juvenile justice annual report 2008 2009

8/6/2019 Juvenile Justice Annual Report 2008 2009

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OUR VISION

A COMMUNITY IN WHICH YOUNG OFFENDERS

PARTICIPATE WITHOUT RE-OFFENDING.

OUR STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

To provide services to young offenders to decrease their

reoffending and increase their capacity to successfully

reintegrate into their communities.

The artwork on the cover and inside this report is the work of

Karen Beetson, Aboriginal Team Advisor,

Intensive Supervision Program, Juvenile Justice.

Karen explains her artwork:

Cover

The artwork represents Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff

and reflect how different we all are. The dots and circles around the

figures represent our spirituality and Aboriginality. Our Aboriginality

means something different to each if us, and despite these

differences we are all from this land; we are all one mob. Who we

are and where we come from is what makes us who we are. It

allows us to share our knowledge and experience with the

communities and clients we work with.

This knowledge then trickles through the department, helping us to

focus our goals of helping our children and young people.

Internal

This picture reflects the enthusiasm and passion we as Aboriginaland Torres Strait Islander workers have for our jobs.

Printed on FSC certified paper stock

design: www.mlcdesign.com.au


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Youth Justice Conferencing and the Young Offenders Act Chapter 3 33

OVERVIEW: ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT OF JUVENILE JUSTICE ..............................PAGE

Director Generals foreword........................................................................................8

The role of the department ......................................................................................10

Location of services ..................................................................................................11

Organisational chart ................................................................................................12

Executive structure and management ......................................................................13

Operations directorate..............................................................................................13

Management Services directorate ............................................................................14

Office of the Director General ..................................................................................15

Research ..................................................................................................................15

Reoffending rates and YSLI ......................................................................................18

NSW State Plan ........................................................................................................18

Corporate Plan 2007-2011 ......................................................................................18

The juvenile justice environment

Role of Police, Courts, Other agencies, Juvenile Offender Compact, AJJA ,Keep them safe report, Youth Conduct Orders, Changes to legislation ....................19

Overseas delegations................................................................................................22

Financial summary....................................................................................................22

YOUNG PEOPLE WITHIN THE JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM

Some characteristics of the young people with whom we work ..............................24

Young people with mental health and disability issues ............................................24Age characteristics of young offenders ....................................................................26

Gender of young offenders......................................................................................27

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people in juvenile justice........................28

YOUTH JUSTICE CONFERENCING

Overview..................................................................................................................32

Key service measures ..............................................................................................33

Achievements ..........................................................................................................35

Planned initiatives for 2009-10 including partnerships..............................................36

YOUNG OFFENDERS IN THE COMMUNITY

Overview..................................................................................................................40

Key service measures................................................................................................40

Community-based partnerships ................................................................................42

YDAC ......................................................................................................................42

Community-based programs ....................................................................................43

Intensive Supervision Program ..................................................................................44

Major achievements and initiatives ..........................................................................45

Bail supervision ........................................................................................................46

CONTENTS


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YOUNG PEOPLE IN CUSTODY

Overview..................................................................................................................50

Services provided to young people ..........................................................................50

Key service measures................................................................................................51

Major achievements and initiatives ..........................................................................55

Programs..................................................................................................................56

Education and Training ............................................................................................57

Health services ........................................................................................................57

Transport, placement and drug intelligence ..............................................................58

GOVERNANCE, PRIVACY AND OVERSIGHT

Freedom of information ..........................................................................................62

Privacy management ................................................................................................67

Legal representation ................................................................................................67

Official Visitors ........................................................................................................68

Young offenders Advisory Council............................................................................68

Serious Young Offenders Review Panel ....................................................................69

Community consultation and client feedback ..........................................................70

NSW Ombudsman....................................................................................................70

Commissioner for Children and Young People..........................................................71

Complaints ..............................................................................................................71

WORKFORCE CAPACITY

Overview..................................................................................................................74

Code of conduct and guarantee of service ..............................................................75

Exceptional movements in wages, salaries or allowances..........................................76

Occupational health and safety ................................................................................76

Workers compensation ............................................................................................76

Employee assistance provider ..................................................................................77

Training (ODU)..........................................................................................................77

Equal employment opportunity ................................................................................78Equity ......................................................................................................................79

Planned initiatives for 2009-10 ................................................................................80

Principal and senior executive positions ....................................................................80

Risk Management ....................................................................................................81

Performance statement for Director General ............................................................82

4 Juvenile Justice, Department of Human Services Annual Report 2008-2009


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FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Statement by department head................................................................................84

Independent auditors report ....................................................................................85

Operating statement for the year ending 30 June 2009 ..........................................87

Statement of recognised income and expense for theyear ending 30 June 2009........................................................................................88

Balance sheet as at 30 June 2009 ............................................................................89

Cash flow statement for the year ending 30 June 2009 ..........................................90

Summary of compliance with financial directives......................................................93

Notes to and forming part of the financial statements for theyear ending 30 June 2009........................................................................................94

Capital works expenditure......................................................................................112

Funds granted to non-Government organisations ..................................................112

Use of consultants..................................................................................................114

Credit card certification ..........................................................................................114

Payment of accounts..............................................................................................114

Major assets ..........................................................................................................115

Disposals and vestments ........................................................................................115

Capital Works ........................................................................................................116

APPENDICES ..........................................................................................................117

Appendix 1: Legislation and Legal Changes............................................................118Appendix 2: Significant Committees ......................................................................120

Appendix 3 Policies and plans ................................................................................128

Appendix 4: Sustainability management ................................................................130

Appendix 5: Overseas Visits....................................................................................132

Appendix 6: Publications ........................................................................................132

Appendix 7: About this Annual Report ..................................................................132

Appendix 8: Access and Addresses ........................................................................133

55


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The Honourable Graham West MP

Minister for Juvenile JusticeMinister for Volunteering

Minister for Youth

Minister Assisting the Premier on Veterans Affairs

Level 13, 55 Hunter Street

SYDNEY NSW 2000

Dear Minister

In accordance with the Annual Reports (Departments) Act 1985, I

have pleasure in submitting to you, for presentation to Parliament, a

report on the activities and financial affairs of the Department of

Juvenile Justice for the period from 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009.

Yours sincerely

Peter MuirDirector GeneralDepartment of Juvenile Justice

LETTER OF SUBMISSION TO THE MINISTER



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CHAPTER 1

OVERVIEW: ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT


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The last year has seen a number of changes to juvenile justicewhich included changes to staffing in juvenile justice centresand central office.

The number of young people in custody on remand and controlorders has steadied somewhat since the dramatic climb in 2007-08but continues to increase.

Juvenile Justice is working with other agencies such as the AttorneyGenerals Department and NSW Police to investigate the causes ofthe increases through the bail working group.

The opening of the Emu Plains Juvenile Justice Centre in October2008 created capacity in the states juvenile justice system and easedthe demand for beds.

Work also began on the construction new 15 bed units at OranaJuvenile Justice Centre in Dubbo and Acmena Juvenile Justice Centrein Grafton, as well as upgrade works on Riverina Juvenile JusticeCentre to accommodated 12 extra beds.

In the next year, a number of new custodial beds will come on line,which will help us to focus on improving rehabilitation programs foryoung people in custody.

This includes the establishment of a pre-release unit at ReibyJuvenile Justice Centre in Campbelltown. The aim of the unit is toconnect detainees with services in the community prior to theirrelease, so they have the support they need when they leave the

centre.

In the community we have seen a 16 per cent increase in thenumber of community based orders and a 35 per cent increase inthe number of orders completed during the year.

There was an 11 per cent increase in the number of referrals toYouth Justice Conferences and a 20 per cent increase in thenumbers of conferences held during the year.

