A program which stops young people breaking the law has been so successful it’s being taken statewide.
Detective Inspector Mark White and Detective Senior Sergeant Grant Ralston were last month awarded for the program which supports young people under a “co-responder” model.
Last year, the Community Youth Response co-responder model began running on three evenings per week.
In the first six months, quality outcomes were achieved including engagement of youth with the Department of Youth Justice and other programs, location of missing children, diverting youths from custody and the criminal justice system and transport of youth to places of safety.
Based on this success, the program is now running seven days and six nights a week in Logan.
The program began in August 2019 when Detective Inspector White and Detective Senior Sergeant Ralston from the Logan District Child Protection and Investigation Unit met with senior management from the Queensland Police Service and the Department of Youth Justice (DYJ) to discuss youth crime in the Logan area.
In the following months, they developed the Community Youth Response project.
Detective Inspector White said after seeing too many youths re-offending, he knew there had to be a better way.
“As police, we have a role in our community and our society, but that doesn’t always have to be one that involved arresting offenders,” Detective Inspector White said.
“We developed a joint operation with the Department of Youth Justice, and together we provide youngsters with the support they need.”
Detective Inspector White said the success of this program is attributed to the commitment of the officers who perform CYR duties and have positively engaged with young people in the community.
“This engagement has seen young people cease criminal offending completely, reunited with their family, reengage with education and commence employment and apprenticeship opportunities,” Detective Inspector White said.
Detective Senior Sergeant Ralston said adolescent years can be quite challenging, and it was the perfect time to have a police mentor to help navigate this period for the young adults.
“We are so pleaded to play a positive role in helping our young community members take important steps in improving their health, education and employment opportunities,” Detective Senior Sergeant Ralston said.
The program also earned the detectives a Child Protection Week award on September 3.
The program has expanded to Cairns, Townsville, Rockhampton and North Brisbane.
If you or your child are at risk or immediate harm, contact the police on Triple Zero (000).
