NSW sexual assault reports soar 30 per cent in three years

Sexual assault reports have soared, with one NSW LGA recording over one assault each day in the past year on average. Find out how your community fares here.

Sexual assault reports have soared by more than 30 per cent in NSW in the past three years, with one LGA reporting up to one assault a day in the past year.

Data collected by the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) has revealed sexual assault has jumped 10.1 per cent per year since October 2018.

The data also revealed that sexual assault reports had jumped 6.7 per cent every year since 2016, and had risen by 2.6 per cent per year since the dataset began in 1995.

Regional NSW local government areas saw the highest percentage increase of sexual assaults in the three year period, with reports in Wagga Wagga rising by 38.8 per cent, followed by Queanbeyan-Palerang with a 37.4 per cent spike and Shoalhaven, which rose by 35.4 per cent.

The BOCSAR statistics also revealed that of 20,366 total reported assaults in the three years up to September 2021, Blacktown and the Central Coast had the highest totals.

The Blacktown LGA recorded 1081 reported incidents in the three year period, and had the most sexual assaults per year in both 2019 and 2020.

Sexual assault reports to NSW Police have jumped by 30 per cent in the past three years.

But in 2021 the Central Coast recorded the highest number of assaults in a NSW LGA, with 391 between January and September- an average of 32 reported incidents a month.

A statement from NSW Police said the rise in reported assaults was linked to survivors having greater confidence in coming forward.

“Both the Blacktown Local Government Area – made up of the Blacktown, Riverstone, and Mt Druitt Police Area Commands and the Central Coast LGA – made up of the Brisbane Water and Tuggerah Lakes Police Districts – have experienced a rise in reported incidents of sexual violence,” a spokesman said.

A police station in the Blacktown LGA, where there were the highest number of reported sexual assaults in 2019 to 2020. Picture: Angelo Velardo

“The increase is consistent with long-term trends for the crime type and a reflection of increased reporting across the state.”

Sexual and domestic violence support organisation Full Stop Australia has struggled to keep up with demand for support as assault reports rise across NSW.

Hayley Foster, CEO of Full Stop Australia. Picture: Supplied

CEO Hayley Foster said the organisation had been “overwhelmed” with calls for assistance in recent years, and called for more state government support for sexual assault survivors.

“Our service demand has been increasing in line with (the statistics), our statewide sexual violence helpline has definitely experienced an increase in people presenting for support,” Ms Foster said.

“More people are having the courage to reach out for support … last year we received more than 14,000 calls for support, but we were only able to answer two out of three calls.

“Sexual violence support services are not a luxury, they are an essential service and it’s high time this was reflected through further government funding rather than having to rely on charitable donations.”

Sexual assault survivor Lucy, 21, said prominent social figures at the front of the #MeToo campaign like Brittany Higgins and Grace Tame could be giving survivors more confidence to come forward. Picture: Tim Hunter

Lucy*, 21, was sexually assaulted in her mid to late teens in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.

She said motions like NSW’s Affirmative Consent Bill and figures like Brittany Higgins, Grace Tame and Chanel Contos speaking out about their abuse could be behind the shift in reporting rates.

“It was a super lonely experience, even though it’s so common for women (to be sexually assaulted) it felt like I was the only person who had experienced it and it was very lonely, isolating and confusing,” Lucy said.

“To see more survivors coming forward now and having the confidence to share what happened to them without fear or blame is fantastic … I think it’s probably really tied to law reform and influences like Chanel, Brittany and Grace and those who came before them.”

Lizzie*, 25, was also sexually assaulted and has called for more support for victims, especially throughout the court process. Picture: Tim Hunter

Lizzie*, 25, was sexually assaulted by a friend in her early twenties, and co-founded sexual assault support group The Survivor Hub with Lucy in October 2021.

She called for further reform for the court process in order to encourage more survivors to come forward.

Lucy and Lizzie co-founded The Survivor Hub, a support group for sexual assault survivors to help them heal and support them through things like the court process. Picture: Tim Hunter

“It was genuinely horrible for me to go through court proceedings, in some ways I think it created a new level of trauma, waiting for everything to proceed and having to relive (the assault) … it’s something that can and does make some survivors choose not to report,” Lizzie said.

“If the court system could find further ways to show empathy and support for sexual assault survivors, like a trauma informed expert or further induction training for the jury, it could make a huge difference.”

Across NSW, the place with the least sexual assaults in the past three years was Lord Howe Island off the coast of Port Macquarie, with just one reported.
In Sydney, the areas with the least sexual assaults in the same period were Hunters Hill with 20, Burwood with 30 and Strathfield with 32 in the last 3 years.