Alice Springs Victims of Crimes branch to close amid funding insecurity

The Northern Territory's biggest independent provider of services to victims of crime is closing its Alice Springs office, citing funding insecurity as the primary reason for the closure.

Victims of Crime NT (VoCNT) is an independent community organisation that provides a range of programs and support services to people impacted by crime, including domestic, family and sexual violence.

The organisation operates two offices — one in Darwin and another in Alice Springs.

In an email sent to stakeholders on Tuesday afternoon, seen by the ABC, VoCNT chief executive Gerard McGeough said this week would mark the final week of the organisation maintaining a physical presence in the Central Australian region.

"This decision has not been taken lightly," Mr McGeough said.

In the email, Mr McGeough said the outcome had been "primarily driven by funding constraints" to a number of the organisations' key programs, including the Intensive Case Management Support (ICMS) program, which supports victims of domestic, family, and sexual violence (DFSV) engaging in the criminal justice system.

"As a consequence of this funding loss, we have been forced to make several highly skilled and experienced staff redundant, resulting in the loss of critical expertise in this specialised area," he said.

"The cessation of this program represents a substantial gap in support to access the CJS [criminal justice system] for some of the most vulnerable women and children and is deeply concerning."

Mr McGeough also said other programs funded through the NT Attorney-General's Department, such as Case Coordination, the Vehicle Resecure Program, the Home Resecure Program, Homes Security Assessments, and Remote Safety programs, have only been funded up to December this year.

"The limited six-month funding horizon presents significant operational and sustainability challenges making it near impossible to maintain staff and then recruit, train and retain new skilled staff locally for such a short and uncertain period, " he said.

Mr McGeough said the organisation would transition to a "remote working model", which he said would allow the organisation to "continue supporting clients as effectively as possible".

"While remote delivery cannot fully replace the value of local, face-to-face engagement, it provides a practical pathway to somewhat maintain continuity of service where recruitment and resourcing constraints make in-person delivery unfeasible," he said.

NT Attorney-General Marie-Clare Boothby has been contacted for comment.