Notice of requirement lodged for Youth Justice Centre

Social Services and Employment Minister Steve Maharey has announced he has lodged a notice of requirement with the Manukau City Council to designate the site at 243 Roscommon Road, Wiri, Auckland, for the new Youth Justice Residential Centre – Upper North.

The site has been selected as the most suitable for the much needed residential centre after a lengthy site search process.

“I am confident this is the best site for the new facility, which will be securely managed by the Department of Child, Youth and Family Services,” says Mr Maharey.

The new centre will cater for up to 46 children and young people. There will be enough beds for 40 youth justice placements, meaning an increase of 10 available beds for young people requiring youth justice residential placement in the upper North Island.

It will also include 6 beds for children and young people who have been sentenced to imprisonment and who by reason of their vulnerability are therefore placed in the care of Child, Youth and Family under a special agreement with the Department of Corrections.

“The type of kids who will be helped in this new centre are those who have gone off the rails and got into trouble with the law. At the centre, they will be held accountable for their offending and given help to get their lives on to a healthy track,” says Mr Maharey.

Construction of the new centre is scheduled to start at the end of this year if Child, Youth and Family gains the necessary approvals under the Resource Management Act.

The youth justice activities currently undertaken at Child, Youth and Family’s Northern Residential Centre (NRC) will be relocated to the new youth justice facility once it is established early in 2002.

When the youth justice young people from NRC have been relocated to the new centre, NRC will continue to operate care and protection services for children and young people until a decision is made on the future of the Weymouth site.

ends

© Scoop Media