Integrated Domestic and Family Violence Services Program

The Integrated Domestic and Family Violence Services (IDFVS) is a multi-agency response to prevent the escalation of domestic and family violence among high-risk target groups and in targeted communities. It is a collaboration between Communities and Justice, NSW Police and non-government support agencies.

Who benefits?

The program provides women and children with support to escape and recover from violence and abuse and improve their outcomes. Support is provided through ongoing practical and emotional support for victims living through the abuse and for victims who have escaped the abuser. The program also works with the perpetrators, as long as it doesn’t compromise the safety and wellbeing of victims and other family members.

Services and support are also provided directly to children, as negotiated and agreed to by their parents. These services can include:

• emotional and practical support
• safety planning
• risk assessment using the mandatory reporting guidelines
• therapeutic support, where specialisation exists within the service.

Why is this program important?

Integrated case management is core to the program. This is a response to family violence that goes beyond coordinating policies, systems and information-sharing to providing case management services which offer a unified, multi-agency approach.

The IDFVS program focuses on achieving the following:

• Empowering women to keep themselves and their family safe.
• Supporting the pursuit of prosecution through the courts.
• Perpetrators are referred to domestic violence behaviour change programs.
• Meeting case plan goals if one is created after an assessment of the family's situation.

Priority of high-risk groups

Priority may be given to high-risk groups including:

• people from disadvantaged and from rural and remote communities
• people with a disability or special needs
• Aboriginal people
• people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds
• repeat victims of domestic and family violence
• victims of domestic and family violence who previously refused services.

What does the program deliver?

Coordinated services to clients through a multi-disciplinary team and is based on clear referral pathways between service agencies such as Police, Health, Family and Community Services and non-government support agencies.

Delivering the strategy

Program Guidelines for Integrated Domestic Family Violence Strategy (PDF, 588.3 KB) provide an overview of the program, its objectives and expected outcomes.   

An evaluation of IDFVS (PDF, 1.1 MB)  delivered on November 2018, conducted by The Social Policy Research Centre and Gendered Violence Research Network, UNSW Sydney found that IDFVS workers' expertise and knowledge of DFV meant that client's needs were better understood, clients felt listened to and understood and clients were appropriately connected with local services.

Locations

The Integrated Domestic and Family Violence Services program operates out of the following 11 locations: