Petition Support the Office for Women in Sport and Recreation

The petition of certain citizens of the State of Victoria draws to the attention of the Legislative Council that the Victorian Government has defunded the Office for Women in Sport and Recreation (OWSR) and cut funding to violence prevention programs that address the structural drivers of gender-based violence. As of 17 June 2025, 33 women have been killed by violence in 2025. In 2024, it was 103. In sport, the consequences of gender inequality are clear. A third of women who play community sport in Victoria have considered leaving their club due to inequitable treatment. Women and girls across all sports continue to speak out about exclusion, silencing, harm, and misogyny. These are not isolated incidents, they are symptoms of embedded cultural problems that demand structural solutions. The OWSR was the first of its kind in Australia. It played a vital role in embedding gender equality into the fabric of Victorian sport, supporting leadership opportunities for women and girls, implementing policy and funding education and prevention programs to address the issues. Without this office, these cuts threaten the progress made toward safer, more inclusive sporting spaces. Defunding the programs and OWSR, which are designed to challenge this imbalance, is disastrous.

The petitioners therefore request that the Legislative Council call on the Government to urgently reinstate the Office for Women in Sport and Recreation as a standalone, properly funded body, reverse cuts to gender equality and violence prevention programs, including those run by Sport and Recreation Victoria, and commit to a long-term investment in structural change that supports the participation, leadership, and safety of women and girls in all levels of sport, particularly at grassroots and community levels.