Over the past four years there has been increased funding intocommunity based programs and this year saw the introduction ofthe Intensive Supervision Program into the Newcastle and Western

Sydney regions. Early indications are encouraging, with 53 familiessigning up to the program in 2008-09, and an additional 13 familiesawaiting signup. Nearly half of the families who have successfullycompleted the program are from Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanderbackground.

Safety and security in centres has continued to improve, with assaultfigures remaining steady despite the increase in numbers. The rateof assaults on staff continues to fall, with a 70 per cent decreasesince 2004-05.

DIRECTOR GENERALS FOREWORD



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The implementation of the Keep them safe report, the governmentsresponse to the Wood Special Commission of Inquiry into ChildProtection System in NSW, has meant an increased responsibility forJuvenile Justice as a reporting agency. The establishment of a ChildWellbeing Unit, new training for staff and better information sharingbetween agencies in regards to "at risk" children will help providebetter responses to children in need of assistance or at risk ofsignificant harm.

Juvenile Justice is the lead agency and is working in partnership withNSW Police on the implementation of the Bail Assistance Line. Theafter hours Bail Assistance Line will assist in diverting young peoplefrom being remanded in custody while looking for safe and secureaccommodation.

Overseas interest in the NSW Juvenile Justice system continues to behigh with delegations from China, Sweden, Vietnam and the USAvisiting during the year. The department was also invited to presentpapers at the Childrens Rights Workshop in Beijing in May 2009and at the International Seminar on Penal Mediation in Italy inNovember 2009.

The dedicated staff of the department have continued to meet thechallenges of change and still provide an outstanding service to theyoung people in their care.

We look forward to continuing our partnerships with communityorganisations to deliver programs for young people in the

community and in custody.

Peter MuirDirector General

Overview: About the Department Chapter 1 9


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WHO WE ARE

The NSW Department of Juvenile Justice isresponsible for the administration of youthjustice conferences and for the supervision ofyoung offenders who receive community-based orders or custodial sentences from thecourts.

The department was established as anautonomous government body in 1991 and asa Schedule 1 Department in 1993. It is thelargest juvenile justice agency in Australia,employing an average full-time equivalentstaff of 1464.1 during 2008-09, includingmany people from Aboriginal and otherculturally and linguistically diversebackgrounds.

On June 11 2009, the NSW Governmentannounced the formation of 13 new superdepartments to bring government agenciestogether. The Department of Juvenile Justicewas amalgamated, along with theDepartments of Housing; Community Services;Aboriginal Affairs; Ageing, Disability andHome Care; Aboriginal Housing Office and

Businesslink to form the Department ofHuman Services. The core business of JuvenileJustice has not changed.

WHAT WE DO

The departments work includes thesupervision of young people sentenced tocommunity-based or custodial orders, supportfor young offenders meeting the conditions ofbail, supervision of young offenders who are

on conditional bail, supervision of youngpeople remanded in custody pendingfinalisation of their court matters, and thepreparation of reports for the consideration ofthe courts in determining sentences. Thedepartment also administers the Youth JusticeConferencing program.

The department provides funding to a numberof community agencies to give assistance tojuvenile offenders and their families.

The department operates under the terms ofthe Children (Detention Centres) Act 1987,the Children (Community Service Orders) Act1987, the Young Offenders Act 1997 andthe Children (Interstate Transfer of Offenders)Act 1988.

While supervising young offenders, either inthe community or in custody, Juvenile Justiceassists these young people with programs thatwill provide them with the opportunity tochoose positive alternatives to offendingbehaviour. These services are aimed atreducing the risk of a young personreoffending, and to assist them in addressing

underlying issues and behaviours.

WHERE WE ARE

The departments head office is located on PittStreet, Sydney, housing the Operations,Management Services, and Office of theDirector General directorates.

There are nine juvenile justice centres locatedaround NSW. Female detainees are held at

Juniperina Juvenile Justice Centre in Lidcombe.Across the state, there are 34 Juvenile JusticeCommunity Services offices incorporatingYouth Justice Conferencing. A full list of theselocations can be found on page 133.

THE DEPARTMENT OF JUVENILE JUSTICE



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LOCATION OF OUR SERVICES


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DEPARTMENT OF JUVENILE JUSTICE



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EXECUTIVE STRUCTURE ANDMANAGEMENT

Since July 2007, the Department of JuvenileJustice has been organised across threedirectorates: Operations; ManagementServices; and the Office of the Director General.

The corporate governance of the departmentis the responsibility of the ExecutiveCommittee. In 2008-09, the departmentsExecutive Committee met on a monthly basis.As at 30 June 2009, the committee consistedof the:

Director General

Deputy Director General (Operations)

Deputy Director General (ManagementServices)

Executive Director, Conduct, Policy andGovernment Relations

Regional Director, Metropolitan Region

Regional Director, Northern Region

Regional Director, Western Region

Chief Financial Officer

Director, Human Resources

OPERATIONS DIRECTORATE

The departments direct services to juvenileoffenders are managed and administered bythe Operations directorate.

Services in the community include YouthJustice Conferencing; support for youngpeople released on bail or remanded in

custody; assessment reports to assist courts;court-ordered supervision of juvenile offendersplaced on parole, good behaviour bonds,probation or community service orders;counselling and developmental programs asan alternative to detention and intensivefamily-based interventions.

Services within juvenile justice centres includeindividual case management to identify andaddress the needs of detainees and to plantheir community re-integration; training in jobskills and living skills; recreational and

counselling programs for detainees;

educational programs so detainees cancontinue their studies; and health services.

The directorate is comprised of three businessunits based at the departments Central Officeand three regions.

The Operations Unit develops policies andprocedures for all areas of direct servicedelivery. It is responsible for implementing aconsistent and integrated approach to thedelivery of services across the regions;ensuring continuous improvement of servicesand movement towards evidence-based bestpractices; and ensuring that community andcustodial needs are met effectively.

The Programs Unit sets the standards forand guides the overall development,implementation, monitoring and evaluation ofa range of specialist and general programs forjuvenile offenders. These include evidence-based programs that have been proven toreduce the risk of reoffending.

The Transport, Placements and DrugIntelligence Unit coordinates the securetransportation and placement of young

offenders, the use of video conferencingfacilities, the state-wide implementation of theclassification system and the gathering ofintelligence to assist in the safe operations ofthe department. The Unit provides securityadvice and support.

Custodial and community-based services aredivided into geographical regions administeredby Regional Directors, who report to theDeputy Director General (Operations).

In December 2008, the four regions were

restructured into three resulting in the closureof the Southern and Central Coast Region andthe regional office in Wollongong. The newregional arrangements are outlined below.

The Northern Region is administered fromthe regional office in Lismore. The regioncovers the Central Coast, including Gosford,Newcastle, the Hunter Valley, New England,the Northern Rivers and the North Coast. Theregion is responsible for Frank Baxter andAcmena centres and 13 community offices.



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The Metropolitan Region is administeredfrom the regional office in St Marys. Theregion covers the greater Sydney metropolitanarea, the Illawarra and the Shoalhaven. Theregion is responsible for Cobham, Emu Plains,Juniperina and Reiby centres, and wasresponsible for Keelong Juvenile Justice Centreuntil its closure in February 2009. MetropolitanRegion is also responsible for eight communityoffices and the Youth Drug and Alcohol Courtat Liverpool.

The Western Region is administered from theregional office in Dubbo. The region coverscentral NSW, the South Coast and the Murray,

Riverina and Outback areas. The region isresponsible for Riverina, Orana and Broken Hillcentres and 13 community offices.

Restructure of the DepartmentDuring 2008, the department undertook areview of its custodial, corporate and transportservices to initiate efficiencies.

Following extensive consultation a newstaffing model for centres was developed withthe new structure to come into effect in July2009. Additional changes include rural

transport services being located at localcentres and the creation of a Security andIntelligence Unit to better a broaderintelligence-gathering responsibility.

