Presented by Robert Clark MP		www.robertclark.net

New facility for young female offenders opened

The Minister for Youth and Community Services, Dr Denis Napthine, has opened the new $15.7 million Parkville Youth Residential Centre, the first purpose-built juvenile justice centre primarily for young women in half a century.

The new centre completes a government commitment to rebuild and modernise Victoria’s three youth custodial institutions, some of which were a century old. The Malmsbury Centre was redeveloped in 1997 for $12.6 million and the old Turana Centre was replaced by the $13.5 million Melbourne Juvenile Justice Centre in 1993. The ageing Winlaton centre for girls was also closed in 1993.

The new Parkville Centre has high quality accommodation for young women up to 21 years old and also caters for young boys from 10 to 14.

Parkville also provides special programs targeted at vulnerable 17-20 year-old young women who the courts have considered suitable to sentence to a youth centre as a direct alternative to adult prisons.

This modern campus-style facility will carry a strong emphasis on drug and alcohol rehabilitation services supported by Turning the Tide funds and will also offer an extensive range of education, vocational training, health, recreational and leisure facilities.

Funding earmarked for juvenile justice programs in the last State Budget will also allow $1 million a year to support 17-20 year-old women offenders in transitional community accommodation to help them move back into the community.

Outreach teams will also provide intensive support for young women to serve sentences while living in the community under supervision.

Over the next two years, another $800,000 will provide extra parole supervision and post-release services to support young people as they move back into the community after a custodial sentence.

This year, a further $170,000 will be used to expand the successful initiative of placing specialist juvenile justice workers in key Magistrate’s Courts to advise the courts about services and options for young offenders.

Dr Napthine also announced an extra $1.1 million — allocated from the Turning the Tide program — for drug rehabilitation and counselling services across the juvenile justice system.

(News Release, Office of the Minister for Youth and Community Services, 1 September 1999)