Domestic violence witnessed by hundreds of North East children: CSA, police

Data collected by Victoria Police at incidents and released by Crime Statistics Agency reveal 212 children in the Wodonga local government area witnessed or were exposed to family violence in the 2018-19 financial year, as well as 122 children in Wangaratta and 29 in Indigo shire.

Benalla recorded the sixth highest rate of children witnessing violence in the state, with 117 incidents in the small city at a rate of 831 per 100,000 residents.

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Overall one in 50 Victorian children witnessed a police recorded family violence incident in the 2018-19 financial year.

Nearly two-thirds, 66.1 per cent, of the 32,704 children who witnessed the violence were nine years of age or younger, while 35 per cent were under the age of five.

In the report the agency said information about children who witness family violence is limited. The data only reflects incidents in which police have been called.

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