Mission Australia
Transform
Or call 1800 88 88 68
Donate via PayPal
Australia's approach to Juvenile Justice must change |
 |
 |
 |
| 16 Jun 2009 |
 Programs designed to divert young people from offending behaviour and entering juvenile detention can not only be more effective than putting a young person in custody but up to 50 times cheaper to run according to the community service organisation Mission Australia.Mission Australia says diversionary programs designed to keep young people from re-offending can cut rates by more than half and reduce serious offences by close to two-thirds. Mission Australia has called on state and territory governments to set targets to reduce the numbers of juveniles in detention and expand the number of successful diversionary programs. Mission Australia’s spokesperson, Anne Hampshire, said an upturn in the number of young people in custody, high levels of recidivism and the significant cost of locking young people up highlighted the need for alternatives to addressing offending behaviour. “Around 13,000 young people go through state/territory juvenile justice systems every year. Nearly 1000 young Australians are in detention on any day and numbers are at a four-year high,” said Ms Hampshire. “While only 5% of Australia’s 10-17 year olds are Indigenous they make up 40% of all young people in the nation’s juvenile justice systems. “Putting young offenders in custody is both expensive and ineffective. More than half released from detention will re-offend. Detention also intensifies the need for greater support post-release. “And when you look at the population of juveniles in custody, almost half report some form of serious abuse in their past, including violence and neglect. Do we really think detaining a young person with that sort of background is an appropriate response to their problem? “These are hardly good outcomes. They’re even worse when you consider how much we pay for the privilege. “For example, in NSW it costs in excess of $150,000 to keep a juvenile in custody for 12 months. “Mission Australia runs programs around the country that have had an enormous success in keeping young people on the right pathway. “For example, Pasifika – a program for young people from South Pacific Island backgrounds in Sydney’s south west – has been running since 2005 with strong results. “Independent analysis of Pasifika shows that in the six months following their referral to the program offence rates among participants were cut by more than half. “Serious offences – such as assault – were reduced by close to two-thirds. “Sixty-five per cent of participants had not re-offended within 12 months of program completion. “Impressively, these outcomes were achieved for around $2500 per person – the average cost of an individual receiving Pasifika’s support for three-six months. “Surprisingly, Pasifika – which is funded by the NSW Government – has not been guaranteed financial support beyond the end of June this year. “The young people involved in Mission Australia’s diversionary programs generally conform to the typical profile of adolescents who engage in anti-social behaviour. “Many have a history of damaging levels of alcohol and/or other drug consumption, year nine is often the highest level of education, a third have a diagnosed learning difficulty, with a similar proportion living with a diagnosed mental health issue, and almost two-thirds have histories of violent and/or aggressive behaviour. “Around 250 young people have passed through Pasifika so far and received help with education, personal and social skills, finding work, health and wellbeing, reducing alcohol and other drug consumption and financial literacy. “Arguably the most effective help has been encouraging open communication between young people and their families, and helping the families understand and reconcile the range of expectations placed on young people by their parents, their peers and school institutions. “We need more programs across Australia doing similarly effective work to Pasifika. “Diversionary programs are so-called because they work with young people as early as possible in order to detect signs of problem behaviour and avoid entrenched offending. In other words they ‘divert’ young people from entering, or re-entering, the juvenile justice system. “Some, like Pasifika, receive funding from state and territory governments. Others are funded by individual and corporate philanthropy. Most have the strong support of local police. “None, however, are provided on the scale they should be. “Mission Australia encourages the state/territory governments to reduce the number of young people – particularly young Indigenous people – in detention and set targets that can be monitored. “And they would achieve it – I have no doubt – by expanding successful diversionary programs, like Pasifika, which would slash offending rates among young people and save money in the process,” said Ms Hampshire. Mission Australia’s snapshot publication, Young people and the criminal justice system: New insights and promising responses, is available on our website - please click here. Media contact: Paul Andrews (02) 9219 2080 or 0409 665 495 Juvenile justice key statistics
Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites           |
News Updates
| Leading charities provide a new start for ABC Learning Wednesday, 09 December 2009A new chapter for Australian childcare begins today with the announcement that four highly-respected non-profit organisations have formed a new company to purchase ABC Learning.Subject to finalisation of contracts, 678 ABC Learning centres will be purchased from receivers McGrathNicol by GoodStart, a non-profit company established by Mission... + Read Full Story |
Job-a-thon a huge success for Mission AustraliaFriday, 15 January 2010Mission Australia’s Beaudesert and Woodridge Employment Solutions centres in Queensland have successfully reached their goal of placing 500 jobseekers in long-term employment or training prior to Christmas 2009. The final figures show more than 550 jobseekers benefited from the initiative which started in August 2009.
+ Read Full Story | More News Articles | ||