Page 484 - Week 02 - Thursday, 11 February 2021
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that support young people to achieve their goals. This includes access to education, vocational training, work experience, rehabilitation programs and recreation. Young people are continuously supported to maintain engagement in education, build and maintain family ties and develop the skills to successfully return to the community.
While visiting changed during the public health emergency, young people have continued to receive visits from their loved ones. School in Bimberi has also continued, with the Murrumbidgee School providing a range of education and vocational programs, including recognised certificate programs, tutoring and transitional support back into the community and community education settings.
During the 2019-20 financial year, 100 per cent of young people residing at Bimberi engaged in educational programs. Two young people completed modules towards their year 12 certificates, six young people obtained a white card and seven young people completed asbestos awareness training.
Although the availability of service providers was limited during the December-January bushfires and at the height of COVID-19 restrictions in the ACT, our valuable government and community service providers continued to visit as much as possible. I thank these services for their flexibility and their ongoing support of young people in Bimberi.
As Assistant Minister for Families and Community Services, I am committed to ensuring our youth justice centre operates transparently. I am satisfied that Bimberi continues to apply human rights legislation in practice and is well oversighted by the Human Rights Commission, the Public Advocate, the official visitors and the Inspector for Correctional Services.
I commend the staff of Bimberi for their hard work over the reporting period. Throughout a difficult year, the staff have continued to provide a safe, secure and supportive environment for some of the ACT’s most at-risk young people. Over the next term we will continue to work hard to reduce the numbers of young people in the Bimberi Youth Justice Centre by ensuring that the best possible support is available in the community and within the centre.
I am committed to supporting Bimberi staff, the Community Services Directorate and community organisations to ensure that all young people can live full and connected lives away from the youth justice system. This includes supporting initiatives that will reduce the factors that contribute to young people coming into contact with the justice system, such as improved services for homelessness, mental health, drugs and alcohol, family support, and disability. It also includes funding for initiatives such as the OzChild functional family therapy youth justice pilot, which will support 20 young people and their families, to divert young people from entering or re-entering the youth justice system.
I look forward to the day when we no longer need youth detention facilities because the support services and rehabilitation facilities that we have already been working on are able to meet the needs of young people, their families and our community.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
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