National Alliance of Domestic and Family Violence Specialist Services (NADFVSS) welcomes the launch of Our Ways, Strong Ways, Our Voices, National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Family Safety Plan (2026-2036).

The National Alliance of Domestic and Family Violence Specialist services are pleased to welcome the first national, standalone plan dedicated to ending violence against Aboriginal women and children. This plan critically stands on equal footing and alongside the National Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children (2022–2032) and sets a course for truly distinct priorities and action that are built on cultural authority and led by First Nations communities.

Specialist Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations have always been on the frontline with culturally grounded perspectives, preventing and responding to domestic and family violence. These established specialist and frontline services across the country hold critical expertise and community wisdom that must be recognised and valued. It is essential that new funding associated with action planning and activities is delivered directly to specialist and frontline services and shaped by their knowledge.

As an alliance of specialist frontline services and peak bodies including First Nations representation and services from all jurisdictions, we are acutely aware of the importance of coordination, accountability and planning in order to achieve meaningful change, and Our Ways will also offer critical direction in the collective work towards achieving Target 13 of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap 2020-2030.

We acknowledge and thank the many staunch Aboriginal women, survivors and specialist community services who not only campaigned for many years to establish this plan, but contributed their wisdom, expertise and time to the development of Our Ways – Strong Ways – Our Voices as we see it now.

We continue to stand in solidarity with First Nations communities and frontline services leading this work, and we look forward to supporting the continued efforts towards ending violence against Aboriginal women and children over the coming decade.