Staying Home Leaving Violence

Leaving a violent and abusive relationship can be hard. It may mean having to move to a new area and having to start life over with a new home, new job and new school for the kids.You may also be short on money and not in a good mental health headspace.

These are only some of the reasons why women stay in an abusive relationship. Leaving the situation can be pretty stressful and overwhelming, especially with little or no support.

How the program can help you

The aim of the Staying Home Leaving Violence program is to prevent you and your children becoming homeless or having to move away from your support system of family and friends, and the school and community where you live.

The program works in cooperation with NSW Police to remove the perpetrator (the violent partner) from the family home so that you and your children can stay safely where you are. It provides a range of support, such as safety planning, improving home security, help in managing finances, support for children, and helping you with the complicated legal process.

The providers of the program understand that it's the violent person - your partner or ex-partner - who is responsible for their own abusive behaviour and is committing a crime by hurting you and or your children.

Priority

Women separated from a violent partner but who continue to experience abuse from their ex-partner are a priority for the program. Priority is also given to women who have experienced domestic and family violence before and are:

• from an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander background
• affected by socio-economic disadvantage
• from culturally and linguistically (language) diverse backgrounds
• affected by social exclusion
• who have a disability
• who are caring for a child with a disability
• aged 16 to 18 years - these young people will be referred to a service that can help them.

Formal Evaluation 2022

In 2022 researchers from The Gendered Violence Research Network at the University of NSW were engaged by the the Department of Communities and Justice to undertake a formal evaluation of the Staying Home Leaving Violence program (PDF, 1.5 MB). The  report concludes that the Staying Home Leaving Violence program effectively contributes to the long-term safety and housing stability of women and children who have left a violent and abusive relationship.

Program locations

The program helps women and their children who live in the following locations across NSW.