Preliminary Pages
Foreword
The current generation of young people is not a homogenous
group, despite sharing the Gen Y ‘tag’. Young people aged 12-24 years are
socially and culturally diverse, and make up approximately one fifth of
Australia’s population. Individually, each has his or her own hopes, dreams and
aspirations. Not only do young people make important contributions to our
society now, but collectively they represent the future of our nation.
Nevertheless, it seems nearly every day we are confronted by
yet another story in the papers or on the evening news. We are
told about our out of control young people – fighting at school, getting drunk
and fighting in the streets, carrying knives and joining gangs. Sometimes we
hear how young people are using new technologies and social networking to bully
their less fortunate peers. So, it is hardly surprising that many believe
today’s young people are more violent than ever.
But what is the reality? With so many violent incidents
going unreported, assessing actual levels of violence is challenging to say the
least. Based on the best available data however, it seems that youth violence in
Australia is escalating. Importantly though, while often perceived primarily as
perpetrators of violence, young people are in fact at greatest risk of being
victims. Young people themselves are concerned about their own personal safety,
with about one quarter of young people aged 18–24 years feeling unsafe or very
unsafe when walking alone in their local area after dark, and around 1 in 10
feeling unsafe in their homes at night.
This leads to the fundamental question – what needs to be
done to curb youth violence and address the concerns of young people and of the
wider community? The starting point for the Committee was to examine what is
known about the reasons that young people in particular are at increased risk
of violence. Evidence to the inquiry shows that there are many factors and
influences to be considered. While some pertain to characteristics of the
individual, many relate to the individual’s immediate physical and social environment,
including the nature of relationships with family and friends and levels of
engagement with community. Added to these are the influences of alcohol and
drugs for instance, as well as cultural influences which shape and reinforce
attitudes towards young people and violence.
Given the many factors at play, it is clear that no single
intervention or simplistic solution will be sufficient to address escalating
levels of youth violence. Indeed, evidence to the inquiry includes reference to
a large number of interventions and programs seeking to address youth violence
by tackling a wide range of risk factors such as family violence, child abuse,
bullying and the use and abuse of alcohol and other drugs. Not only is the
sheer number of interventions overwhelming, but while all are well intentioned,
it seems that not all have been evaluated with the same degree of rigour. The
result is a potentially confusing array of interventions and programs at
various stages of implementation and evaluation, supported by different
portfolios within various levels of government, and delivered by a range of
government and non-government agencies. Hence, a key recommendation of the
Committee is to develop a national youth violence and rehabilitation strategy
which brings together in a co-ordinated way, a comprehensive selection of
evidence-based interventions.
The Committee recognises that developing an effective
national strategy will require a collaborative exercise involving all levels of
government and the non-government community sector, in consultation with the
wider community. Young people must be included. Therefore, the Committee is
encouraged to see the collaborative undertakings already being progressed
through Council of Australian Governments. These include measures
to reduce the harmful effects of alcohol, and to improve law enforcement
through the implementation of best practice policing and increased access to
restorative justice. In addition, the Australian Government has also
demonstrated its commitment to consult with young people to identify priority
issues of concern to them and suggest ways forward. The release in May 2010 of
the National Strategy for Young Australians is a significant outcome of
these consultations.
The Committee recognised the importance of engaging with
young people as the priority of its own inquiry. Realising that young people
were unlikely to make written submissions to a Parliamentary inquiry process,
the Committee agreed to conduct an online youth violence survey. The survey was
promoted through conventional means, including through websites of Members and
Senators and through existing e-mail distribution lists. However, in thinking
about how best to reach the target group – that is young people aged 12-24
years old – the Committee also felt that online advertising would be essential.
Advertising through Facebook and Google was used for the first time by a
Parliamentary Committee. It proved to be a great success, with over 1300 young
people responding to the survey. In addition, a Youth Forum held in Melbourne
allowed around 40 more young people to share their experiences and ideas for
solutions to youth violence with Members of the Committee directly. Formal and
informal discussions were also held with young people living in the Northern
Territory, Western Australia and Tasmania. The Committee found the input from
all of the young people involved in the inquiry to be invaluable and many of
their comments are interspersed throughout the report.
The Committee sought evidence from a wide range of
contributors. I thank all of those who have participated in the inquiry, either
by providing written evidence, by presenting evidence in person, by responding
to the online survey or through informal discussions with the Committee. I also
take this opportunity to thank my Committee colleagues for their efforts and
contributions throughout the inquiry.
It is the Australian Government’s vision for all young
people to grow up safe, healthy, happy and resilient. It’s a vision all
Australians would share. Considering how experiences of violence impact on
young people – damaging them physically, emotionally and socially – curbing
escalating levels of youth violence will be essential to achieving this vision.
As Chair of the Committee, it is my hope that the recommendations made in this
report will provide a robust framework for a comprehensive, evidence-based
approach to addressing the complex but crucial issue of youth violence.
