Chapter 4: Continuous Improvement
On this page
- Highlights from 2023-24
- Findings from the MARAM Legislative and Evidence reviews
- Continuous improvement examples from the annual survey
- Plans for 2024-25
Strategic priority 4: Recognition of good practice and commitment to continuous improvement
A key element of any reform is reinforcing the change that it brings.
MARAM is a complex reform that is continuously improving.
We regularly release new practice guidance.
Highlights from 2023-24
- The Housing portfolio introduced a community of practice for the specialist homelessness sector. This initiative shares and integrates MARAM best practice into homelessness service delivery.
- The MARAM Annual Survey received 1,040 responses this reporting year, including from frontline workers.
- In the Mental Health portfolio, communities of practice accelerated learning and information sharing for frontline workers. This supports MARAM use in mental health and alcohol and other drugs services.
- Victoria Police introduced the new streamlined intervention order (SIVO) application. SIVO allows police members secure access to, locate, track and record the service of all intervention orders from their handheld technology devices. This application supports Victoria Police to manage and monitor intervention order service across the state.
| Project spotlight: Survey of school principalsThe Department of Education included a family violence module in its annual survey of school principals.The survey asked principals about their awareness of the information sharing and family violence reforms. It also asked them about their confidence in responding to students experiencing family violence. The survey received 624 responses.Key findings include:increased engagement with The Orange Door – 93% of respondents had used The Orange Door and 97% were aware of it93% of respondents were confident in their school’s ability to identify students affected by family violencemore than half of schools reported having current cases of family violence in their school. Of those, 68% were managing 1–4 active cases at the time.Principals requested that the Department of Education develop more resources or supports to identify and support students affected by family violence. |
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Findings from the MARAM Legislative and Evidence reviews
Continuous improvement is fundamental to MARAM. The Family Violence Protection Act 2008 requires:
- a one-off 5-year review of the legislation supporting MARAM and information sharing
- recurring 5-year reviews of the evidence base supporting MARAM.
These reviews were completed this year and tabled in Parliament.
Legislative review
The Family Violence Reform Implementation Monitor completed the Legislative review. They found that the reforms had positively affected a shared understanding of family violence. They also found there had been a cultural shift from safeguarding perpetrator privacy towards promoting accountability and victim survivor safety.
The review made recommendations that:
- encourage timely information sharing
- promote transparency in relation to the Central Information Point
- support victim survivor agency
- provide clear and targeted guidance for practitioners
- introduce clearer requirements, timelines and accountability for MARAM alignment.
Evidence review
The Evidence review found MARAM remains consistent with best practice in family violence risk assessment and management. Allen and Clarke Consulting completed the review.
The review made recommendations regarding:
- how MARAM supports risk assessment with Aboriginal and diverse communities
- the experience of children and young people
- changing presentations of risk, including substance abuse, coercion and technology facilitated abuse
- better use of the MARAM practice guides so assessment tools are not applied in a ‘tick box’ manner.
The Victorian Government plans to implement improvements based on the reviews starting in 2024–25. This work supports continuous improvement.
Continuous improvement examples from the annual survey
The annual survey found that 92% of organisational leaders or executives had supported actions to align their organisation to MARAM in 2023–24.
Actions included:
- identifying and supporting relevant professionals to attend MARAM training or other service-specific training (76%)
- reading the MARAM Framework and other supporting materials (73%)
- considering the impact of MARAM on their organisation’s day-to-day operations (68%)
- updating and creating new policies, procedures and practice guidance to align with MARAM (68%)
- implementing or updating a family violence referral protocol, agreement or guideline to align with MARAM (62%).
| Case study: Corrections and justice servicesCommunity Correctional Services is ensuring that the justice system uses the right family violence terminology.This includes moving away from the term ‘perpetrator’ and using ‘adult using family violence’. This recognises that family violence is a choice. It aligns with the language of the broader family violence sector. |
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Plans for 2024-25
The Multicultural Affairs portfolio will, where possible, update data collection to measure multicultural communities’ access to family violence services. This will help us understand barriers to seeking support.
In the Prevention of Family Violence portfolio, FSV will update the 5 core MARAM non-accredited training packages. The new training will reflect updated family violence data and research, consultation feedback and findings from the Evidence review. It will include training on:
- collaborative practice
- leading alignment
- identification of family violence risk
- intermediate risk assessment
- comprehensive risk assessment.
Victoria Police will release a new strategy for police responses to family violence. The new strategy will align with MARAM. It will include sexual offences and child abuse.
The new strategy will replace Policing harm, uphold the right: strategy for family violence, sexual offences and child abuse 2018–2023. It will provide a roadmap for 2024–2029. Victoria Police will review the strategy each year to measure its effectiveness.
Updated 14 March 2025
MARAM Consolidated Annual Report 2023-24pdf3.9 MB
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