Core and Cluster Program

The Core and Cluster Program aims to achieve the following outcomes for women and children experiencing domestic and family violence:

• increased number of Aboriginal Community Controlled refuge accommodation options.
• access to Core and Cluster sites to women and their children with disability.
• increased capacity in the Specialist Homelessness Services program to support women and their children, particularly in areas with geographical needs and limited services access.
• offer support to women and their children in an environment that ensures dignity, security, safety, privacy and independence to foster healing and wellbeing.
• ensure Aboriginal families have access to culturally appropriate wrap-around support services and accommodation.
• provide child-friendly accommodation to support children recovering from trauma.
• allow women and their children to develop a routine in their own space, minimising disruptions to school and work.
• offer women and their children greater choice regarding support and accommodation they access, including the location of the accommodation, preventing the need to relocate away from their networks.
• increase the capacity for service providers to respond more flexibly to clients with different needs, cultural backgrounds and family composition.
• improve the capacity for service providers to address the complex needs of women and their children that may not be easily met due to the communal living arrangements of existing refuges.

Service delivery in Core and Cluster refuges is handled by non-government organisations that focus on domestic and family violence services.

Key aspects of service delivery include:

• intake and eligibility assessment.
• supported crisis accommodation with on-site assistance: 
  • direct case management support using a person-centred, trauma-informed and culturally safe approach.
  • post-crisis support (and follow up) or wrap-around case management support.
  • indirect support, including engagement with real estate agents, social housing providers and services such as legal assistance, counselling and employment support. 

Key referral pathways include:

• referrals from Link2home, a 24/7 state-wide information and referral service.
• referrals from Specialist Homelessness Services and Domestic and Family Violence Specialist services
• referrals from the Domestic Violence line on 1800 65 64 63.
• self-referral or third-party referrals.

On 19 October 2021, the NSW Government announced a $484.3 million investment for housing and specialist support for women and children experiencing domestic and family violence – the largest in NSW history.

The funding includes: 

• $426.6 million over four years to build 49 new Core and Cluster women’s refuges and replace eight existing government-owned women’s crisis refuge buildings, supporting up to an additional 2,900 women and children annually.

Community Housing Providers will deliver and maintain the capital build, while specialist domestic and family violence services will manage service delivery at the Core and Cluster refuges.

The Department of Communities and Justice has awarded 49 projects, including nine Aboriginal-led projects, to be completed by June 2026.

Additionally, eight existing women’s refuges owned and managed by Homes NSW, will be replaced by the Core and Cluster model. These are in Bega, Blacktown, Campbelltown, Clarence Valley, Fairfield, Forbes Moree Plains, and Liverpool.

The Core and Cluster program utilises two contracting instruments – the Community Housing Assistance Agreement for capital build and the Agreement for Funding of Services (Human Services Agreement) for service provision.

These agreements outline the obligations, standards, milestones and responsibilities of Community Housing Providers and domestic and family violence service providers, ensuring effective implementation of the program’s objectives. 

The new Core and Cluster women’s refuges are located in high demand areas, especially in regional and rural locations with limited access to services.

The interactive map shows the locations of new and existing government funded women’s refuges across NSW by Local Government Area (LGA). For safety reasons, dots on an LGA do not indicate the refuge’s actual address.

The Sector Capacity and Capability Building Program is designed to enhance Core and Cluster services through improved governance, capacity building, workforce development and service delivery improvement.   This program is a collaboration between the Department of Communities & Justice and key sector peak bodies, especially the Aboriginal Community Housing Industry Association NSW, Domestic Violence NSW and Homelessness NSW.

The program is divided into three components and provides support to specialist domestic and family violence services, Specialist Homelessness Services, Community Housing Providers and Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations.  Support is facilitated through a one-off grants program and additional sector support activities. Further details are outlined below.

Grants through the Specialist Homelessness Services Industry and Workforce Development Program

Organisations participating in the Core and Cluster procurement process are eligible to apply for grants to engage professional services.  These services include tender writing, procurement advice, application design, financial guidance, training and legal contract negotiation.

The Coolamon Project

The Coolamon Project, funded by the Department of Communities & Justice and delivered by the Aboriginal Community Housing Industry Association, helps Aboriginal Community Housing Providers and Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations or Aboriginal led consortia to plan, tender and deliver Core and Cluster services.

Aboriginal Workforce Development Project grant program

The NSW government has allocated $1.485M under the Family, Domestic and Sexual Violence National Partnership Agreement for the Aboriginal Workforce Development Project (AWDP) grant program. The AWDP offers grants of up to $90,000 per organisation for workforce development in Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCOs) participating in the Core and Cluster Program and the Aboriginal Homelessness Sector Growth Project.

The initiative aims to achieve the targets outlined in Closing the Gap by investing in and building the capacity of ACCOs, thereby supporting the safety and well-being of Aboriginal families affected by domestic and family violence or homelessness.

Nine services have been awarded grants in Round One for 2024/25 and Round Two will open shortly and five additional organisations will be invited to apply. 

For inquiries, please contact the Core and Cluster Program team at  CoreandClusterProgram@dcj.nsw.gov.au

Here are the links to additional resources and related programs:

• Core and Cluster fact sheets for local councils
• DFV children and young people support programs
• Department of Planning and Environment domestic violence crisis accommodation functional design brief
• Help with housing
• Integrated Domestic and Family Violence Services program
• Men’s Behaviour Change Program
• National Partnership Agreement
• Rent Choice Start Safely
• Specialist Worker for Children and Young People
• Staying Home Leaving Violence program
• Media release (27 November 2024): Expanded support for victim-survivors of domestic and family violence
• Media release (21 November 2022): New refuges to support women and children leaving violence
• Media release (19 October 2021): Landmark investment to help more women and children fleeing domestic violence