New DV prevention opportunities emerge in a time of lockdown

Well before COVID-19, Australia was already gripped by an epidemic of domestic violence.

Police services were receiving a DV-related call every two minutes.

Almost two women per week were losing their lives at the hands of a current or former partner.

As COVID-19 restrictions and lockdowns became a reality, frontline services reported up to 75%increased demand on their services, with a similar increase in DV-related searches on Google.

Hospitals across Australia were reporting a 65% increase in DV-related Accident and Emergency presentations.

What was not being reported at this time was the overnight closure of every face-to-face DV intervention group, due to public health lockdowns and restrictions.

It was a new world where people were thrust into working from home, children could not attend school, others lost their jobs and those isolated at home together 24/7 were facing severe financialstrain.

Many people found themselves at risk of spiralling into dangerous relationship breakdowns with possibly lethal consequences.

For the previous two decades, the people behind the Circuit Breaker Movement had been offering face-to-face groups for people who felt that anger was affecting the quality of their relationships.

It had been unthinkable for groups like this to be delivered online, due to perceived risks to privacy and personal safety.

But now, sitting on the sidelines and doing nothing was just not an option.

In the face of the burgeoning DV crisis, we found ways to ensure privacy and personal safety were protected, developing new policies and procedures and paving the way for the first ever onlineCircuit Breaker Groups to be delivered.

The new online group model has also made access available for people who can’t attend face-to-face groups for a variety of reasons, even under normal circumstances.

Eight people detained at Brisbane Immigration Transit Accommodation (BITA) successfully participated in a Circuit Breaker online group in 2020, while detainees from three different statesparticipated in an online group together in 2021.

Circuit Breaker’s newly developed online Training School also came into its own, with more than 70people using their time in lockdown to upskill and become certified facilitators of the program.

We are now seeing the fruits of this training as lockdowns have eased, with Circuit Breaker groups starting up in new locations, many for the first time.

• Find out more about Circuit Breaker.
•  Look for a Circuit Breaker Group in your area, or online
• Visit the Circuit Breaker Training School
• Sign up for updates from The Circuit Breakers