Some corporate services were restructured andplans are in place for a number of services tomove to Businesslink in the new financial year.

MANAGEMENT SERVICESDIRECTORATE

The Management Services Directorate providesthe corporate and management supportfunctions of the department and is led by theDeputy Director General (ManagementServices). The directorate brings together theservice functions of financial management andadministration, human resource management,organisational development, informationmanagement and communications technology,procurement and asset management andcorporate reporting.

This directorate is comprised of the followingbusiness units:

Finance is responsible for ensuring that thedepartment fulfils its statutory reporting andother financial management responsibilities,providing strategic ongoing financialinformation to management, financial adviceto the Executive Committee and the FinanceCommittee, and managing the workingrelationship between the department, theNSW Treasury and the NSW Audit Office.

Information Management and Technology(IM&T) ensures that computer systems andinformation repositories support the businessneeds of the department and reflect thegovernments strategic priorities. The functioncovers all information and communicationstechnology activities, including voice and dataservices, information management, electronicpublishing, libraries, archives and recordsmanagement.

Employment Relations and Conduct dealswith matters relating to professional conduct,investigations into alleged misconduct andother employment and industrial relations

matters.

Human Resources ensures timely, effectiveand proactive strategic human resourcemanagement to enhance the capability of thedepartment to implement government andcorporate strategies.

Property and Procurement Services has theresponsibility of leading and directing thedepartments asset management framework,policy, systems, procedures and strategy,including physical security requirements to

ensure the efficient and cost effectivemanagement of the departments propertyand procurement portfolio.

Administration Services (BusinessImprovement) has the responsibility ofproviding strategic analysis and operationaladvice regarding the implementation ofgovernment reforms.



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OFFICE OF THEDIRECTOR GENERAL

The role of the Office of the Director Generalis to provide strategic advice and administrativesupport to the Director General as well ascoordinating the departments relationshipswith key stakeholders, both internal andexternal, including the office of the Ministerfor Juvenile Justice. The office coordinatesoperations across the executive to enhancecommunication between business units.

The office also provides executive and

administrative support to the ExecutiveCommittee and the Young Offenders AdvisoryCouncil.

This directorate is comprised of the followingbusiness units.

Policy and Government Relations overseesCorporate Communications, Planning, ExternalRelations, Ministerial and ParliamentaryServices, the Community Funding Program,special projects and coordination of thedepartments State Plan responsibilities. The

unit provides strategic advice and services tothe Director General, the Minister for JuvenileJustice and external stakeholders.

Legal provides advice regarding theinterpretation of legislation impacting on thedepartments operations, preparation oflegislative proposals on behalf of thedepartment, and provides advocacy on behalfof the Director General in various Court andTribunal proceedings, including parole reviewhearings before the Children's Court.

The Aboriginal Strategic CoordinationUnit is responsible for developing,coordinating, monitoring, reviewing andsupporting the implementation of thedepartments Aboriginal Strategic Plan andother initiatives. The unit provides strategicand policy advice on the impact andeffectiveness of policies and practices relatingto young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanderpeoples. The unit also supports the departmentsprocesses for consulting with Indigenous staffthrough consultative bodies such as theAboriginal Staff Advisory Committee and theannual Aboriginal Staff Conference.

Research and Information provides astrategic overview and management of thedepartment's organisational research andcorporate data reporting.

RESEARCH

The departments Research SteeringCommittee reviews and approves all researchconducted in the department. The Committeeis composed of senior members of thedepartment as well as external members fromNSW Health including Justice Health, the NSW

Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research andNSW Corrective Services. The departmentcontinues to be actively involved in researchprojects with external agencies.

The department has recently funded threelarge scale research programs that will see theevidence base in the area of juvenile offendingin NSW increase significantly.

2009 NSW Young People in CustodyHealth Survey

The Department of Juvenile Justice, inpartnership with Justice Health, is replicatingthe successful 2003 Young People in CustodyHealth Survey. Revision of the previousinstruments used has been completed toimprove the quality of the data collected.Ethics approvals have been received from theJustice Health Human Research EthicsCommittee, Aboriginal Health and MedicalResearch Council, Department of CorrectiveServices Human Research Ethics Committee,along with approval for the projectsimplementation from the departments

Research Steering Committee. The datacollection commenced in late May 2009, andpreliminary results will be available in early 2010.

A longitudinal study of the biologicaland social / cognitive factors that leadto anti-social behaviour in adolescence

The School of Psychology, University ofWollongong is undertaking a researchpartnership with the department to identifythe social, cognitive and psychological factorsrelated to antisocial behaviour. Researchers DrJoseph Ciarrochi, Dr Peter Leeson and



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Professor Patrick Heaven are undertaking alongitudinal project which will also examinethe presence of protective, or resilience factorswithin the cohort.

Data collection will be completed over aneight-year period. Two points of datacollection will occur in the first year, withtwo-year follow-up periods of the sampleoccurring after this time. The proposal is toaccess students in Year Seven from six schools(five state and one private), with the departmentsassistance. The first wave of results is expectedto be available in December 2010.

Three-year research program with theNSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and

Research (BOCSAR)This research program is being funded by theNSW Department of Juvenile Justice in orderto investigate some key research questionsabout causes and effects of juvenile offending.The department provided BOCSAR funding toemploy a Research Officer to undertakeresearch in the following project areas:

Juveniles on remand: Causes and effects.This aims to understand the circumstancesthat lead to young people beingapprehended by police for breach of bailand placed on remand by court, and theimpact that remand has on young peopleboth during and after leaving custody.

Police and Youth Justice Conferencing.Aims to understand why only around halfof youth justice conference referralsemanate from police.

Desistance from offending. Will identify thefamily and social factors that are associatedwith desistence from offending behaviour.

Cautions and re-offending. To determinewhether juveniles making their first courtappearance are more likely to re-offend ifthey have previously been cautioned bypolice; and whether they are less likely tore-offend at this point if they are only dealtwith by the court system.

Simulation model of the juvenile justicesystem. Aims to build a computersimulation model of the juvenile justicesystem that permits the user to examinethe impact on the juvenile custodial

population of changes in admissions,lengths of stay and rates of return.

There are a number of approved researchprojects being conducted in the departmentby a range of post graduate research studentsand university based academics.

An analysis of supervision skills usedby juvenile justice workers

Dr Chris Trotter from Monash University isevaluating the use of pro-social modellingtechniques by juvenile justice officers andcounsellors during supervision sessions withyoung people serving community-basedorders. The project entitled Analysis of thesupervision skills of juvenile justice officerswill provide more information about the wayin which juvenile justice workers confrontyoung people in relation to their behaviour,how this relates to client outcomes andwhether some styles of confrontation workbetter with some clients than others. AnAboriginal researcher is employed to assist indata collection with Indigenous clients. Thisresearch has attracted further grant fundingand will continue in the department until 2011.

Mental Health Disorders andCognitive Disabilities in the CriminalJustice System

Dr Eileen Baldry (Department of Social WorkUNSW) is the Chief Investigator in anAustralian Research Council Linkage Grantinvestigating the pathways of people with amental health disorder and / or cognitivedisability through the criminal justice system.The department is a collaborating organisationin this project which is retrospectively mappingthe pathway of incarcerated adults with acognitive disability and / or mental health issuethrough the criminal justice, health andwelfare agencies. This research will providegroundbreaking information on cross-agency

approaches to providing effective interventionsfor people with mental health disorders andcognitive disabilities. The outcomes of thisresearch will assist all government agenciesinvolved to improve identification of andservice delivery to this client group.

The impact of penalty severity onjuvenile recidivism

This is an ongoing statewide project by theNSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research

investigating the impact of sentence severityon re-offending after controlling for factors



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known to be associated with re-offending.Work has begun on linking two-year follow-upoffence data to the participants in the survey,and the final report is expected to be availablein late 2009.

