More than half of calls to Queensland domestic violence helpline unanswered for full month last year, report finds

A report commissioned by the Queensland government has found just 41.9% of calls to Womensline, a domestic violence helpline, were answered in October last year. Photograph: Marco VDM/Getty Images

More than half the calls to one of Queensland’s domestic violence helplines went unanswered in one month last year, a “damning” report has revealed.

The report found that DVConnect’s response rate declined after March 2023 until about December 2024, though at best its phones were only answered 87% of the time.