HANSARD
SITTING CALENDAR
SEARCH
LIVE BROADCAST
Hansard Dynamic Member Index
House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2008-11-27 Daily Xml
Contents
Pdf Xml

POLICE YOUTH CLUBS

The Hon. R.B. SUCH (Fisher) (12:34): I move:

That this house calls on the state government to introduce police youth clubs following their success in other states.

Members would know that I have been a passionate advocate for young people for a long time, in particular, in trying to ensure that our young people do not get caught up in the antisocial criminal stream of behaviour. To that end, I have put the suggestion to the state government that it consider following the practice in New South Wales—and I will focus on New South Wales—where, over a long period of time, police community youth clubs have been created. There are some 22 in the metropolitan area of Sydney and 37 in country areas, and they involve something like 61,000 young people at any one time.

Those clubs provide not only what you might call traditional activities—some of a sporting type—but also dancing, indoor climbing, leadership programs and a whole range of other positive activities. The police who are involved in these youth clubs are specially trained to carry out the task of working with young people. There is a benefit not only in terms of the activities—and it has been long acknowledged that, if young people are involved in a sporting group, for example, they are less likely to get involved in criminal or antisocial behaviour. I would encourage—and I am sure all members would—all young people to be actively involved in some sporting organisation, because it provides structure and discipline in the true sense.

Police community youth clubs—as they operate in New South Wales—not only offer structure and discipline in the sense of following a set of values and a code of behaviour, and so on but they also help break down barriers between the police and young people, which is an issue. We know that most of our young people—something probably of the order of 95 per cent—do not get into any serious trouble with the police. We still have that small core who do, and many—not all—come from the indigenous community. I believe that the creation of police community youth clubs would go a long way to helping break down the barriers between police and young people and, importantly, it would provide a structured environment for young people.

I wrote to the Premier about this matter, and I acknowledge his courtesy in replying quite promptly. He highlighted the fact that we have a police blue light youth crime prevention program, that there are 34 blue light branches and that there are blue light camps. I acknowledge that, and they are good things, but what I suggested to the government was the possibility of creating, say, in the northern, southern and western suburbs, one or two of these police community youth clubs to follow on the success of those in New South Wales. I do not suggest that it is the total answer or that it is the only thing that should happen, but I think it is an important initiative that could be undertaken.

Whenever these sorts of issues are raised, the police say that they are not funded for that type of activity; they are not currently, but they could be. Unfortunately, we have what is often described as the silo effect of agencies saying that it is not their responsibility, but it is the responsibility of government, as it has the overall responsibility for these types of things. The police department's argument that it is not funded for community youth clubs is true, but it does not have to be the case, because the government could quite simply fund—as I have said, in the north, the south and the west—at least one of these facilities.

Monsignor Cappo and the Social Inclusion Unit are doing good work with young Aboriginal people, trying to keep them actively involved. I think those sorts of desires by the Social Inclusion Board and Unit would fit in very nicely with the To Break the Cycle report and also the Select Committee on Youth Justice. So, I make the plea to the government to look at and assess the New South Wales program, and be brave enough to introduce a limited number of these police youth clubs here to see how they go. I believe they will mirror the success of what has happened in New South Wales. As I have said before, it is not the total answer; it does not solve all the issues, but it is a positive mechanism for engaging with our youth. If one looks at facilities for young people, in many parts of the state they are lacking. We have to engage and involve young people. Many of them are not subject to structure and discipline in their life and, if we can combine that in a pleasant, enjoyable way through police community youth clubs, it is an initiative the state government should adopt. I commend the motion to the house.

Debate adjourned on motion of Mr O'Brien.

PARLIAMENTARY BUSINESS
MEMBERS
GET INVOLVED
ABOUT PARLIAMENT
VISIT
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY
CONTACT