Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 April 2024
33. Deputy David Stanton asked the Minister for Justice if she will report on the operation of the youth justice strategy; her plans for further developments in this area; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17765/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraI want to thank Deputy Stanton for his question and acknowledge his leadership in developing the Strategy when he was Minister of State. I am glad to say that we have maintained the momentum and substantial progress has been achieved.
Every young person deserves the opportunity to improve their quality of life and our commitment to expanding Youth Justice services and increasing funding similarly reflects our commitment to these young people. This commitment is a central point of our Youth Justice Strategy, launched in 2021, which provides a developmental framework to address key challenges and emerging issues in the youth justice area. It is designed to provide a developmental framework to address previously identified challenges and new and emerging issues faced by children, young people and families in contact with the criminal justice system in Ireland.
As the Deputy will be aware, a top priority of the strategy is the expansion and deepening of the services offered to young people by the Youth Diversion Projects (YDPs), which are fully funded by my Department. These projects provide an invaluable support to complement the work of An Garda Síochána in addressing youth crime and protecting local communities.
YDPs are community based, multi-agency youth crime prevention initiatives which primarily seek to divert young people who have been, or are at risk of becoming, involved in anti-social and/or criminal behaviour. Youth Diversion Projects are run by community-based organisations and are a vital support to the statutory Garda Youth Diversion Programme.
In Budget 2024, the funding allocated to Youth Justice Services increased by 10% to €33 million. This will facilitate an increase in the availability of YDP services in the evenings and at the weekends when many young people need them the most, as well as an increase in supports for families, interventions for typically hard-to-reach young people and early interventions for 8-11 year olds who may be at increased risk of becoming engaged in criminal activity. Programmes run by individual YDPs are outcomes focused, taking account of the needs, issues and circumstances surrounding referred young people, including their offending behaviour as identified through the assessment process.
The current network of 99 YDPs is extensive but we will continue to develop it further to ensure every child who needs it is reached. Four new Youth Diversion Projects were launched last year to become operational later this year, with a further two additional projects planned for introduction later this year.
