Andrew Gee (Calare, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

Today I wish to recognise two hardworking organisations in our electorate of Calare, who are at the front line day in, day out helping women and children escape domestic, family and sexual violence. This House can be in no doubt about the scale of the scourge we are confronted with. According to the New South Wales Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, rates of domestic violence and related assault are double in remote and regional areas compared to metropolitan areas. In terms of these domestic violence related assault figures, in the 12 months to June 2025, per 100,000 population, Greater Sydney recorded just over 369 incidents compared to 623 in regional New South Wales—that's nearly double. The far western Orana region had the highest rate of domestic violence related assault in the past 12 months, with 1,543 incidents—more than three times higher than the average for New South Wales. The Central West region had a rate of 694. Data from 2023 shows that one in 10 victims of domestic assault are young people, three in five are women, and Aboriginal women are eight times more likely to be a victim.

These figures clearly demonstrate that regional and rural areas should be a priority for support to address this crisis. In the Central West of New South Wales, we are fortunate to have a number of organisations raising awareness and providing vital support for those escaping domestic, family and sexual violence. Housing Plus is one of those organisations. I recently attended the opening of the new Housing Plus emergency domestic and family violence accommodation in Mudgee. These are new units built for women and children escaping violence. This development was a collaboration which included Mid-Western Regional Council, the Glencore mine and service delivery partner Barnardos.

Housing Plus provides vital support right across the Calare electorate, including domestic and family violence services, homelessness services, employment pathways, post-release support, men's behaviour change programs and emergency accommodation through places like the Orchards. I was honoured to recently attend the Housing Plus White Tie Ball in Orange which helped raise $163,000 for the Orchard in Orange. I'd like to thank the Housing Plus team, including the CEO, Justin Cantelo, transformation manager Rochelle Monaghan and everyone who made this community event such a success.

Another organisation making a vital difference is regional advocacy group Birds in the Bush. Orange solicitor Vanessa Vazques founded the group in 2021 after witnessing the all-pervasive and commonality of domestic and family violence in the Central West. Vanessa saw a need to increase awareness of how prevalent domestic violence is and that it does not discriminate. I wish to recognise Vanessa's tireless work and acknowledge the Birds in the Bush committee members including Katie Baddock, Claire Fox, Kate Greenwood, Dan Cook, Amelia Morgan-Hunn, Karen Begnell and Zanna Christian.

During the past four years, Birds in the Bush have raised more than half a million dollars to support local services, refuges and victims of domestic and family violence. They've also raised enough funds through events and donations to commence a new education program called Bird Brains in high schools across the Calare electorate in 2026. In addition to fundraising and advocacy, Birds in the Bush are focusing on cultural change, raising greater awareness, education and fostering conversations, and promoting a more respectful and safer region and community.

This morning in this House, the Minister for Social Services tabled the yearly report of the Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence Commission. The statistics the minister referred to paint an extremely grim picture of the crisis in this country, including that one in four women have experienced intimate partner violence since the age of 15 and one in five have experienced sexual violence. Our communities, and groups like Birds in the Bush and Housing Plus, work hard to support women and children impacted by domestic and family violence, but there is a limit to what they can do on their own. The New South Wales and Australian governments must do more to assist organisations such as these in their vital work.

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