Domestic Violence Expertise (DOVE) Competency Framework

Introduction

Domestic violence (“DV”) refers to patterns of violent, threatening, abusive or controlling behaviours within the family, household, current or former intimate relationships, that cause hurt and/or fear for the safety and well-being of people involved. It covers the whole spectrum of violence against children and vulnerable adults to violence between intimate partners.

The sector specific competency frameworks for each sector (shown in Figure 1) —Social Service, Judiciary, Healthcare, Enforcement, and Education, within the DV landscape were progressively developed since 2015. The evolving and more complex social landscape requires for the delivery of client-centric interventions and services that rely heavily on the knowledge and skills of social service professionals. The development of one central competency framework for DV practitioners across all sectors emerged from an attempt to ensure practice alignment and consistency. This is done with the intention to better outcomes for the individuals and families impacted by DV.  

_{Last updated on 14 September 2026}