Research into the Youth Level ofService/Case ManagementInventoryAustralian Adaptation(YLS/CMI-AA)

This study involves updating the norms for theYLS/CMI-AA, in order to assess the veracity ofthe current cut-off scores for the risk levels.Professor Tony Thompson (Charles SturtUniversity) and the department will alsoexamine changes in risk scores over multiple

administrations to determine contributingfactors to this for a sub-sample of individuals.The updated norms and cut-off scores areexpected to be available for implementation inthe second half of 2009.

Sentencing young offenders Policyand practice in three states

Dr Max Travers from the University ofTasmania has recently been approved toextend into NSW his Criminology ResearchCouncil grant-supported research regarding

the work of professionals involved in thesentencing of young offenders. To date, this

qualitative research has been completed inTasmania and Victoria, and involves acombination of interviewing and observingpractitioners involved in the completion of pre-sentence reports for the NSW Childrens Court

(two metropolitan and one rural location).Data collection and interviewing commencedin June 2009.

Upcoming research in the department will beexploring the following areas:

Exploring the relationship betweencannabis use and criminal offendingamong adults and adolescents

Ms Melanie Simpson from the NationalCannabis Prevention and Information Centre,

(NCPIC), part of the National Drug andAlcohol Research Centre (NDARC) at theUniversity of NSW has also recently beenapproved to undertake research entitledExploring the relationship between cannabisuse and criminal offending among adults andadolescents. This PhD level research,supervised by Professor Jan Copeland (NCPIC)and Professor John Howard (NDARC) will havethe potential to inform clinical approaches andpolicy development around cannabisinterventions and associated criminal

behaviours when completed.


Percentage of juvenile offenders receiving a subsequent conviction orconference with 12 months of the index appearance

61.7

55.3

43.6

65.666.964.1

67.169.6

73.3

56.954.3 54.0 55.3 54.0

55.4

38.336.5 35.5

39.441.6

36.9

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

2000/2001 2001/2002 2002/2003 2003/2004 2004/2005 2005/2006 2006/2007*

Detention Order Supervised Order Conferenced

Source: NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and ResearchConferenced: Young people finalised at a Youth Justice ConferenceSupervised Order: Young people finalised in the Children's Court who received a supervised order other than a controlorder (including suspended sentence with supervision, CSO, probation with supervision, bond with supervision)Detention Order: Young people receiving a control order


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NSW STATE PLANIn November 2006, the NSW Governmentreleased the State Plan:A New Direction forNSW, which is the foundation document forsetting a series of priorities and targets forgovernment services in NSW.

The Department of Juvenile Justice is a keypartner on three of these priorities.

R1: Reduced rates of crime, particularlyviolent crime;

R2: Reduced re-offending; andR3: Reduced levels of antisocial behaviour

The implementation of the IntensiveSupervision Program (ISP) is a key Departmentof Juvenile Justice initiative under R2: ReducedRe-offending.

Launched in May 2008, ISP is a four year pilotprogram based on multisystemic therapy. Thismodel has proven to be effective in reducingthe risk of re-offending over a thirty-yearevaluation period across a number of

countries, supporting its effectiveness as a toolto address juvenile offending.

In addition to acting as a key partner in theabove priorities, the department is acontributing agency to a number of otherareas of the State Plan.

CORPORATE PLAN 2007-2011

The corporate plan provides a framework forregional and organisational Strategic andBusiness Plans.

The Plan encompasses the departments

Results and Services Plan, Total AssetManagement and Information andCommunications Technology Plans. It alsoincludes equity-related initiatives such as theDisability Action Plan, the Ethnic Affairs PriorityStatement and Equity Plan.

The Plan identifies Outcomes and Strategies in:corporate capacity, community-based services,and custodial services.

The department has implemented a CorporatePlan performance-reporting framework. This

framework has identified performance

YOUTH LEVEL OF SERVICE INVENTORY (YLSI)

Youth Level of Service Inventory (YLSI) is an assessment tool for determining risk of juvenile re-offending.Prior and current offences are static factors and are therefore excluded from reduction calculations.


Percentage of young people on exit 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09from Juvenile Justice care who are:

* Living in safe and appropriate accommodation 82% 89% 91%

* Participating in education and training or 55% 59% 59%* participating in employment

* Participating in community activities 36% 38% 38%

2006-07 2007-08 2008-09

Percentage of all clients showing a reduction in 61% 66% 69%their YLSI score on exit from DJJ supervision

Percentage of medium to high YLSI rankings 47% 45% 51%that are reduced on exit from DJJ supervision**

* Youth Level of Service Inventory (YLSI) is an assessment tool for determining risk of juvenile re-offending. Prior andcurrent offences are static factors and are therefore excluded from reduction calculations.

** YLSI assessment rankings for re-offending risks are Low, Medium and High.


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indicators that measure the department'sprogress in implementing the strategiesoutlined in the Corporate Plan.

The Corporate Information System (CIS)project has been initiated to deliver strategicperformance information to the organisationand continues to be on budget and onschedule to meet the target completion dateof 30 June 2010.

THE JUVENILE JUSTICEENVIRONMENT

The term juvenile justice is generally used torefer to the states criminal justice responses tochildren who have allegedly committed, orhave been found to have committed, acriminal offence.

In NSW, criminal responsibility legallycommences at the age of 10. Under criminallaw, a child is defined as a person under 18years of age.

Various aspects of criminal justice are

administered in NSW by different governmentagencies, including NSW Police and the courts.The Department of Juvenile Justice worksclosely with these agencies to deliverappropriate responses to reducing thelikelihood of re-offending among young people.

In addition to administering juvenile justiceservices according to NSW legislativerequirements, the department also adheres tonational and global standards and guidelinesas laid out by the Australasian Juvenile JusticeAdministrators and the United Nations.

The role of the NSW Police

The detection and investigation of crime is theresponsibility of the NSW Police. For someyoung offenders, NSW Police may choose touse alternatives to the commencement ofcourt proceedings including warnings,cautions or referral to youth justiceconferences as set out in the Young OffendersAct 1997. NSW Police may also commencecourt proceedings against young offendersunder the provisions of the Children (Criminal

Proceedings) Act 1987.

The department works closely with NSWPolice, particularly in relation to thetransportation of young people and incidentmanagement within juvenile justice centres.

NSW Police also provide specialist support toyoung offenders through the operation of theYoung Offenders Act 1997, Police andCommunity Youth Clubs. In some areas of thestate, NSW Police engage young offendersthrough a variety of recreational and socialprograms.

The role of the Courts

The commencement, conduct and outcomeof court proceedings against young peoplealleged to have committed an offence andwho are not eligible to be dealt with underthe Young Offenders Act are governedprincipally by the Children (CriminalProceedings) Act 1987.

Section 6 of the Children (CriminalProceedings) Actsets out the principlesapplicable to all courts exercising criminaljurisdiction with respect to children.

These principles are:

(a) that children have rights and freedomsbefore the law equal to those enjoyed byadults and, in particular, a right to beheard, and a right to participate, in theprocesses that lead to decisions that affectthem;

(b) that children who commit offences bearresponsibility for their actions but, becauseof their state of dependency and immaturity,require guidance and assistance;

(c) that it is desirable, wherever possible, toallow the education or employment of achild to proceed without interruption;

(d) that it is desirable, wherever possible, toallow a child to reside in his or her ownhome;

(e) that the penalty imposed on a child for anoffence should be no greater than thatimposed on an adult who commits anoffence of the same kind;



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(f) that it is desirable that children whocommit offences be assisted with theirre-integration into the community so as tosustain family and community ties;

(g) that it is desirable that children whocommit offences accept responsibility fortheir actions and, wherever possible, makereparation for their actions; and

(h) that, subject to the other principlesdescribed above, consideration shouldbe given to the effect of any crime onthe victim.

