# Veilig Thuis says it can't cope and asks cabinet for €70 million

> The national network behind the domestic violence and child abuse reporting centre says waiting lists are growing, and parliament debates the healthcare budget this week.

Society · published 2026-10-13 05:25 · https://nlnow.nl/a/veilig-thuis-says-it-can-t-cope-and-asks-cabinet-for-70-million/

Veilig Thuis, the reporting centre for domestic violence and child abuse, says it can no longer cope with its workload and wants **€70 million from the cabinet over the coming years**. The 25 regional Veilig Thuis organisations are making the appeal together, because waiting lists are growing and staff shortages are putting more pressure on services.

Last year Veilig Thuis received 136,000 reports. In more than 90,000 of them the organisation had not yet been involved with the family. By law, a report must be dealt with within five working days, but that deadline is often missed.

Ida Ouweneel, a board member of the Landelijk Netwerk Veilig Thuis (the national network) said: "At the moment we cannot guarantee that we can pick up all signs of danger in time. That worries us greatly." She said every report is screened, and when there is acute danger there is no waiting list and the report is picked up at once.

Ouweneel links the waiting list to the stalled youth care system, where shortages and waiting lists mean vulnerable children do not get help in time. That leads to more reports. "We are passing reports around," she said. A plan agreed five years ago by the sector, central government and municipalities aims to get help going faster, but she said no money has been set aside for it. The money would also pay for extra staff in the short term.

## Rising reports in Overijssel

Liesbeth Kleisen, director of Veilig Thuis IJsselland, said reports rose 15 per cent in 2025 compared with a year earlier, and by a further 18 per cent in the first three quarters of 2026. "The inflow is now really too much," she said. Veilig Thuis Twente also reports a very strong rise and backs the national appeal.

Minister Sterk, who is responsible for healthcare, said it is important to find out where the bottlenecks are. She will soon hold talks with aldermen, the VNG and Veilig Thuis about what is needed.

The Tweede Kamer, the lower house of parliament, debates the healthcare budget, which covers Veilig Thuis, tomorrow and the day after.

## Background

- **VNG (Vereniging van Nederlandse Gemeenten)**: The VNG is the Association of Dutch Municipalities, the national organisation that represents the country's municipalities (gemeenten). It speaks and negotiates on behalf of local governments in talks with the national government, for example on policy and funding. In this article it is one of the parties the minister will meet about what Veilig Thuis needs, because municipalities are responsible for Veilig Thuis, the advice and reporting centre for domestic violence and child abuse.

From NLnow, news from the Netherlands in English. How stories are made: https://nlnow.nl/about/