- A tender is now open for domestic and family violence (DFV) specialist service providers to apply to be part of the new co-response trial in partnership with the Queensland Police Service (QPS).
- The trial will commence in early 2024 and continue until June 2026.
Police and domestic and family violence (DFV) service practitioners will soon be joining forces in Cairns with the tender for the co-response model now open.
Announced earlier this year in response to recommendation 37 by the Women’s Safety and Justice Taskforce first report, the collaboration will involve domestic and family violence specialist practitioners working alongside police seven days a week.
The Palaszczuk Government is now seeking a domestic and family violence specialist service provider to partner with police to deliver the trial, which will begin in early 2024 and continue until mid-2026.
The model will adopt a crisis intervention and early intervention approach for responding to domestic and family violence incidents, enabling the specialist service provider to respond at the same time as police involvement.
This will support the immediate needs of victim-survivors and persons using violence as well as provide DFV counselling and time-limited case management to identify, assess and plan for the broader range of support needs to ensure a holistic response.
The services will work together to improve victim-survivor safety by better identifying and responding to patterns of behaviour over time that constitute domestic and family violence, taking into consideration the relationship as a whole.
Specialist workers will also be able to assist police in gathering evidence, improving perpetrator accountability, as well as reducing the risk of misidentification of the person most in need of protection.
The government is continuing to deliver on the recommendations of the Women’s Safety and Justice Taskforce and the Commission of Inquiry into QPS responses to domestic and family violence.
A second location will start late next year and will be informed by the outcomes of the trial in Cairns.
Services can apply on the QTenders website until 2pm 28 November 2023: https://qtenders.epw.qld.gov.au/qtenders//
Quotes attributable to the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice and Minister for the Prevention of Domestic and Family Violence Yvette D’Ath:
“The needs of domestic and family violence victim-survivors are complex, often requiring input and support from multiple services and agencies.
“Having a specialist domestic and family violence service provider alongside our police will bring a whole new skill set while responding to incidents, including providing that immediate support to victim-survivors, and assisting with the identification of the person most in need of protection.
“The co-responder model was an important recommendation of the Women’s Safety and Justice Taskforce’s report on addressing coercive control and domestic and family violence in Queensland.
“I want to thank the countless brave victim-survivors who shared their experiences with the Taskforce, and I want them to know that we hear you, we believe you and we are acting.
“I welcome the release of this tender and urge all specialist service providers to put their name forward to help make a difference in the Cairns area.”
Quotes attributable to the Police Minister Mark Ryan:
“The co-responder model has seen great success in both the youth justice space and when responding to mental health incidents.
“Eliminating DFV is a shared responsibility and I know police welcome the implementation of a co-response model when responding to DFV incidents.
“DFV is one of the most prevalent issues police respond to and the co-response provides the opportunity to provide support and services to victim-survivors at the point of crisis.”
Quotes attributable to Member for Cairns Michael Healy:
“Co-locating specialist DFV responders alongside Queensland Police presents an opportunity for victims to come forward and seek help with more confidence.
“These specialist DFV responders can assist Police gain an insight into some of the barriers to reporting abuse and I encourage providers across Cairns to submit a tender.
Quotes attributable to the Queensland Speaker and Member for Mulgrave Curtis Pitt:
“Domestic violence is a national crisis and happens in every corner of the Australian community.
“Anything we can do to better prevent the risk of harm and protect people’s rights, I fully support.”
