Youth crime has fallen, according to statistics released this week.
The Youth Justice Team, which is made up of a number of agencies and led by the police, says it experienced another ‘challenging but successful’ year, with its annual report for 2014-15 providing evidence of a reduction in recorded juvenile crime.
The total number of referrals for the period April 1 2014 to March 31 2015 stood at 270 (involving 162 individuals), compared with 293 (193 individuals) for the previous 12 months and 412 (277 individuals) in 2012-13.
The report highlights the effectiveness of alternatives to prosecution, including cautions, final warnings and dedicated referral schemes for drugs, alcohol, assault and motoring-related offences.
The team says that a restorative justice approach, where victims of crime teach young people about the impact of their behaviour, is also proving instrumental in reducing reoffending levels.
The Youth Justice Team (YJT) brings together professionals from the Departments of Home Affairs (the police and prison and probation service) and Health and Social Care.
It says that as part of the focus on crime prevention and rehabilitation, work is undertaken to encourage young people into employment, education or training.
The team’s success in turning around the lives of young people is outlined in a series of case studies contained in the report.
One young offender said: ‘The Youth Justice Team has helped me realise that continuous offending would severely harm my chances of seeing the world, as well as limiting my future job opportunities. There are better and more legal ways to do things.’
Home Affairs Minister Juan Watterson MHK said: ‘These first-hand accounts provide compelling evidence of how staff are helping to turn young people away from crime and set them on a path to becoming more productive members of society.
‘At a time of financial constraint across government, our focus more than ever must be on achieving positive outcomes. The excellent work of the Youth Justice Team is continuing to make an important contribution to public safety in the Isle of Man. The results speak for themselves and fewer juvenile offenders mean fewer victims of crime and safer communities.’
He added: ‘Importantly, this work is not just reducing crime, but re-engaging a section of our nation’s youth who might otherwise be unskilled and potentially unemployed. The fact that almost 60 per cent of young people placed in work or training by the YJT are still engaged six months later serves to underline the team’s effectiveness in protecting and assisting the vulnerable.’
The aim of the YJT is to improve young lives by working to a philosophy of prevention, restoration and integration. The team says the vast majority of those referred to the team have stayed out of trouble. Only 18 out of 162 individuals were referred on three or more separate occasions.
Inspector Paul Bryan, head of the YJT, said: ‘Restorative approaches have continued to reap positive results, with the inclusion of victims being at the very heart of teaching young people about the impact of their behaviour on others. Our work is geared towards giving the island’s young people the best chance of achieving their full potential now and in the future.’
The YJT annual report is available on the government website at {https://www.gov.im/media/1349838/youth-justice-team-annual-report-2014-15.pdf |this site}