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The Women’s Safety Commissioner is seeking to drive change across the whole community by improving awareness of domestic, family and sexual violence and mobilising community members to take action. This includes engaging with community leaders across a wide range of sectors and locations. A selection of the Commissioner’s community initiatives is summarised below.
The Commissioner convenes and co-chairs the NSW Primary Prevention Advisory Group, which was established to provide advice to the NSW Government on the implementation of Pathways to Prevention: the NSW Strategy for the Prevention of Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence 2024-2028 (PDF, 999.7 KB) and other primary prevention related activities in NSW.
The Primary Prevention Advisory Group is comprised of both government and non-government representatives, who work together with the Department of Communities and Justice and the Minister for the Prevention of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault to progress prevention efforts across the state. Members play an important role in linking government and the community, providing prevention expertise, and shaping pathways to prevention.
The Commissioner also convenes the Corporate Leadership Group, which brings together senior corporate leaders to drive change across the community to end domestic, family and sexual violence in NSW. The Corporate Leadership Group consists of private sector leaders from a diverse range of industries including banking, insurance, property, higher education, consulting, IT, telecommunications, hospitality, tourism, security, media and construction.
Working together with the Department of Communities and Justice and the Minister for the Prevention of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, members explore potential collaboration efforts and provide leadership on initiatives in the private sector to keep women and their families safe in their homes, workplaces and communities.
Sport plays a key role in Australian life. It brings people together, fosters a sense of community and helps to shape attitudes and values. Sports clubs, organisations and players (both amateur and professional) can have a significant influence on community perceptions and behaviour relating to domestic, family and sexual violence.
With this in mind, NSW launched the Multi-Sport Coalition – the first of its kind in Australia – in June 2025 at the Sydney Cricket Ground. This exciting new Coalition brings together professional sports clubs, state sporting organisations, industry stakeholders and the NSW Government to harness the collective power of sport to prevent domestic, family and sexual violence in NSW.
The Commissioner chairs the Multi-Sport Coalition, working in collaboration with the NSW Office of Sport and key Coalition partners, including Our Watch CEO Patty Kinnersly and Sport NSW CEO Stuart Hodge.
The NSW Government has committed more than $500,000 to the Multi-Sport Coalition over three years, as part of a $38 million funding package to roll out primary prevention activities across the state.
The Commissioner is also supporting the Western Sydney Wanderers Football Club's efforts to to improve their capability to identify, prevent and respond to domestic, family and sexual violence. This work will include the development of resources that will help staff, club officials, volunteers and members of the wider community to provide safe, effective and trauma-informed responses to disclosures of violence. This work will be informed by insights from domestic, family and sexual violence subject matter experts, Western Sydney Wanderers Football Club and community members, the NSW Multi-Sport Coalition, and findings from national and international research.
Research indicates that most women who experience domestic, family or sexual violence do not seek support from a formal source, instead relying on informal networks for assistance. The Australian Bureau of Statistics Personal Safety Survey found that almost 80% of women who experienced violence by their current partner did not contact formal support services, including police. However, 35% reached out to an informal source, including friends, family, work colleagues, sports coaches or faith leaders. It is important that these informal supports, or ‘social responders’, are able to provide safe, effective and trauma-informed responses to disclosures of violence.
To support this, the Commissioner has partnered with Full Stop Australia to strengthen trauma-informed and culturally safe responses to domestic, family and sexual violence at the community level. The aim is to empower social responders with the knowledge and skills to recognise and respond to violence through training, community engagement and a community of practice, with a particular focus on migrant and refugee communities.
Full Stop Australia has worked in partnership with Women Up North Housing Incorporated in the Northern Rivers region, and Canterbury City Community Centre in the City of Canterbury Bankstown, to deliver this important project.
The project was funded through a one-off investment made by the Commonwealth Government under the Family, Domestic and Sexual Violence National Partnership Agreement 2023-2025.
Download the Safe to Speak digital booklet (PDF, 7.5 MB).
An independent evaluation found the project was successful and exceeded its original goals. Additionally, the evaluation found that the project:
Read the evaluation report here (PDF, 1.4 MB).
Religious and community leaders can play a vital role in supporting people experiencing domestic, family and sexual violence. They can also have a significant influence on attitudes and behaviours in their community, including by promoting respectful relationships and gender equality.
Since commencing in 2023, the Commissioner has been engaging with religious leaders of diverse faiths and denominations to support them in better responding to domestic, family and sexual violence and promoting respectful relationships in their communities.
As part of this engagement, the Commissioner has convened a series of roundtables across NSW to bring together religious and community leaders, local service providers, sector experts and police. These roundtables explore the important role religious and community leaders can play in supporting victim-survivors and referring them to specialist services, while also influencing community attitudes to help prevent violence. To date, roundtables have been held in the following locations, with more scheduled for 2026:
In addition, in September 2025 the Commissioner delivered the keynote address at a Domestic and Family Violence Conference convened by the Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney and attended by 300 members of the Catholic clergy. The Commissioner highlighted the important role religious leaders can play in preventing domestic and family violence and supporting victim-survivors. Attendees also heard insights from NSW Health, the NSW Police Force, Legal Aid NSW and the Ageing and Disability Commission.
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