‘Ready for the next step’: Leaders meet to discuss domestic violence prevention
Almost a month out from Royal Commission findings, leaders will meet to discuss violence prevention and how SA is well-placed to tackle online behaviour that leads to violence.
Prevention of Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence Minister Katrine Hildyard will host a prevention roundtable convened by national advocacy group Our Watch at the South Australian Museum today.
Government, business, academic, health and Aboriginal organisation leaders will meet to identify new opportunities to strengthen prevention work around the state.
Prevention is one of the five themes the Royal Commission is looking into, along with early intervention, response, recovery and healing, and coordination.
The Royal Commission was announced in December 2023, with work beginning in July 2024 and findings expected in the coming July.
At the time of writing, Australian Femicide Watch records 31 Australian Women killed by violence in 2025. On average, one woman is killed every nine days by a former or current partner.
Our Watch CEO Patty Kinnersly said they’re calling for a standalone primary prevention strategy, as primary prevention focuses on “stopping violence before it starts”.
“We need to be in every place where people are forming their attitudes and their behaviours, and we also need to be influencing people who are responsible for creating safe environments and are responsible for educating others about gender equality,” Kinnersly said.
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Examples of primary prevention methods include positive duty laws in workplaces, which make employers responsible for eliminating behaviours such as sexual harassment, and respectful relationships education.
Kinnersly said it’s important that the South Australian Government “establish and sustain a skilled prevention workforce”.
“The workforce required to support, typically, a woman whose experienced violence is a very different workforce than the one who’s working with a sporting organisation, helping them to embed a whole of organisational approach to gender equality,” she said.
“So that workforce is an emerging workforce, and we need to support it.
“Of course, this is as important in primary prevention as it is in response, that we’re listening to communities about what they need, and making sure that any work we do is tailored to the needs, for example, of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, the LGBTIQ+ community, or even rural communities.”
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Kinnersly said today’s roundtable is about “being ready for the next step” and that South Australia is well placed to be a leader in domestic violence prevention, especially in the online space.
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She said that though Victoria also had a Royal Commission, its findings are almost a decade old, and “the online environment was not playing the same role as it is now”.
“The other areas where the evidence is evolving, and I think community sentiment has changed quite dramatically, is the need for greater attention to the online environment,” she said.
“We know the eSafety Commission is doing some amazing work around regulation, but that won’t do it on its own, we’re all going to need to understand more about the online environment.
“Community sentiment and evidence is really telling us that we need to be able to work differently and more openly with men and boys, and particularly around creating a more expansive version of masculinity.”
Today’s roundtable comes a week after the eSafety and Image-Based Abuse Roundtable, which the state government says demonstrates its commitment to tackling perpetrator behaviour that leads to violence.
Hildyard said the discussion will explore cross-sector commitment to drive “real and lasting change in South Australia”.
“The Royal Commission, which provides generational opportunity for change, is soon to hand down its findings, but we’re not waiting to act,” Hildyard said.
“We’re working now and have worked relentlessly since coming to government, shaping what happens next and making sure prevention sits at the heart of every action.
“To every person at the roundtable today and every person in our community who is playing their role in prevention, I say thank you.
“This is how change happens – when people show up, work together and demand better.”
The findings from the South Australian Royal Commission into Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence are due to be handed down in July.
Men in South Australia concerned about their behaviour can contact Don’t Become That Man on 1300 243 413 or the national Men’s Referral Service on 1300 766 491.
If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, family or domestic violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit www.1800RESPECT.org.au. In an emergency, call 000.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people can access free and confidential support through 13 YARN on 13 92 76.