Section 33 of the Children (Criminal Proceedings)

Actpermits the courts to make any of thefollowing orders: a dismissal and / or caution,a good behaviour bond with or withoutsupervision, a fine, referral to a youth justiceconference, conditional or unconditionalprobation, a community service order, or anorder that confines a young person for aspecified period to detention, or a parole order.

Other agencies

The Department of Juvenile Justice does nothave sole responsibility for addressing juvenile

offending behaviour in NSW. Strongpartnerships and joint projects with otherhuman services and justice agencies areessential in providing effective interventionsfor juvenile offenders.

These agencies include Justice Health, theDepartment of Ageing, Disability and HomeCare, the Department of Community Services,the Department of Education and Training,Centrelink, and the CommonwealthDepartment of Employment and WorkplaceRelations.

The department has also negotiated or is re-negotiating a number of protocols to addressthe needs of its young people with JusticeHealth, the Department of CommunityServices, the Department of Education andTraining, Department of Ageing, Disability andHome Care, Department of Corrective Servicesand Centrelink.

Juvenile Offender Compact

The department is proposing to lead the

governments commitment to reduce juvenileoffending through the development of aJuvenile Offender Compact.

The Juvenile Offender Compact is beingdeveloped to draw commitment andinvolvement from other government agenciesin the rehabilitation of juvenile offenders.The Compact will better coordinate and targetservice delivery across a range of services toyoung people at highest risk of re-offending.

Australasian and Juvenile JusticeAdministrators (AJJA)

The department works collaboratively withother State and Commonwealth agencies tofurther a whole-of-government approach inimproving outcomes for young people andcommunities through participation in a rangeof inter-agency forums.

Perspectives on issues and solutions foraddressing the needs of juvenile offendersacross Australia and in New Zealand werediscussed in biannual meetings of the

Australasian and Juvenile Justice Administrators(AJJA) in November 2008 and May 2009. AJJAis a standing committee of the Communityand Disability Services Ministers AdvisoryCouncil. Aboriginal over-representation andthe high levels of disability and homelessnessare areas of major concern for juvenile justiceadministrators across Australia.

The Keep them safe report

The Department of Juvenile Justice is workingwith the Department of Premier and Cabinet

and its agency partners Community Services,NSW Police, Department of Education andTraining, NSW Health, Department of Ageing,Disability and Home Care, and Housing toimplement the Keep them safe report, thegovernments response to the Wood SpecialCommission of Inquiry into Child ProtectionSystem in NSW(the Inquiry).

The central theme arising from the inquiry wasthe child protection is a shared agencyresponsibility. The Keep them safe report

acknowledges the serious implications for theway government approaches juvenile



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offending (that) must be addressed acrossgovernment. The report also states thatjuvenile offenders must be addressed acrossagencies in order to improve outcomes forthe next generation of Aboriginal parents.The department is addressing this issue withthe development of theJuvenile OffenderCompact.

A key recommendation of the Inquiry was theestablishment of an after-hours Bail AssistanceLine. The department is the lead agency and isworking in partnership with NSW Police onthe implementation of this assistance line.The service will commence in early 2010. The

after hours Bail Assistance Line will assist indiverting young people from being remandedin custody while facilitating safe and secureaccommodation. The service will includetransporting young people to theaccommodation.

Police in NSW will contact an 1800 numberthat will link them to the Bail Assistance Linefor young people who need bail support.Initially, the service will be piloted for 12months in three locations across the SydneyMetropolitan, Northern and Western Regions

of the department.

The Bail Assistance Line aims to:

improve adherence to bail conditions by ayoung person;

increase attendance at court, as required;

reduce the length of time that youngperson spends on remand;

reduce length of stay outside the familyhome or other safe appropriate

accommodation; divert a young person from custody, where

appropriate; and

increase community re-integration.

The department is a key partner agency inimplementing the Child Wellbeing Units(CWUs). CWUs will be established in eachmandatory reporting agency by October 2009,to drive better alignment and coordination ofnon-statutory services and timely, appropriateresponses to children in need of assistance or

at risk of harm.

Youth Conduct Orders

The Youth Conduct Order (YCO) Pilot Scheme,

announced by the Attorney GeneralsDepartment in late June, is aimed at reducinglevels of antisocial behaviour by targetingchildren and young people charged with,pleading guilty or found guilty of antisocialbehaviour offences.

The YCO scheme pilot will run for two years inthree locations (Campbelltown, Mount Druittand New England), starting 1 July 2009.

The department is working in partnership withkey stakeholders including the Department of

Premier and Cabinet, Attorney GeneralsDepartment, NSW Police, the Departments ofHousing, Education and Training, andCommunity Services to provide intensive casemanagement, aimed at addressing the causeof the offenders antisocial behaviour. Thismay include participation in education oremployment, as well as involvement in a rangeof programs such as alcohol and drugcounselling or anger management. YouthConduct Orders will also have a componentwhere the young person will be restrictedfrom visiting specified places or being in thecompany of a particular person and/orengaging in behaviour that may causeharassment, alarm or distress.

Changes to legislation

The Children (Detention Centres) AmendmentAct 2008 was assented to on 1 July 2008.The amendment included provision for anincrease in the time period for restrictions onparticipation in sports and leisure activities,providing additional powers for staff to

respond to difficult behaviour.The provisions of Division 1 (Admissions toDetention Centres) of the amendment wereproclaimed on 13 February 2009 and have theeffect that any detainee over the age of 18years is not to be admitted into a juvenilejustice centre if arrested pursuant to certainwarrants specific to the act.

The amendments to the Children (DetentionCentres) Regulation 2009 regarding detaineecritical dates commenced on 15 May 2009.

There has been significant research intobenefits of young people in custody



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developing community networks, positive peergroups and community acceptance to assistthem, their families and the community tobreak the juvenile crime cycle. The previouslegislation limited the number of detaineeswho could participate in leave. The currenttime frames will allow a structured approachto detainees progress through outings, dayand overnight leave and section 24(1) c of theChildren (Detention Centres) Act 1987, whichallows sufficient time for assessment andsuitability between each type of leave.

The Bail Amendment (Authorised Justice)Regulation 2009 came to effect on 12 June

2009. This means that Centre Managers andAssistant Managers are now prescribed asauthorised justices for the purpose of signingand exercising functions related to bailundertakings.

Overseas delegations

Overseas interest in the NSW Juvenile Justicesystem continues to be high with delegationsfrom China, Sweden, Vietnam and the USAvisiting during the year. These visits wereorganised in partnership with the Human

Rights Commission and the Australian PoliticalExchange Council:

lawyers from the Beijing Childrens LegalAid and Research Centre visited on aChildrens Rights Study Tour in October2008;

a delegation from the Vietnamese SupremePeople's Court visited November 2008;

the Committee on Justice of the SwedishParliament in Australia and New Zealandvisited in January 2009;

a delegation of lawyers and politiciansfrom the Philippines visited March 2009;

a delegation from the Chinese Ministry ofJustice (MOJ) visited in April 2009; and

a delegation from the USA visited in May2009, and included a member of the USHouse of Representatives, prosecutors andcounty official.

Deputy Director General (Operations) ValdaRusis presented a paper at the ChildrensRights Workshop in Beijing in May 2009. Thetrip was funded by the Australian HumanRights Commission as part of their China-Australia Human Rights Technical CooperationProgram.

The department has been invited to present apaper on Youth Justice Conferencing at theInternational Seminar on Penal Mediation inNovember 2009. The Italian Juvenile JusticeDepartment is funding the trip.

FINANCIAL SUMMARY

Total expenditure for the department in 2008-09was $183.552 million. Expenditure for eachservice category (including both direct andindirect costs) is indicated in the chart below.

