Dr LIM - 1995-05-24
It is now more than 12 months since the 1994 Juvenile Crime Workshop was held. I presume that another workshop is due soon. Will the minister advise what action has been taken to implement the recommendations of the 1994 workshop and when the 1995 workshop will be held?
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I thank the member for his question. Indeed, the 1995 workshop will be held in Katherine on 7 and 8 June. Among other issues, it will address alcohol and drug effects on Katherine youth, determine what services Katherine has available for its young people and decide what is needed to address offending youth. The workshop's recommendations will be tabled in the Legislative Assembly and a local working group, comprising government and community representatives, will be convened to examine the recommendations and advise on their implementation.
At the last Juvenile Crime Workshop, held in Alice Springs on 6 and 7 April 1994, 31 recommendations were made, and an interagency working party was established to implement them. That working party, representing a cross-section of government and non-government agencies, has since actioned 21 of the recommendations. Of the remaining 10, 8 were considered to be beyond the working party's jurisdiction, and were referred to more appropriate departments or organisations for consideration, and 2 could not be resolved. The focus of the 1994 workshop was on youth crime prevention strategies. The recommendations confirmed that any strategies should address the educational, social, recreational, housing, training and employment needs of young people, particularly those who are most at risk of drifting into crime. In the Northern Territory, there were also contributing factors such as the high incidence of alcohol abuse. The working party demonstrated that, with a coordinated approach, many tasks could be taken on and completed which until recently had seemed either too hard or too idealistic.
Whilst too many recommendations were acted on to detail them all here, I would like to outline some of the working party's achievements. The issue of accommodation for young people, particularly those under 18 years of age, was of particular concern to the team. It has compiled an inventory of accommodation for youth workers, including any criteria that must be met. Lack of access to education by children was recognised as a major national issue. The working party supported action to improve the delivery, in primary and secondary schools, of early intervention programs in areas such as protective behaviours and support structures for young victims. The working party supported funding for services working with youth. It supported interagency and interdepartmental cooperation on youth issues.
The team helped also to initiate faster financial assistance to community groups prepared to care for juveniles and their families who are bailed by the courts. It secured funding from the Department of Correctional Services for the appointment of more Aboriginal Community Corrections Officers. It endorsed also that presentence reports should be requested on all juveniles who are being considered by the courts for detention for the first time. It encourages
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magistrates to use sections of the Juvenile Justice Act that allow parents to be made financially accountable for the costs of their child's detention. The working party negotiated to have urban and rural schools prerecord youth programs for community broadcast through 2 local radio stations. Through the Alice Springs Town Council, it has established a Youth Advisory Committee.
The working party should be congratulated on its achievements. Whatever the strategies adopted, there is no doubt that, when a community chooses to work together, those most likely to succeed are local strategies, developed to address local concerns and implemented by local community members. In the same way that Alice Springs has benefited from the workshop's experiences last year, so will Katherine reap the rewards of holding the next workshop in its town next month. I will be pleased to attend that workshop in my capacity as Minister for Correctional Services.
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ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I thank the member for his question. Indeed, the 1995 workshop will be held in Katherine on 7 and 8 June. Among other issues, it will address alcohol and drug effects on Katherine youth, determine what services Katherine has available for its young people and decide what is needed to address offending youth. The workshop's recommendations will be tabled in the Legislative Assembly and a local working group, comprising government and community representatives, will be convened to examine the recommendations and advise on their implementation.
At the last Juvenile Crime Workshop, held in Alice Springs on 6 and 7 April 1994, 31 recommendations were made, and an interagency working party was established to implement them. That working party, representing a cross-section of government and non-government agencies, has since actioned 21 of the recommendations. Of the remaining 10, 8 were considered to be beyond the working party's jurisdiction, and were referred to more appropriate departments or organisations for consideration, and 2 could not be resolved. The focus of the 1994 workshop was on youth crime prevention strategies. The recommendations confirmed that any strategies should address the educational, social, recreational, housing, training and employment needs of young people, particularly those who are most at risk of drifting into crime. In the Northern Territory, there were also contributing factors such as the high incidence of alcohol abuse. The working party demonstrated that, with a coordinated approach, many tasks could be taken on and completed which until recently had seemed either too hard or too idealistic.
Whilst too many recommendations were acted on to detail them all here, I would like to outline some of the working party's achievements. The issue of accommodation for young people, particularly those under 18 years of age, was of particular concern to the team. It has compiled an inventory of accommodation for youth workers, including any criteria that must be met. Lack of access to education by children was recognised as a major national issue. The working party supported action to improve the delivery, in primary and secondary schools, of early intervention programs in areas such as protective behaviours and support structures for young victims. The working party supported funding for services working with youth. It supported interagency and interdepartmental cooperation on youth issues.
The team helped also to initiate faster financial assistance to community groups prepared to care for juveniles and their families who are bailed by the courts. It secured funding from the Department of Correctional Services for the appointment of more Aboriginal Community Corrections Officers. It endorsed also that presentence reports should be requested on all juveniles who are being considered by the courts for detention for the first time. It encourages
Page 588
magistrates to use sections of the Juvenile Justice Act that allow parents to be made financially accountable for the costs of their child's detention. The working party negotiated to have urban and rural schools prerecord youth programs for community broadcast through 2 local radio stations. Through the Alice Springs Town Council, it has established a Youth Advisory Committee.
The working party should be congratulated on its achievements. Whatever the strategies adopted, there is no doubt that, when a community chooses to work together, those most likely to succeed are local strategies, developed to address local concerns and implemented by local community members. In the same way that Alice Springs has benefited from the workshop's experiences last year, so will Katherine reap the rewards of holding the next workshop in its town next month. I will be pleased to attend that workshop in my capacity as Minister for Correctional Services.
Page 589
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016