In the wake of the murders of Hannah Clarke and her three children, we must do more than wring our hands. There is no better time than amid this despair to consider how we can prevent this from happening to one more woman, one more child. It needs a commitment to research, and a wholehearted guarantee from governments at all levels.

Hannah Clarke with her three children - Laianah, Aaliyah and Trey aged between three and six - all of whom died after her husband, the children's father, allegegly set fire to them in their car. Credit:Facebook

Of everyone I’ve spoken to, trying to make sense of the horror, Heather Nancarrow, the chief executive of the Australian National Research Organisation for Women’s Safety, proposed the most radical intervention. We’ve known each other for a long time and she’s not given to drama. When any man is transitioning out of a relationship, she says, he should be monitored.

What she means is that during the period of separation, every man must be put on a program with mental health checks and scrutinised for signs of violence to ensure he is making the transition safely and not a risk to women, children or themselves.

‘‘This won’t please everyone but we have tried to put support around women and it’s not working,’’ she says. ‘‘We must target individual men.’’