How Victorian victims of crime get help: VOCAT, the helpline and the Victims of Crime Commissioner
Being a victim of crime in Victoria is rarely a single event. It is a process — through emergency response, statements to police, court appearances, financial pressure, and the long tail of recovery. Our community-safety reporter, Mei Calloway, has put together this guide to the support system that exists for Victorian victims, what it does, and how to reach it.
The headline numbers and services in this piece are publicly listed by the Victorian Government, the Department of Justice and Community Safety, and the Victims of Crime Commissioner. We have not invented any of them.
The Victims Charter Act 2006
The starting point is the Victims Charter Act 2006 (Vic). The Charter sets out principles that govern how victims of crime are treated by police, prosecutors, courts and victim-support agencies. It is not a list of legally enforceable rights in the strict sense, but it does create binding obligations on agencies to operate in accordance with the Charter principles.
Those principles include the right to be treated with respect and dignity, the right to receive information about the progress of an investigation and prosecution, the right to be heard in matters affecting the victim’s safety, and the right to be referred to support services. The Victims of Crime Commissioner is the statutory officer responsible for monitoring agency compliance with the Charter.
The Victims of Crime Helpline
The Victims of Crime Helpline is the front door to the Victorian victim-support system. The number is 1800 819 817. It operates Monday to Friday, 8 am to 11 pm, with after-hours referrals through the Safe Steps and Lifeline networks.
The Helpline is staffed by trained counsellors who can:
- Provide immediate emotional support and crisis-response triage.
- Explain the criminal-justice process — how police investigations work, what to expect from the courts, what victim-impact statements are.
- Refer callers to specialist services, including Centres Against Sexual Assault, family-violence services, and victim-support workers.
- Help callers connect with the financial-assistance scheme.
- Advocate on the caller’s behalf with police, prosecutors, and other agencies.
The service is confidential. Calls are not reported back to police, prosecutors or the courts unless the caller requests it.
Financial assistance — VOCAT and its successor
The Victims of Crime Assistance Tribunal, known as VOCAT, was established under the Victims of Crime Assistance Act 1996 to deliver financial assistance to victims of violent crime. VOCAT could award assistance for medical and counselling expenses, for loss of earnings, for safety-related costs (such as changed locks or relocation), and for special financial assistance recognising the impact of the crime.
The Victorian Government legislated a major overhaul of the financial-assistance framework, replacing the VOCAT model with an administrative Financial Assistance Scheme run through the Department of Justice and Community Safety. The new scheme, which has been progressively implemented, is designed to be less adversarial than VOCAT, faster in its decision-making, and more accessible to applicants without legal representation.
Eligibility under the new scheme broadly mirrors VOCAT. The applicant must be a primary, secondary or related victim of an act of violence in Victoria. The scheme covers a defined list of expenses and provides for recognition payments for the impact of the crime. The detail of the scheme has been the subject of consultation with victim-support organisations and has continued to evolve.
VOCAT continues to handle existing matters lodged under the previous framework, with the new scheme operating in parallel for new applications. The transition has not been seamless, and the Victims of Crime Commissioner has reported on implementation issues.
The Victims of Crime Commissioner
The Victims of Crime Commissioner is an independent statutory officer established under the Victims of Crime Commissioner Act 2015. The Commissioner has three principal functions: to advocate for the rights and interests of victims; to monitor agency compliance with the Victims Charter; and to inquire into systemic issues affecting victims.
The Commissioner publishes annual reports and periodic systemic-inquiry reports. Recent inquiries have addressed financial-assistance scheme implementation, the treatment of victims in the criminal-justice system, and the experience of victims in family-violence proceedings. The Commissioner cannot resolve individual complaints in the way a tribunal can, but the office can take up systemic issues raised by individual cases.
Centres Against Sexual Assault
The Centres Against Sexual Assault network — known as CASA — provides specialist support for people who have experienced sexual violence, recent or historic. There are 15 CASA centres across Victoria, each delivering counselling, court-support, advocacy and group programs. The Sexual Assault Crisis Line, on 1800 806 292, is the after-hours arm of the network and operates 24 hours a day.
CASA services are free. They are not contingent on the survivor reporting to police. Many people who use CASA never report; many do report and use CASA support through the criminal-justice process.
Court companion programs
Court Network is a long-running volunteer program that places trained court companions in most Victorian courts. Court Network volunteers do not provide legal advice. They provide practical support — explaining what is happening in the courtroom, accompanying victims and witnesses through the building, sitting with people during proceedings, and connecting them to other services as needed.
For sexual-offence and family-violence matters, the Witness Assistance Service operated by the Office of Public Prosecutions provides specialist support to victims who are witnesses in prosecutions handled by that office. The service includes pre-trial conferences with the prosecutor, court familiarisation, and assistance with victim-impact statements.
Family-violence intersections
The family-violence support system in Victoria operates partially within and partially alongside the general victim-support system. Safe Steps, on 1800 015 188, is the 24/7 family-violence response line for women and children. The Men’s Referral Service, on 1300 766 491, supports men who use violence and want to change their behaviour. The Orange Door network operates as a single intake point for family-violence services across most areas of the state.
The Royal Commission into Family Violence and the implementation of its recommendations have substantially reshaped the architecture of this part of the support system over the last decade. The Family Violence Reform Implementation Monitor, an independent statutory officer, reports on progress.
What the system still struggles with
The Victims of Crime Commissioner’s published reports identify recurring pain points. Information flow from police and prosecutors to victims is uneven across local areas. Financial-assistance turnaround times have been longer than they should be during the scheme transition. Court delays continue to extend the recovery process for victims who are also witnesses. Access to specialist support remains harder in regional and rural Victoria.
Our newsroom does not pretend that the support system is everything it should be. What it is, even on its hardest days, is a real network of people whose job it is to walk alongside victims of crime through what is often the worst period of their life.
Where to get help
If you are in immediate danger, call 000. Otherwise, the Victims of Crime Helpline on 1800 819 817 is the right starting point for most callers. The Sexual Assault Crisis Line on 1800 806 292 operates 24 hours a day. Safe Steps, on 1800 015 188, is the 24/7 family-violence line. 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 covers sexual assault and domestic violence. Lifeline on 13 11 14 is the general crisis line. 13YARN on 13 92 76 is the First Nations crisis line. Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636 covers mental-health support more generally.