Youth Justice Conferencing $6.608M

Community-based services $55.616M

Custodial services $121.328M


The department has successfully partnered withNewcastle City Council on a graffiti removal

program which involves young offenders removinggraffiti from various sites around Newcastle.


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CHAPTER 2

YOUNG PEOPLE WITHIN THEJUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM


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SOME CHARACTERISTICS OFTHE YOUNG PEOPLE WITH

WHOM WE WORK

Young people under the age of 18 who areinvolved in crime represent a relatively smallproportion of the states population.

Records of the Department of Juvenile Justiceshow that in 2008-09 for every 1000 peopleaged 10-17 resident in NSW:

13.5 had a criminal matter finalised in theChildren's Court;

11 were convicted and / or sentenced inthese finalised matters;

3.3 were given sentences requiring thedepartment to supervise them in theircommunity, and

1.0 was sentenced to detention.

The factors that lead to young peoplebecoming involved in crime are complex andvaried but are often the same as those thatrelate to the difficulties young peopleexperience in other aspects of their lives. Theycan include, but are not limited to, alcoholand substance abuse, poor parentalsupervision, difficulties in school andemployment, negative peer associations, poorpersonal and social skills, homelessness,neglect and abuse.

Disabilities and mental health issues

People with disabilities are over-represented inthe justice system, with approximately 88 percent of young people in custody and 40 percent in the community reporting symptoms ofmental illness consistent with a clinical disorder.

The department, in partnership with JusticeHealth, assesses and treats young peoplesmental health issues both in custody and inthe community. The department employs atleast one psychologist and an Alcohol andOther Drug (AOD) counsellor in every juvenilejustice centre.

Justice Health provides a psychiatric service toeach centre on a regular basis. On admissionto a juvenile justice centre, mental healthissues are identified through a screeningprocess designed to cover a range of mentalhealth, suicide, self-harm and drug-relatedproblems. The young person may then beimmediately referred to the centres psychologistfor further assessment, intervention and/orreferral to Justice Health psychiatric services.An on-call telephone service is availableafter-hours for consultation and liaison.

AOD counsellors provide treatment services toyoung people in the community and in

custody. When necessary, a psychologist fromthe departments Forensic Mental HealthProgram provides more detailed assessmentassistance to young people in custody or inthe community.

Juvenile Justice has also collaborated withJustice Health on the development of aComprehensive Risk Assessment tool which isused when young people are admitted into ajuvenile justice centre. This tool was developedalso in consultation with the Department ofEducation and Training.

Juvenile Justice and Justice Health staff workas a multi disciplinary team with theAdolescent Health Community IntegrationTeam (CIT) to improve health outcomes andadvocate for young people with mental illnessand/or problematic drug and alcohol use ordependence leaving custody.

Juvenile Justice and Justice Health have alsoworked in partnership in managing the H1N1Influenza virus in juvenile justice centres, andimplementing policies and procedures for the

management of any future pandemics.

Justice Health has recently opened the BronteAdolescent Unit which is part of the newForensic Hospital. New processes have beenimplemented regarding the transfer of youngpeople who have significant mental healthissues between the Forensic Hospital andjuvenile justice centres.



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Effective interventions

The departments focus is on developing and

delivering strategies that will help youngpeople address their offending and antisocialbehaviour and successfully re-integrate intotheir community.

To achieve this, the department provides arange of programs and interventions withinthe community and custodial environmentsthat are designed to address the needs ofyoung offenders. These include counsellingand group-work programs which focus onyoung offenders alcohol and other drugissues, programs for sex offenders and violent

offenders, and programs specific to Indigenousand Torres Strait Islander youths. Theseprograms are available across the state andare delivered to individuals and groups.

In addition to the programs andinterventions delivered by departmentalstaff, the department has developed a rangeof partnerships to assist young offenders.These include the delivery of educationwithin juvenile justice centres, post-releasesupport and employment skilling programs,disability support, health and mental healthsupport, and legal services.

A priority for the department is the over-representation of young Aboriginaloffenders and young offenders underfourteen years within the juvenile justicesystem. To address these groups, the

department is enhancing current strategiesand developing new programs to provideeffective interventions. Initiatives such asthe Intensive Supervision Program will havea clear focus on young Indigenous peoplebetween the ages of 10 and 14.

Young People within the Juvenile Justice System Chapter 2 25

A performance by Indigenous music group from the Northern Territory, B2M, at Riverina JuvenileJustice Centre. The men performed rhythm and blues music, and spoke to the young offendersabout their life experiences and how they had arrived at where they are today.


26/8226 Juvenile Justice, Department of Human Services Annual Report 2008-2009

Age characteristics of juvenile offenders in 2007-08

25.0%48.948.0 36.3

53.9%46.955.046.6

21.0%4.28.75.4

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Age at Youth JusticeConference

Age at Commencementof Community Supervision

Age at Admission toRemand

Age at Admission toControl

Under 16 years 16 to 17 years 18 years and over

AGE CHARACTERISTICS OF OFFENDERS

The chart below gives an indication of the ages of young people who came into contact with the

department during 2008-09. Young offenders, both under community-based supervision and indetention, are predominantly aged between 16 and 18.

Of the young offenders who attended a youth justice conference, a slightly higher proportion wasless than 16 years of age. There is little variation in the 2008-09 figures from previous years.

Age Characteristics of Offenders in Juvenile Justice in 2008-2009

47.638

47.9

31.4

44.754.2

48.1

54.7

7.7 7.83.9

13.9

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

120%

Age at Youth Justice

Conference

Age at Commencement

of Community Supervision

Age at Admission to

Remand

Age at Admission to

Control

Percentage Less than 16 years Percentage 16 to 17 years Percentage 18 years and over

Source: DJJ RPE Standard Statistical Reporting Database.


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Gender of Offenders in Juvenile Justice in 2008-2009

18.0 14.7 18.5

7.2

82.0 85.3 81.5

92.8

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Attending a YouthJustice Conference

Under CommunityBased Supervision

Remanded in Custody Sentenced to Detention

Female Male

Gender of Offenders in Juvenile Justice in 2007-2008

6.118.013.518.4

86.581.6 82.0 93.9

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Attending a YouthJustice Conference

Under CommunityBased Supervision

Remanded in Custody Sentenced to Detention

Female Male

GENDER OF YOUNG OFFENDERS

Young people in custody and on community service orders in NSW are predominantly young males

aged between 16 and 17 years of age. Young women make up a small percentage of juveniles incustody, rising slightly to just over seven per cent in 2008-09.

The chart below shows the gender of young offenders in contact with the department in 2008-09.


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ABORIGINAL AND TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER YOUNG PEOPLE INJUVENILE JUSTICE

NSW is home to the largest number of Indigenous people in Australia. Over 110,000 people inNSW identify themselves as Aboriginal, and a further 4,000 identify as Torres Strait Islander. The challengesJuvenile Justice faces in supporting our Aboriginal young offenders are diverse and complex.

The social, educational, health and law and justice outcomes for our Aboriginal population are significantlylower than the non-Aboriginal population. This disadvantage plays a significant role in Aboriginal youngpeople coming into contact with the criminal justice system.

The following chart shows the proportion of those young people attending a youth justice conference orundertaking court-ordered supervision by the department during the years 2004-05 to 2008-09 who wereAboriginal and / or Torres Strait Islander.


Proportion of admissions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people to Juvenile Justice

28.627 27.2 26

20.5

33.2 34

39.5 38.837.5

47.4 47.5

54.756.3

48.5

37.8 37.3 37.939.6

35.8

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09

Attending a Youth Justice Conference Under Community SupervisionSentenced to Detention Remanded in Custody


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To ensure a co-ordinated approach toaddressing the over-representation ofAboriginal young people in the juvenilejustice system, the Department of JuvenileJustice has developed the AboriginalStrategic Plan 20072011.

