1 hour ago
4
Self-reported domestic violence has dropped in NSW according to new data, representing what police called an “encouraging” trend even as rates of serious family violence, including murder, remained stable.
The NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) trend measurement, released on Thursday, tracked women and children murdered, related hospitalisations, police-recorded incidents of grievous bodily harm, and self-reported data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ victimisation survey to analyse eight-year trends.
Women reporting experiences of violence fell from 4.1 per cent in 2017-18 to 3 per cent in 2024-25. General family and domestic violence victimisation also dropped, from 0.91 per cent to 0.65 per cent over a six-year window ending in June 2025.
However, the rate of women and children murdered in domestic incidents remained stable. In 2024-25, 26 women and children were killed – the highest annual figure in eight years, though rates fluctuate monthly.
Hospitalisations and recorded grievous bodily harm assaults also remained stable, with just over 1000 hospital admissions and 167 serious assaults recorded in 2024-25.
BOCSAR executive director Jackie Fitzgerald said the drop in self-reported incidents was “significant” because it reflected underlying levels of violence in the community, not just what was reported to police.
Police data doesn’t represent the whole picture, she said, because it could be influenced by people’s willingness to report incidents to police, alongside increasingly proactive police operations which lead to more reports.
Combining police records with the ABS crime victimisation data, which surveyed more than 6000 people in NSW and has shown a gradual decrease in previous years nationally, increased confidence that the declining trend was a “real reduction”, she said.
“It raises the possibility that there has been an improvement of safety,” she said. The survey includes responses to both physical violence and the threat of violence.
Fitzgerald noted rates of extreme violence haven’t followed suit.
“There’s nothing to suggest those very serious incidents are decreasing.”
NSW police commissioner Mal Lanyon called the trend “encouraging” but stressed a single incident can cause devastating harm.
“Every instance is unacceptable, and every offence is one too many, and I continue to urge victims to come forward and report matters to police,” he said.
Lanyon said proactive crackdowns such as Operation Amarok, which had resulted in almost 10,000 offenders charged with more than 12,000 offences in domestic violence blitzes since 2023, were having an impact.
“We have a lot more work to do,” he said.
However, domestic violence prevention and support services say any reported reduction was not being felt on the ground amid record demand for services.
Domestic Violence NSW senior policy and advocacy officer Angie Gehle said member organisations were at “absolute capacity”.
“Some services are really struggling ... and victim-survivors are being placed on waiting lists,” she said.
The average wait time for domestic violence case management services is three months.
Demand is being driven by complex cases, greater public awareness of services available and increased referrals for wrap-around care, she said.
Gehle welcomed the state government’s $184.1 million budget investment in six specialist frontline services, which she hopes will ease the backlog.
Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732) or the Men’s Referral Service on 1300 766 491.
Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.
