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YOUTH PARTNERSHIP PROJECT
Getting the right support, to the right young people, at the right time
A better approach to youth justice​
Young people in the youth justice system are some of the most vulnerable young people in our community. But despite high expenditure on corrective services, 80% of youth offenders return to detention within 12 months.
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The Youth Partnership Project is a better approach to youth justice, which focuses on identifying and supporting young people early, to prevent involvement with the criminal justice system.
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Developed and tested over 8 years using place based collective impact, the YPP brings together state government agencies, local government, and the not-for-profit community sector. By working better together, we can improve outcomes for young people with complex needs through the planning and delivery of community services.
We believe if we get
the RIGHT SUPPORT
to the RIGHT YOUNG PEOPLE
at the RIGHT TIME
young people will thrive
Winding Down From June 2022
The YPP has had an incredible journey. It’s driven youth sector collaboration in the South East Corridor, put the voices and stories of young people with complex needs front and centre, and helped reshape approaches to addressing youth offending throughout WA.
Without any ongoing backbone or operational funding, we are disappointed to be wrapping up this phase of the YPP’s journey - but we know that all we have achieved over the last 8 years will continue to have a lasting impact on the local youth service sector, and on proactive approaches to youth justice in WA and beyond.
We've shared as much of our work as we can, and you'll find many of our resources published on our website. We hope that our work over the last 8 years will continue to inform projects in our local community and beyond.
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We want to acknowledge that the YPP's success has been based on our partnership, and what we've achieved wouldn't have been possible without all our partners - from local youth services, NGOs, local government, state government agencies, local businesses and community groups, to the individual community members who have supported and championed our work. Everyone has been a part of the YPP's story, because we share a vision of a better future for our young people that it takes all of us to create.
Our Approach
Establishing Genuine
Place-Based Partnerships
The YPP Model intentionally focuses on building strong partnerships and a rich local understanding, enabling the solid foundation from which the partnership can make meaningful change.
Early & Collaborative Identification of Children At-Risk
To prevent youth crime before it happens, the YPP's Identification Process enables a cross-sector of agencies to focus on a specific group of young people who, without the right support, are likely to have contact with the justice system in future.
Focusing on Relationships
It is people who change people’s lives, not programs.
So the YPP makes sure to prioritise relationships and move at the speed of trust. We intentionally provide space to build positive, safe, and trusting relationships with the YPP Team, which means we can face challenges head on, together.
A Collaborative
Approach to Holistic Support
Because of our strong local partnerships, the YPP is able to ensure children and their families are supported in a truly holistic way. Young people's lives are complex, not segmented, and our collaborative approach to support reflects this.
Our Journey
Emerging from the South East Metropolitan Regional Managers Forum, the Youth Partnership Project's collective impact journey began in 2014. Since then, the YPP Backbone Organisation has mobilised ​the youth & community services sector to collaboratively develop a better approach to youth justice.
This approach was first tested, adapted and implemented during a 2018-2019 pilot, known locally as the Armadale Youth Intervention Partnership, which focused on ensuring we could identify the right young people and provide support at the right time to enable meaningful change in their lives. The YPP is now coming to the end of a second Pilot in the Armadale District, focusing on ensuring we had the right support in place for young people and their families.
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With our approach now developed, the YPP is seeking sustainable long-term funding to enable this targeted early intervention which prevents youth offending and creates significant lifetime savings across government portfolios in Justice, Communities, Education and Police.
Want to know more? Contact us
We are always available to discuss our work. Contact us by phone or email.