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The head of one of Orange Door's partner agencies says the opening of the hub means a resources boost in the community.
Anglicare Victoria regional director Francis Lynch said the organisation had put on roughly another nine or 10 staff as a result of its involvement in the hub, and other partners had also employed more people.
Mr Lynch said this was a significant increase for the region and meant the community would get more support - and better integrated support, too.
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A service that helps people navigate family violence assistance and other family supports has opened in Bendigo, at a time when service providers are experiencing increasing demand.
The Orange Door started operating in Bendigo on Thursday with the Centre for Non-Violence, Bendigo and District Aboriginal Co-operative, Njernda Aboriginal Corporation, and Anglicare Victoria.
The Orange Door is a hub that acts as a contact point for these services, as well as others in the community.
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This means someone seeking support can contact the Orange Door team in the first instance and be connected to the services they require.
CNV chief executive officer Margaret Augerinos said it could be difficult for people in need of assistance to know who to go to or how to access support.
"What [the Orange Door] actually does is bring together, in a very unique way, the critical functions around service access, so that skilled and qualified child wellbeing practitioners, family services practitioners and family violence workers, will work together to assess family needs and to triage and sure that the right services are brought in that very, very early stage," Ms Augerinos said.
"And where follow-up is needed, the existing network of services that exists in our community step in, to take over the function, because obviously the Orange Door can't be everything to everyone."
However, Ms Augerinos said the services and government were taking a "no wrong door approach", meaning a person in need of assistance could go directly to whatever service provider they felt appropriate or comfortable with, and still receive the support they needed.
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The Orange Door will also act as a central point for police, child protection and family service system referrals.
On Thursday morning, Orange Door Loddon hub manager Deborah McCormick said the service had already received 25 to 30 referrals.
Ms McCormick said the Orange Door, located on View Street, was a welcoming, safe and secure place that provided client-led services.
Features include a secure area, security guard, and space for children and young people.
Next year, the service will open 'access points' in Echuca and Maryborough, then extend into the Macedon Ranges and Loddon shires with outposts.
But until that time, people living in these areas can still make contact with the Orange Door if they need support.
At the present time, most Orange Door services will be provided remotely.
However, Ms McCormick said people could still visit the physical site if they so wished.
The Orange Door hubs were the outcome of a key recommendation from the Royal Commission into Family Violence, which identified gaps in service provision.
"What they found was that many women and children were finding it really difficult to find the information they needed to access services, where to access services, how to access services," Bendigo West MP Maree Edwards said.
"So the Orange Door fills that gap."
A Victorian Auditor-General report released earlier this year identified inadequacies in the first five Orange Door hubs, which led to delays in administering support.
But Ms Edwards said the government had addressed these issues in the years since the first hubs opened in 2018.
"The evidence is clear that these Orange Doors are very successful now... over 100,000 people have accessed the service that the Orange Door provides," she said.
"It is an Australian first, and with any new measure, there's always going to be some hiccups along the way, but I think that the evidence is pretty clear now that the Orange Door is a pretty successful network, and we're looking forward to the Loddon network expanding beyond Bendigo over the coming years."
The Bendigo-based hub is the seventh to open, and in total, there will be 17 across the state.
The opening of the Orange Door comes at a time when services are seeing greater need from the community.
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Ms Augerinos said the Centre for Non-Violence had seen increasing demand for services during the pandemic, both from people experiencing family violence and perpetrators.
"Despite the pandemic, despite the fact that our lives have been interrupted, contact has been increasing and I would say we are busier than ever," Ms Augerinos said.
"And we expect now, now that things are starting to open up in our community, that demand will increase again."
The Orange Door can be contacted by calling 1800 512 359 or emailing loddon@orangedoor.vic.gov.au.
It is located at 57 View Street, Bendigo.
If you or someone you know is experiencing family violence, help is also available from the 24-hour Safe Steps service on 1800 015 188. Men who use family violence can contact the Men's Referral Service on 1300 766 491. In an emergency, call triple-0.
Earlier
People in central Victoria experiencing family violence can now access assistance through a single point of contact, with the opening of Bendigo's Orange Door.
The Orange Door coordinates support from family violence, child and family, Aboriginal, and men's services, along with emergency and crisis assistance.
While based in Bendigo, the hub will support people across the Loddon region.
Anglicare Victoria regional director Francis Lynch said the COVID-19 pandemic had seen even more people in need of assistance.
The Orange Door originated from a key recommendation of the Royal Commission into Family Violence.
It has been two years since the state government announced Bendigo would receive an Orange Door, and two months ago, it was confirmed the hub would open before the end of 2020.
The Orange Door network can be contacted by calling 1800 512 359 or emailing loddon@orangedoor.vic.gov.au.
The Orange Door is located at 57 View Street, Bendigo and is open 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.
If you or someone you know is experiencing family violence, help is also available from the 24-hour Safe Steps service on 1800 015 188. Men who use family violence can contact the Men's Referral Service on 1300 766 491. In an emergency, call triple-0.