More than 230 people with lived experience of domestic, family and sexual violence have joined a new statewide advisory network designed to help shape South Australia’s reform agenda following the Royal Commission.
The Lived Experience Advisory Network, known as LEAN, brings together adults who have experienced violence to provide advice and insight to government, service providers and the broader community as reforms begin to take effect. Members will be invited to share their perspectives on how services and initiatives are designed, developed and evaluated.
The network is being coordinated by Embolden and is the first statewide body of its kind in South Australia dedicated to domestic, family and sexual violence reform. A smaller formal group, the Lived Experience Advisory Group, will also be drawn from the network and will meet directly with the Minister for Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence to discuss actions and priorities.
Minister Katrine Hildyard said survivors must be central to the reform process.
“Those who have survived or are surviving domestic, family and/or sexual violence know best how to ensure the reform we are progressing makes a difference,” she said.
“Survivors are courageous and hold the solutions. I am deeply grateful to the many who have stepped forward to bravely provide their wisdom, views and experiences as part of the Lived Experience Advisory Network.”
Ms Hildyard said the work ahead represents a rare opportunity to reshape systems in ways that genuinely support people affected by violence.
“With patience, purpose and determination, post the Royal Commission, we have an opportunity to make lasting change and survivors will be at the centre of it. I thank every brave person who has made the decision to speak up about their experiences of DFSV in ways that will help others,” she said.
“We are determined to act with purpose and patience to seize this generational opportunity for change and DFSV survivors’ input will be life changing and life saving.”
Anonymous members of the network say their motivation to participate is rooted in long-term impacts that continue well beyond the point of crisis.
“We are determined to act with purpose and patience to seize this generational opportunity for change and DFSV survivors’ input will be life changing and life saving”
“I want to join this lived experience group because, nine years after my crisis point, I am still navigating the lifelong consequences of domestic violence. My story highlights systemic issues for Aboriginal women,” one member said.
Another survivor described how violence continues to shape everyday life and parenting long after the abuse has ended.
“I am seeking to join the adult LEAN because, as a survivor of family and domestic violence, I understand firsthand the lifelong impact that harm, fear and instability can leave on a person,” the member said.
“My lived experience is not just a chapter in my past—it shapes the way I parent, advocate, and engage with the world. As my children grow, I have become increasingly aware of the patterns of behaviour, learned responses, and intergenerational effects that can quietly resurface despite our best efforts.”
The same member said the Royal Commission’s findings would only lead to safer systems if survivor voices remain embedded in decision-making.
“The Royal Commission’s recommendations offer a pathway to safer, more responsive systems—but only if they are implemented alongside the voices of people who have lived these realities,” they said.
A third LEAN member spoke about the challenges faced after leaving a violent relationship.
“I want to join the LEAN because my experiences of domestic and family violence didn’t end when I left the relationship—they continued through the systems that were meant to protect me,” the member said.
“My children and I have navigated the courts, Centrelink, child support, legal services, and enforcement processes without meaningful support, and at times the response from these systems has amplified the harm instead of reducing it.”
A separate advisory network for children and young people, also recommended by the Royal Commission, is expected to begin later this year, extending the lived experience framework to younger voices affected by violence.
People interested in expressing their interest in the LEAN can find more information through Embolden, while details on South Australian Government programs and initiatives are available through the Department of Human Services.
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