Guided by the principles of governance,culture, community, success, servicedelivery, and the recognition of the needsof young people, the plan contains fourkey outcome areas: community capacity,staff, operations and diversion.

The plan establishes a strong platformfor well coordinated and targetedinterventions that aim to provideimproved responses and betteroutcomes for Aboriginal and TorresStrait Islander young people in NSWwho are involved with the department.

The initiatives implemented under theAboriginal Strategic Plan include:

active recruitment and retention ofAboriginal staff as well as providing non-Indigenous staff with appropriate culturalknowledge to work effectively withAboriginal young people;

Juvenile Justice continues to be a leadingemployer of Aboriginal people in NSW.Approximately 10 per cent of the totalworkforce is Aboriginal in positions ranging

across administrative, managerial andfront-line areas.

supporting Aboriginal young people whilethey are on bail to help them re-integrateinto the community and extending referralof Aboriginal young people to YouthJustice Conferencing where appropriate.

The department is reviewing the AboriginalStrategic Plan to further strengthen its capacityto measure the quality and impact of servicesand programs for Aboriginal clients, staff and

communities.


Number of admissions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people to Juvenile Justice

371289 349

946 992

1232

1512

1767

208 234289

13341453

1611

2012

346 301

351 345

1657

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09

Attending a Youth Justice Conference Under Community SupervisionSentenced to Detention Remanded in Custody


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Juvenile Justice recognises that key justice andhuman services agency partnerships arefundamental to addressing the over-representation of Indigenous young peoplewithin the juvenile justice system and iscommitted to working closely with otheragencies to assist in addressing the needs ofyoung offenders and the community.

These agencies include Aboriginal Affairs, whoproduce the Two Ways Together policy, andthe NSW Justice Department, which developedthe Aboriginal Community Justice Groups.

Juvenile Justice places a high value onthe identification, development andimplementation of culturally appropriate,innovative and evidence-based programs thatspecifically targets areas of offending riskwithin the Indigenous youth population.

Continued improvements in employment ratesfor Indigenous staff are vital in building aresponsive and effective juvenile justice systemwhich supports young people and understandsand respects Aboriginal and Torres StraitIslander culture, families and communities.

Some of the departments major activities inrelation to Indigenous issues during 2008-09included:

state-wide roll out of Dthina Yuwali, analcohol and other drugs group workprogram for Indigenous young people;

completion of the first year of theAboriginal Strategic Plan 2007-2011;

commencement of the recruitment processto employ two Cadet AboriginalPsychologists within the Metropolitan

Region; commencement of revision of the

Aboriginal Recruitment and RetentionStrategy;

development of the Aboriginal StrategicAdvisory Committees strategicmanagement framework;

completion of the 2008 and 2009Aboriginal Staff Conference. Theconference aims to provide an opportunityfor Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander

staff to network with their colleaguesand explore how the department can

strengthen its service delivery andprograms to support Aboriginal and TorresStrait Islander young people, staff and thecommunities with which it works;

implementing the recommendations of theAboriginal Child Sexual Assault Taskforce.Juvenile Justice leads three actions of theInter-agency Plan to tackle child sexualabuse in Aboriginal communities. Theyinclude a review of the child sexual assaulttraining package for Juvenile Justice staffand supervisors; introduction of mandatorypersonal safety / protective behaviourscourses in juvenile justice centre

programming that has an Aboriginalcomponent; and review of the currentJuvenile Sex Offender Programs provided injuvenile detention and adaptation ofprograms to the needs of Aboriginal youngsex offenders aged 10-17;

participating in the Two Ways TogetherCoordinating Committee; and

a reworking of Our Journey to Respect,the intergenerational anti-violence groupwork program for Indigenous males. Theevaluation commenced following a

literature review, and staff and communityconsultation.


Partnerships between the department andlocal councils enable young offenders on

Community Service Orders to clean up graffitiin the community.


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CHAPTER 3

YOUTH JUSTICE CONFERENCING


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Youth justice conferences are a communitybased approach to dealing with young peoplewho have committed a crime. Conferences area formal legal process based on the principlesof restorative justice. They bring youngoffenders, their families and supporters face toface with victims and their support people.Together, they agree on a suitable outcomethat can include an apology, reasonablereparation to victims, and steps to reconnectthe young person with their community inorder to help them desist from furtheroffending.

The department is responsible for the

administration of youth justice conferencesunder Part 5 of the Young Offenders Act 1997.In supporting this function, the department:

appoints Assistant Managers (YJC) whoperform the function of a ConferenceAdministrator under section 61 theActtoundertake the functions specified in Part 5of theAct;

recruits, selects, trains and supportsConference Convenors to prepare andfacilitate youth justice conferences;

develops guidelines on the conduct ofconferences; and

works collaboratively with key partners inthe implementation of theAct.

Conferences are available when young peoplehave committed offences that the Police,Court or Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP)determine are too serious to receive a warningor caution, or they have exceeded theirmaximum number of cautions. Not all youngoffenders are eligible to be dealt with by way

of youth justice conference; some categoriesof offences such as sexual assault, seriousdrug offences, breaches of apprehendedviolence orders, traffic offences, and offencescausing death can only be dealt with by aCourt.

The primary objectives of Youth JusticeConferencing are:

assisting young offenders in takingresponsibility for their own behaviour;

enhancing the role of victims of crime inthe decision-making process;

ensuring that victims receive theinformation they are entitled to;

meeting the needs of both victim andoffender;

ensuring that the young offender is linkedto appropriate developmental and support

services; recognising the place of a young offenders

family and/or family group;

affording young offenders the leastrestrictive sanction appropriate in thecircumstances; and

encouraging discussion between thoseaffected by the offending behaviour andthose who have committed it in order toproduce an agreed outcome plan.

During a conference, the victim is able torespond to what happened, say how they feltabout the crime and suggest ways in whichthe young offender may be able to repair theharm caused. The victim may also suggestactions that may be taken to ensure the youngoffender does not make the same mistakes inthe future. All attending victims possess theright to veto proposed plans with which theyare not satisfied.

Once the Police, Court or DPP determine aconference is the most appropriate sanction, a

referral is made to the department under theYoung Offenders Act 1997. The departmentconsiders the referral and, if deemed suitable,allocates the matter to a convenor to prepareand facilitate a conference.

The conference then determines an outcomethat is legally binding and the departmentworks with nominated community membersto closely monitor the completion of theoutcome plan.



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KEY SERVICE MEASURES

In 2008-09, 1915 referrals for a youth justiceconference were accepted, which resulted in1441 youth justice conferences beingfacilitated.

There are a number of reasons why a referralmay not eventuate in a youth justiceconference. These reasons include:

withdrawal of consent by the youngperson;

withdrawal by the Specialist Youth Officer;

withdrawal by the Court or by the Directorof Public Prosecutions; or

the young person fails to attend.

The difference in the number of referralsresulting in a conference and the numberof conferences facilitated is a result ofmultiple referrals being dealt with in asingle conference, or joint conferencesbeing held for co-offenders.

In 2008-09 the percentage of victims or theirrepresentatives participating in youth justiceconferences was 50 per cent.

Outcome Plans completed 5 year chart

Approximately 95 per cent of all youngoffenders complete the required tasks of theiroutcome plans.

Where a young person is deemed to havefailed to satisfactorily complete their outcomeplan, a notice is given to the police or thecourt which referred the young person. Thisnotice includes an explanation of thecircumstances relating to non-completion.The referrer may then decide to continue orcommence proceedings against a child.

Youth Justice Conferencing Chapter 3 33

Percent of Youth Justice Conferences Finalised and Outcome Plans Completed

9393

91

91

95

88.0%

89.0%

90.0%

91.0%

92.0%

93.0%

94.0%

95.0%

96.0%

2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09

Source: DJJ RPE Standard Statistical Reporting Database.1. The Young Offenders Regulation 2004 allows six months for the completion of outcome plans, although the DirectorGeneral does have discretion to allow additional time if circumstances are exceptional.


