South Australian Royal Commission into Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence

The Royal Commission commenced on 1 July 2024. It has held 10 days of public hearings and heard from 64 witnesses. It has also held more than 100 listening sessions across the state, received 381 submissions and received more than 800 responses to its Share With Us survey. The Royal Commission also met with over 100 students at a Student Summit.

The Royal Commission heard from victim-survivors, service providers, experts and stakeholders regarding the current family, domestic and sexual violence (FDSV) service landscape and the changes needed to achieve better outcomes across the sector.

An Aboriginal Partnership Committee was established to guide the work of the Royal Commission, in recognition of the need to hear directly from Aboriginal people and communities about what needs to change. This is the first partnership model to be developed to work alongside a Royal Commission to ensure that Aboriginal voices are not only heard, but are central to developing recommendations that will directly impact Aboriginal people.

The Royal Commission is considering the particular impact of FDSV on Aboriginal communities. It has met with a number of Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations and undertaken regional visits to places such as Port Augusta, Ceduna, APY Lands, Coober Pedy and Alice Springs, among other locations. The Royal Commissioner attended a meeting of the First Nations Voice and hosted a forum for Aboriginal frontline workers who provide services to people impacted by FDSV.

The Royal Commission was initially due to deliver its final report and recommendations on 1 July 2025. Due to the scale of its engagement, volume of evidence received and the high level of ongoing interest from the community and sector, the Royal Commission's timeframes were changed. The report is now due to be handed down on 18 August 2025.

For more information see https://www.royalcommissiondfsv.sa.gov.au/.