New figures show more than 850 children witnessed domestic violence disputes in Melton and Moorabool last year.
Family violence data for the past five years, released by Women’s Health West to coincide with last week’s ‘Week Without Violence’, also revealed a sharp rise in the number of incidents reported.
Melton’s figures almost doubled, from 690 incidents in 2008-09 to 1217 in 2012-13. In Moorabool, family violence reports jumped from 658 in 2008 to 1127 last financial year.
A total of 854 children were present at incidents across Melton and Moorabool in 2012-13, up from 524 in 2008.
Women’s Health West health promotion worker Stephanie Rich said children witnessing family violence were vulnerable. “The impact of family violence on a child is profound.”
According to the state government’s Better Health Channel, children who witness family violence can be at risk of a range of psychological issues including depression, anxiety, trauma symptoms and increased aggression.
“We have a children’s counselling service that we provide at Women’s Health West. They do amazing work for children’s recovery from violent situations and recovery from trauma,’’ Ms Rich said.
Melton police’s Inspector Stephen Mutton said there had been a few occasions when children had been brought in to the station for reassurance.
“Obviously it’s very concerning and it upsets the family when children are involved and that’s why it’s very important that we try to negate incidents of family violence,” he said.
Melton police has its own family violence unit, staffed by three police officers, with an increase scheduled next year. Inspector Mutton said population growth was a contributing factor to the increase in reports.
Melton’s population was 86,176 in 2007 and had risen to 124,096 at September this year.
Ms Rich said more resources were needed to deal with demand. “Within the last financial year we’ve seen a huge increase in family violence,’’ she said. ‘‘We’re putting a huge strain on the resources, and staff can struggle to respond to police referrals.”
