’t have any special training in helping people with experiences like yours, but I can give you contact details for people who do
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Establish whether there is an immediate risk to the safety of the person disclosing, their children or anyone else
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Do you feel safe going home tonight? Are you concerned about this person hurting you today?
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Provide options for the person to seek specialist support if required (sometimes a person just wants you to know and understand that this has occurred and is not necessarily looking for assistance)
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I would like to make sure you know where you can get support from trained people; can I provide you with contact details for 1800RESPECT?
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Enable the person to be in control of their decisions. Recognise that it may be more than one conversation for the time to be right for them to seek support.
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What you choose to do with this information is up to you, but I can provide you with contact details for a free specialist service you can contact if you need to
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Provide information on how a person can access referral information. Include a copy of this guide, access to a computer/phone.
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Helpful statements and questions
- What you have described sounds like it could be [a form of] family violence (name it).
- I can understand this might be difficult for you to talk about.
- I am concerned about you and would like to help/support you where I can.
- You (and your kids) deserve to be safe.
- When you said earlier that your partner lashes out at you (or whatever behaviour they’ve described), I’m wondering if you can tell me what that means?
- A family violence service might be able to help you feel safer – would you like me to help you make contact?
- Whatever you choose to do, I am here to support you.
Important to note
- Listen without interruption or judgement. Allow them to speak at their own pace and in their own words.
- Reflect back that the violence is not their fault and it’s never justifiable.
- Believe and validate their experiences.
- Provide information that will support the victim survivor to make their own choices (as much as possible) in what happens next.
- Do not try to figure out why they are experiencing family violence, as this can be experienced as victim-blaming.
The person experiencing family violence might not be ready to take action straight away. They might choose to stay, or they may need more time to make a plan that is right for them. It is important to respect the affected person’s decisions. Be open and honest that you are not a counsellor and do not have skills or training in dealing with disclosures of violence. Let them know about specialist family violence services that can offer professional support.
When supporting someone who may be experiencing family violence, it can be emotionally challenging, so taking care of yourself is essential. Remember to set healthy boundaries by prioritising your own well-being. While your support is valuable, you are not responsible for solving the situation. If you find yourself needing extra support, you can call 1800 RESPECT in the first instance.
The Free from Violence Local Government Program
The Free from Violence Local Government Program (FFVLGP) supports councils to embed gender equality and family violence prevention practices into their work and the programs and services they deliver. Murrindindi Shire Council was one of 15 Councils to be awarded funding under the 2022-25 program.
The FFVLGP aims to increase awareness and understanding across Victorian councils of the drivers of family violence and all forms of violence against women, and how to stop this violence before it starts in Victorian communities; as well as supporting selected Victorian councils to promote positive attitudes, behaviours and culture change in their workplace and through the programs and services they deliver, to prevent family violence and all forms of violence against women.
Primary prevention in Murrindindi Shire
So far, the FFVLGP has supported Murrindindi Shire Council to deliver the following resources and initiatives:
- Internal capacity building awareness raising through attitudinal surveys; mandatory staff training and internal working groups.
- Regular newspaper pieces and radio segment (‘A Little Respect’) which creates space for conversations in our community about important topics related to relationships, gender equality and family violence prevention.
- Community events to bring together men (and others) to destigmatise conversations about social pressures to conform to the ‘man box’ and how to move beyond entrenched ideas about gender to create a community free from violence for everyone.
- Community Resource Guide to Family Violence, which helps us all understand what family violence is, what to look out for, how to sensitively respond when someone discloses they are experiencing family violence, and a comprehensive list of resources and support services available to our community.
- Free From Violence Activity cards, that make understanding concepts related to gender equality and family violence easier to understand and engage with. Order your own deck of FFV activity cards.
- Council actively supports the international 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence campaign, that commences on 25 November and concludes on 10 December each year. The campaign encourages individuals and organisations to call for the prevention and elimination of violence against women and girls. To learn more about current events and initiatives, please visit What's On - Murrindindi Shire Council and search for 16 Days.
We continue to work with various community organisations to support them to increase fluency in these areas, and to promote sustainable prevention initiatives long after the FFVLGP ends. We encourage to you connect with our Free From Violence Project Officer on communitydevelopment@murrindindi.vic.gov.au if you have interest in this space and want to chat more about how you could get involved.