Across Australia – and around the world – communities and governments are changing the way they respond to children and young people who break the law. This shift has been away from systems that deal largely with the consequences of youth crime, towards ones that address the underlying causes of offending by children and young people.
Efforts and resources are directed towards early intervention and prevention, diversion, including restorative justice practices, and only using detention for serious and repeat offending behaviour. For young people who come into contact with the youth justice system, the focus is on rehabilitation and reconnection with families and the community. Such approaches are not only delivering better outcomes for children and young people, but they have an important role in shaping community safety.