Young People In Custody Learning Skills To Transition Back To Community

Youth Justice NSW and the Department of Education have partnered up to offer young people in custody the opportunity to learn skills to help them transition back to the community and into jobs on the land.

Focusing on skills for the bush, training programs in sheep shearing and fence construction are being run in Youth Justice Centres and are proving popular with young people there.

A shearing program was rolled out at Riverina Youth Justice Centre in Wagga last week, providing hands-on training for young people who might be interested in the profession post release.

Funded by the NSW Department of Education and delivered by the TAFE NSW Primary Industries Centre, the program includes a range of skills including preparing a handpiece for shearing, penning sheep, undertaking basic shearing and crutching, and carrying out wool pressing.

Meanwhile, fencing accredited training was run at Cobham Youth Justice Centre by Emergency Australia over three days this week, teaching young people how to install, maintain and repair farm fencing.

Young people have access to a range of skills and accreditation opportunities in Youth Justice Centres, with trades ranging from bricklaying, mechanics and panelling to hairdressing and barista training.

Minister for Youth Justice Jihad Dib said everyone deserved another chance and one of the many ways they could support young people while they were in a Youth Justice Centre was to give them real life skills that were useful in their future, not only in jobs but in everyday life.

“We are providing training in areas where there is high demand in regional New South Wales such as shearing and fence construction, making sure our young people have the best chance of finding a job,” Mr Dib said.

“Whether it’s hospitality, barista, barber training and mechanics or horticulture and traffic control, the trade qualifications being rolled out across the six Youth Justice Centres in NSW are varied and provide a range of opportunities for young people to learn important skills.”

Minister for Skills and Training Steve Whan said regardless of what their history was, every young person deserved to be set up for success and given equitable opportunities to pursue a career.

“This is a fantastic program and another example of how the Department of Education and TAFE NSW provides students with the in-demand skills to get a job and make an immediate impact in the workplace,” Mr Whan said.

“Empowering these young people with the skills and confidence to find meaningful work will help them make a positive contribution to the community and the agriculture industry.”

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• Employment & Training