Elsie Lange
A new access point for the Orange Door Network has been officially opened in Sunbury, giving women and families better, coordinated family violence and child wellbeing support in the region.
Prevention of Family Violence Minister Gabrielle Williams opened the centre on Tuesday, April 26, which expands the Hume Moreland Orange Door Network (HMODN) even further.
“The Sunbury site has proven really important in terms of picking up on a really strong demand in this local area and being able to ensure those needs are being met by an expert team of people that operate out of this site,” Ms Williams said.
The network offers free services bringing together specialists in family violence, men’s, Aboriginal, child and family services and provides a range of supports, including wellbeing, crisis assistance, risk assessments, safety planning.
“Ultimately, [access points are] catering to the needs of their local communities, which is what the model is designed to do, it’s designed to be dynamic, to make sure it’s meeting the unique needs of communities on the ground,” Ms Williams said.
“Also, over time, able to shift and adapt to changing communities themselves and I think that’s a really important function of this model.
“It can have such a keen insight into what local communities need, what the demographics of a local community are, and why that then leads to different challenges and unique challenges that then need to be met in different ways,” she said.
Since February, the HMODN has supported more than 4000 people through strong partnerships between Berry Street, Uniting (VicTas), DPV Health, Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency Co-Operative, Victorian Aboriginal Community Services Association and the Government.
Sunbury MP Josh Bull welcomed the new service for the area.
“The new access point in Sunbury means local families can access the coordinated family violence, child and family wellbeing services and support they need, closer to home,” Mr Bull said.
The Sunbury Orange Door is open Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm.
For more information, call 1800 271 151, email hma@orangedoor.vic.gov.au or visit orangedoor.vic.gov.au.
