Alan Farrell
Question:397. Deputy Alan Farrell asked the Minister for Justice her plans to make changes to the youth diversion programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29937/20]
View answerTuesday, 13 October 2020
Questions (397)
Written answers
As the Deputy may be aware, Part 4 of the Children Act 2001 (as amended) provides the statutory basis for the Garda Diversion Programme. The intention is to divert children and young people who have engaged in criminal or anti-social behaviour away from the Criminal Justice system and towards more positive life choices. Children who commit criminal offences are considered for admission to the Garda Diversion Programme, as provided in the Children Act 2001. Each such case is assessed and the Director of the Garda Diversion Programme (Garda Superintendent) decides if the case is suitable, or not, for inclusion.
The operation of the programme includes informal and formal Garda warnings, delivered in the presence of parents or guardians, as well as provision for supervision by a Garda Juvenile Liaison Officer. The scope of the Diversion programme is illustrated by 2017 figures, which show that 10,607 children were referred for consideration under the programme.
Garda Youth Diversion Projects (GYDPs) are a fundamental support to the operation of the statutory Garda Diversion Programme and provide a vital ingredient in enhancing community policing partnerships. These projects are community based multi-agency crime prevention initiatives, which are funded directly by my Department. GYDPs seek to divert young people who have become involved, or are at risk of becoming involved, in crime/anti-social behaviour away from future involvement with the Criminal Justice System. They are primarily targeted at 12-17 year old young people in communities where a specific need for the service has been identified. On average the Garda Youth Diversion Projects engage with between 3,500 and 4,000 young people across the state in any one year.
Currently there are some 105 Garda Youth Diversion Projects. The intention is to further develop the service so that it is available to every child in the State who could benefit from it, through an ongoing expansion of existing services and where necessary the foundation of new projects.
Further, the projects are being developed to provide family support to the parents of young people participating in the projects and are undertaking early intervention and preventative work. The role of the projects in relation to harder-to-engage young people is being enhanced and extended as part of the evolving Youth Justice system.
The Department is supporting ongoing development of practice in GYDPs through the Action Research Project led by the University of Limerick. The Action Research Project works directly with front-line Youth Justice Workers from local projects to develop interventions and best practice. Based on initial outcomes from the Action Research Project and evaluations of a number of pilot projects, it is intended to develop proposals to expand the existing services, to ensure national coverage and a stronger focus on difficult issues such as the hard-to-reach cohort.
These issues are addressed in the draft Youth Justice Strategy 2020-2026, which is due to be published in Q4 2020.