For over a year now, a team of police and youth justice workers have been patrolling the streets of Brisbane’s northern suburbs, including Banyo to prevent and reduce youth crime.
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The Brisbane North team, which patrols from Brookfield in the west to Banyo in the east, Bald Hills in the north to Brisbane City in the south, have engaged with young people more than 1,500 times since the program started in 2021.
Minister for Children and Youth Justice Leanne Linard said they now have eight co-responder teams working across Queensland connecting and communicating with young people to prevent crime or anti-social behaviour.
“For the past year, the team has been working with young people, referring them to support services for issues like alcohol and drug abuse or domestic violence, and diverting them away from potential criminal behaviour,” Ms Linard said.
The joint police and youth justice co-responder program was launched in Queensland in 2020 as part of the commitment to reduce youth crime and provide coordinated responses to high-risk offenders aged 10 to 17.
The expansion of joint Police and Youth Justice co-responder teams to north Brisbane is one of the new services that support the 2021 Youth Justice Act amendments, which aims to increase the accountability of serious repeat youth offenders and provide greater reassurance of community safety.
“We know that around 10 per cent of young offenders commit 40 per cent of youth crime, which is why the co-responder teams are so important,” said Member for Aspley Bart Mellish.
“By supporting young people to re-engage in education or work, access support services and make better choices, we can make a difference in the lives of young Queenslanders,” said Mr Mellish.