Youth Justice Programs

343 Ms CHAPMAN (Bragg—Deputy Leader of the Opposition) (3 August 2017).

1. With respect to the 2017-18 budget—under the 2016-17 Highlights, a new Youth Justice Program framework and action plan was implemented, how is this different from the current framework and plan?

2. How many initiatives and programs are in place when youths are incarcerated and when they are released back into the community?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON (Ramsay—Minister for Communities and Social Inclusion, Minister for Social Housing, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Ageing, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Minister for Youth, Minister for Volunteers): I have been advised:

1. Youth Justice implemented a new programs framework and priority action plan in 2016-17, in partnership with government and non-government stakeholders. A number of initiatives have been implemented under the framework, including strengthened guidelines for program providers to meet the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people and a targeted intervention for those with violent offending behaviour. This new framework refreshed the previous framework developed in 2012.

2. A throughcare approach is taken for young people in the youth justice system, ensuring that case management takes a holistic approach from entry to exit. This approach provides opportunities that engage the young person, supporting their reintegration into the community. Each young person has an individualised case plan tailored to their specific needs, based on comprehensive assessment that is achieved through referral to the most appropriate provider.

Youth Justice, together with its sector partners, provides a range of initiatives and offence-specific programs and rehabilitation programs. These include therapeutic interventions, life skill development, and social integration that builds engagement back to community. Rehabilitation services are based upon the assessed needs of the individual, including consideration of cultural needs. The diverse range of programs currently available include:

Changing Habits and Reaching Targets: an individualised case management program designed to address offending behaviour, motivation to change, thinking and offending and relapse prevention;

D-Stress, which assists young people manage stressful experiences;

Plus +, a cognitive- behavioural intervention focused on problem-solving, social skills, self-regulation, and self-risk management;

Resilient Futures, co-facilitated by service partners Red Cross and HYPA, provides resilience training and develops skills in areas such as changing mindsets and personal values, and is supplemented by mentoring;

The Journey Home program helps young Aboriginal people and their families create pathways out of the justice system. The program includes cultural services and can involve participation in the custody-based Journey to Respect program, that is aimed at restoring connection to culture and preventing intergenerational violence. It teaches a range of skills, including respecting boundaries and understanding emotion;

KIND is designed to address interpersonal violence, by developing skills in problem solving, helping with emotions, effective communication and understanding patterns of behaviour within relationships; and

Cultural activities at the Adelaide Youth Training Centre, such as the Yarning Circle, are open to young Aboriginal residents who express an interest in having a safe space to discuss issues which impact upon them, their families and wider communities.