I am a survivor of family violence who was relocated into safe accommodation in Victoria to protect myself and children from any further incidents. Unfortunately, like many others in my situation, I found that there was a severe shortage of crisis and long-term housing options available to us. After the legal system let me down, I was so lucky to not become one of the growing lists of statistics. I could only access supports to remain in my home (with security cameras to protect me) as crisis accommodations were overflowing and the waitlists far outweighed homes available. This was completely inadequate given the significant risk we were exposed to.

This is not just my story; it's the story of countless victims who are forced to remain in unsafe housing or return to dangerous environments due to the lack of crisis, short-term and long-term accommodation. 

I have supported countless women in a Facebook group I ran who had to leave their homes and were left homeless. Can you imagine having children to care for and contemplating having to sleep in your car or live in a tent because nowhere has a bed for you? Can you imagine having to accept this, and continuously apply for the limited amount of affordable housing only to keep getting rejected because of high applicant competition, minimal affordable properties, and your reduced income capacity? Can you imagine trying to survive this whilst caring for children?

Victims in all states are experiencing this.

My campaign has been for Victoria, and I am pleased to see some progress but there is much more to be done, and urgently. This crisis is in every state and I now make this a national campaign. Every single state in Australia is experiencing an affordable housing shortage. Every single state in Australia is experiencing a severe shortage in safe housing options for victims who need to leave or be protected from family and domestic violence. Every single state of Australia currently has women and children in unsafe housing or homeless (living in tents, cars or transient conditions such as motels) because it is not safe for them to remain in their original home.

I have lost count of the number of women murdered this year. I strongly believe if this issue is not promptly addressed, many more lives will be lost. Many victims will be physically and psychologically harmed, and many more children will be exposed to further trauma.

We need more crisis accommodations that can provide immediate safety for those fleeing family violence. We need funding to support existing refuges etc. We also need more long-term accommodations where survivors can rebuild their lives without fear. Woman and children need safe long-term housing to recover from trauma, and to have security back in their lives.

The government must prioritize funding for these services. We urge them to increase the number and capacity of both short-term crisis accommodations and long-term housing solutions for victims of family violence. We urge that funding must be given to protect the lives and safety of victims. We urge the funding must go to where it is promised.

We urge this needs to happen immediately.

Please sign this petition to help me show the Ministers responsible for preventing family violence that they must prioritise increasing safe housing for victims of family violence.