This festive season, Wodonga police urge residents to seek support for family violence

Senior Sergeant Damien Peppler, who leads Wodonga police's family violence investigation unit, has observed the shift - aided recently by the opening of Orange Door in the North East.

"Agencies are reporting, the ball starts rolling and people are being receptive to us taking some action," he said.

"We're holding people to account for their behaviour, and in doing so, give services opportunities to engage with respondents.

"That means behavioural change programs for perpetrators ... we're able to ensure they can get the proper help they need."

The festive period can be a high-risk one; according to the Crime Statistics Agency, more than two thirds of all assaults reported last Christmas Day and New Year's Day were family violence related.

The number of domestic violence assaults spiked on both days, up almost 40 per cent.

Senior Sergeant Peppler urged the community to be alert for signs of someone experiencing family violence, which include a focus on their partner's movements.

"Now we're coming into this period, hopefully out of lockdowns, we really want to see people be able to come forward," he said.

"We want to see victim-survivors come and make use of those services.

"We now have a much greater understanding of what bystander behaviour is.

"We want people to learn about family violence and know when family violence is occurring, so there's more opportunities for people to intervene.

"Of course, if you don't want to go to police, there's the Orange Door."

For the year ending September, 2021, family violence incidents in Wodonga were down 2.5 per cent, to 813.

There were 82 serious assaults, and 418 breaches of family violence orders.

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On the front-line, the National Domestic Violence Order Scheme is working well for uniform police like Senior Sergeant Shane Martin.

"From the front-line perspective, we can enforce those orders in Victoria, whether they're from NSW, Queensland or elsewhere," he said.

"Every day, we are responding to family violence."