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PLANNED INITIATIVES FOR200910

PARTNERS

NSW Police

The Department of Juvenile Justice and NSWPolice will continue to collaborate in thedelivery of specific training to key police officers.The successful completion of Specialist YouthOfficer (SYO) Training is a prerequisite to theirappointment, by the Commissioner of thePolice, as an SYO with the power to makeprimary decisions about how young offendersare dealt with under the Act.

The department, in conjunction with the NSWPolice, will be reviewing the existing protocolsrelating to the administration of Part 5 of theYoung Offenders Actduring 200910. Thereview will involve a collaborative processincluding key personnel from both agencies.

The Young Offenders Regulation 2004 wasamended in June 2009 to mandate outcomesfor graffiti offenders. As a result, youth justice

conference outcomes for graffiti-relatedoffences will require young offenders to agreeto either:

clean up graffiti or perform other availablecommunity service work;

pay compensation to their victim; or

participate in training or educationprograms.

Juvenile Justice will continue working withNSW Police to ensure appropriate young

offenders are referred to youth justiceconferences, including for graffiti-relatedoffences.

Juvenile Justice will continue to foster positiverelationships with local councils, educationaland vocational institutions to ensure youngoffenders have every opportunity to fulfil therequirements of the new regulation.

Attorney Generals Department

The Attorney Generals Department is

responsible for the overall operations of theAct.

As the department with overall responsibilityfor the operation of theAct, the AttorneyGenerals Department works closely with thedepartment and NSW Police to achieve theobjectives of theAct.

The department will continue to work withthe Attorney Generals Department in theremaking of the Young Offenders Regulation2004 which is due for repeal in September2009.

NSW Fire Brigades

Wherever possible the NSW Fire Brigadesprovides a representative to attend eachconference for fire-related offences. Therepresentative provides input to assist in theproduction of a suitable, workable andconsistent section of the outcome plan. During200910 the department will negotiate withNSW Fire Brigades regarding the updating ofthe current Memorandum of Understandingand Guidelines.

Youth Justice Coalition

The Youth Justice Coalition is a network ofyouth workers, childrens lawyers, policyworkers and academics who work to promotethe rights of children and young people inNSW and across Australia. The coalition gavepermission for the department to reproducethe DVD Joes Conference, an educationaltool about conferencing, for which thecoalition holds the copyright.

Intellectually Disability Rights Service(IDRS)

The department is working with the IDRS toimprove support provided to young peopleand victims of crime who have an intellectualdisability and are participating in a conference.This work expands on the Additional SupportGuidelines developed in 2007-08 and willfocus on inter-agency promotion, educationand training.



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CASE STUDIES

A young person was referred for a youthjustice conference for an offence ofBreak and Enter.

The outcome plan agreed to at the youthjustice conference included voluntarywork with a local charity. The youngperson completed voluntary work andreceived positive acknowledgement fromvolunteers at the charity. Sincecompleting the outcome plan, the youngperson has continued voluntary work andis attending the charity every Saturday toassist in the pick-up and delivery ofdonated furniture. The young personcontinued to volunteer for three monthsfollowing the youth justice conference.

A young person was referred formalicious damage of school property.The young person had damaged agarden within the school grounds.

The young person and victim agreed toan outcome plan which included plantinga new garden at the school. The young

person also agreed to purchase $50worth of replacement plants.

Upon completion of the garden, theschool sent the young person a personalletter of thanks. Since the conferencethe young person has commenced aHorticultural course at TAFE and hasobtained a part time job at a local nursery.

Youth Justice Conferencing Chapter 3 37


38/8238 Juvenile Justice, Department of Human Services Annual Report 2008-2009

In partnership with TAFE Outreach, thedepartments Community Services office inPetersham created Youth Pathways to Education,Employment and Training, a hands-on educationprogram for young people on supervision in the

community who are not participating inmainstream education.


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CHAPTER 4

YOUNG OFFENDERS IN THE COMMUNITY


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YOUNG OFFENDERS IN THECOMMUNITY

Interventions delivered through thecommunity-based services arm of thedepartment aim to reduce re-offending byyoung offenders through intensive casemanagement strategies provided byprofessional staff, consolidating partnershipswith other agencies and offence-focussedprograms.

The courts may require that the departmentsupervise some young offenders who receive

community-based penalties such as goodbehaviour bonds and probation orders. Thedepartment is required to supervise allcommunity service work orders, parole ordersand suspended sentences.

There are 34 Juvenile Justice CommunityServices offices across the state. These officescomprise of juvenile justice officers, Alcoholand Other Drug (AOD) counsellors, otherspecialist and generalist counsellors, Aboriginalprogram support officers and generaladministrative staff.

Services provided from Juvenile JusticeCommunity Services offices include:

assessment reports prepared to assistcourts in determining sentences;

court-directed supervision of youngoffenders placed on good behaviourbonds, probation, community service orparole orders and suspended sentences;

support for young people with problemsseeking bail or those remanded in custody;

the provision of counselling with a focuson alcohol and other drug misuse,generalist counselling, group work, livingskills and the provision of forensic andother psychological testing and assessment;and

specialist programs including a AODprogram, a sex offender program and aviolent offender program.

Casework management and extensivenetworking with other government andcommunity-based services assist staff insupporting young offenders to addresstheir offending behaviour and complywith court orders.

Through case management, staff assess anddevelop interventions to address the individualoffending behaviour of these young people.

This can include finding accommodation,dealing with relationship difficulties, findingemployment, developing employment skills,and supporting the young person's returnto school.


KEY SERVICE MEASURES

Community Supervision 2007-08 Number 2008-09 Number

Number of background reports and assessments 3,391 4,271completed for young offenders appearing at court

Number of individual young offenders supervised 3,619 4,007in the community

Number of hours of community service work 33,363 39,450allocated to young offenders



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Successful completion = all community-based orders with an order end-date in the financial yearwithout a termination reason.

Unsuccessful completion = all community-based orders with an order end-date in the financial yearwith a termination reason.

Termination reason = a young person was in breach of their order; or received a control order to ajuvenile justice centre; or defaulted on a fine or community service order was revoked.

Youth Offenders in the Community Chapter 4 41

Number of Community-based orders commencing

3121

25082692

3896

4554

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

4500

5000

2004~2005 2005~2006 2006~2007 2007~2008 2008~2009


Numbers

Number of Community-based orders completed

2161

3779

2796

20322175

86.1%85.5%82.4%81.3%82.9%

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

2004~2005 2005~2006 2006~2007 2007~2008 2008~20090.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

70.0%

80.0%

90.0%

100.0%

No - completed %- completed

Source: DJJ RPE Standard Statistical Reporting Database

Numbers


42/82

COMMUNITY-BASEDPARTNERSHIPS

The department works closely with variousgovernment agencies including theDepartment of Education and Training, NSWPolice, NSW Health, Justice Health, theDepartment of Ageing, Disability and HomeCare (DADHC), the Department of CommunityServices (DoCS) and Centrelink in the deliveryof services and programs for young offendersin the community.

The department continues to work jointly with

DoCS to improve the delivery of services forchildren and young people under the parentalresponsibility of the Minister for CommunityServices and who are also clients of JuvenileJustice. A Memorandum of Understanding(MOU) that outlines the roles andresponsibilities of both departments guidesthis inter-agency approach.

The department has worked closely withDADHC to develop a MOU regarding workingwith young people who are joint clients.This MOU outlines the responsibilities for

each department in the management ofshared clients.

The department works in partnership with anumber of community agencies to provideservices to young offenders. The CommunityFunding Program (CFP) of the departmentallocates funding primarily to

juvenile justice annual report 2008 2009

Documents