Following the rollout of the Queensland Government’s Youth Co-Responder Teams (YCRT), an independent evaluation has determined that the program is successfully contributing to reduced youth crime.
Youth Co-responder Teams involve a Department of Youth Justice (DYJ) officer and a police officer working collaboratively to engage with young people who are at risk of offending, as well as their siblings and families, and refers them to services and supports to help them address the underlying issues contributing to their offending behaviour.
Feedback was overwhelmingly positive that Queensland Police Service (QPS) and Department of Youth Justice (YJ) staff work collaboratively by sharing information and mutual knowledge and capability transfer.
The evaluation found that Youth Co-Responder Teams were a key connector to services and that:
- Young people were less likely to commit serious crimes after engaging with YCRTs
- The total number of breaking and entering; illegal use of a motor vehicle; and theft (excluding motor vehicle) offences decreased substantially
- The greatest reduction in re-offending was with serious repeat offenders. The most serious offenders saw a 73 per cent reduction in the number of offences committed six months post engagement with YCRTs
- Youth responsible for an average of 25 offences in the six months before engaging with Youth Co-Responder Teams dropped to an average of seven offences in the six months post engagement
- Most YCRT interactions occur outside of standard Youth Justice business hours, with the 2pm to 10pm shift seeing the greatest activity (49 per cent)
Youth Co-Responder Teams, together with other critical responses including Intensive Case Management, Restorative Justice Conferencing, providing grants to local community organisations and broader Queensland Government initiatives under the Community Safety Plan, have contributed to a reduction in the number of serious repeat offenders who re-offend by 14 per cent since October 2023.
Youth Co-Responder Teams reach around 6,000 young people a month across 13 locations; Cairns, Townsville, Rockhampton, Moreton, Logan, Mackay, Gold Coast, Brisbane North, Mount Isa, Fraser Coast, Ipswich, Toowoomba and South Brisbane.
The 2024–25 Queensland Budget included an $11.2 million investment over two years to increase the capacity of the successful YCRT initiative, delivering additional vehicles to hot spots in Cairns and the Gold Coast, as well as new Youth Co-Responder Teams on the Sunshine Coast and in the South West district to engage with young people at risk of offending behaviour and their families.
Queensland Minister for Youth Justice, Di Farmer, said that keeping Queenslanders safe is the government’s priority, and that early intervention programs like the YCRTs make safer communities by tackling youth crime issues at a local level.
“Our YCRT model is a successful and nation-leading initiative. The evaluation shows we are getting results,” Minister Farmer said.
“We are protecting every Queenslander by following expert advice for early intervention programs that tackle root causes of crime.
“We want our kids to have the best start in life, which the evidence shows reduces offending. That’s why we are investing in local solutions that tackle the root causes of young offending.”
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