Education is an important protective factor in preventing involvement in crime. For those young people that enter the youth justice system, and especially youth justice centres, education is a critical, but infrequently explored part of their time in custody following generally disrupted schooling experiences. There are currently six youth justice centres in New South Wales, Australia. Each of these centres have an Education and Training Unit which are schools funded by and staffed with Department of Education personnel. There is evidence that young people accessing these schools regard them very positively. However, this article, drawing on publicly available information, raises questions about how best the significant resources invested in these schools can be deployed. Greater flexibility in forms and modes of educational delivery, as well as in school day and year arrangements would better reflect the dynamic nature of these environments and the needs of young people. Moreover, much greater understanding of post-detention educational and employment outcomes of young people leaving youth justice centres is needed to determine the success of significant investments in these schools.
Education is an important protective factor in preventing involvement in crime. For those young people that enter the youth justice system, and especially youth justice centres, education is a critical, but infrequently explored part of their time in custody following generally disrupted schooling experiences. There are currently six youth justice centres in New South Wales, Australia. Each of these centres have an Education and Training Unit which are schools funded by and staffed with Department of Education personnel. There is evidence that young people accessing these schools regard them very positively. However, this article, drawing on publicly available information, raises questions about how best the significant resources invested in these schools can be deployed. Greater flexibility in forms and modes of educational delivery, as well as in school day and year arrangements would better reflect the dynamic nature of these environments and the needs of young people. Moreover, much greater understanding of post-detention educational and employment outcomes of young people leaving youth justice centres is needed to determine the success of significant investments in these schools.