Annette Ellis MP
Chair
Membership of the
Committee
|
Chair
|
Ms Annette Ellis MP
|
|
|
Deputy
Chair
|
The Hon Judi Moylan MP
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Members
|
The Hon Tony Abbott MP (until 3/02/10)
|
Mrs Sophie Mirabella MP
(until
30/11/09)
|
|
|
The Hon Kevin Andrews MP (from
3/02/10)
|
Mr Scott Morrison MP (until 30/11/09)
|
|
|
Ms Jodie Campbell MP
|
Mr Brett Raguse MP
|
|
|
Mr Steven Ciobo MP (from 3/02/10)
|
Mr Patrick Secker MP (30/11/09 to 10/02/10)
|
|
|
Ms Julie Collins MP
|
Mr Luke Simpkins MP (from 30/11/09)
|
|
|
Ms Kirsten Livermore MP
|
Mr Chris Trevor MP
|
Committee Secretariat
|
Secretary
|
Mr James Catchpole (until 23/04/10)
Ms Sharon Bryant (from 27/04/10)
|
|
Inquiry Secretary
|
Dr Alison Clegg
Ms Susie Kelly (until 26/02/10)
|
|
Research Officer
|
Ms Belynda Zolotto
|
|
Administrative Officers
|
Ms Emily Costelloe (from
10/02/10)
Mrs Jazmine Rakic (from 15/02/10)
Mr Shaun Rowe
|
Terms of Reference
The House of Representatives Standing Committee on Family,
Community, Housing and Youth shall inquire and report on the impact of violence
on young Australians with particular reference to:
n
perceptions of violence and community safety among young
Australians;
n
links between illicit drug use, alcohol abuse and violence among
young Australians;
n
the relationship between bullying and violence and the wellbeing
of young Australians;
n
social and economic factors that contribute to violence by young
Australians; and
n
strategies to reduce violence and its impact among young
Australians.
List of Recommendations
Recommendation 1
The Committee recommends that the Australian Government,
either through the Australian Bureau of Statistics or the Australian Institute
of Criminology, implement a regular (biennial or triennial) cross-sectional
community-based survey to:
n measure the
prevalence, nature and severity of youth violence; and
n monitor trends over
time. (para 2.36)
Recommendation 2
The Committee recommends that the Ministerial Council for
Education, Early Childhood Development and Youth Affairs include social
development education and training as an essential component in phase 3
developments for the national curriculum. (para 4.28)
Recommendation 3
The Committee recommends that the Australian Government, in
consultation with state and territory governments and non-government
stakeholders, examine options for establishing partnerships between departments
of education and community-based service providers to facilitate referral of
students to external counselling and support services where required and
appropriate. (para 4.39)
Recommendation 4
The Committee recommends that the Department of Education,
Employment and Workplace Relations, as part of its review of the National
School Chaplaincy Program, enhance and extend access to professional
counselling and support service for students by:
n introducing mandatory
training for all school chaplains to assist them with early identification of
students who may require professional assistance; and
n establishing
partnerships and formal mechanisms for referral from the National School
Chaplaincy Program to other student counselling or youth support services,
including external counselling services where appropriate. (para 4.43)
Recommendation 5
The Committee recommends that the Department of
Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government provide
additional strategic funding for the development of community infrastructure to
support communities to become more ‘youth friendly’. The funding should be
awarded on a competitive basis to local government authorities that can
demonstrate communities with the greatest need for social/cultural facilities
and/or infrastructure to support youth. (para 4.85)
Recommendation 6
The Committee recommends that the Attorney-General’s
Department introduce a new crime prevention grants scheme requiring
partnerships to be established between the police and the local community to support
collaborative approaches to enhancing community safety and reducing crime at a
local level. (para 4.121)
Recommendation 7
The Committee recommends that the Australian Government, in
consultation with state and territory governments and other key stakeholders,
establish a national youth violence and rehabilitation strategy to guide the
provision of a holistic and integrated policy and program delivery framework.
The national youth violence and rehabilitation strategy should:
n be
founded on a robust evidence-base;
n support
multi-level interventions;
n be
focused on prevention and early intervention;
n be collaborative,
coordinated and inclusive of all levels of government, the non-government
community sector and the wider community, including young people;
n link to existing
strategies that target social and economic disadvantage; and
n include population
level strategies to reinforce social norms and foster positive cultural and
attitudinal changes. (para 5.14)
Recommendation 8
The Committee recommends that the Australian Government
conduct an audit of existing initiatives and programs that aim to address youth
violence. The audit should detail the outcomes of any assessments or
evaluations, and provide commentary on the rigor of evaluation.
Further, the Committee recommends that the audit findings be
made publicly available. (para 5.25)
Recommendation 9
The Committee recommends that the Australian Government, in
consultation with state and territory governments and other key stakeholders,
identify and establish an appropriate mechanism to support the development of a
strong evidence-base through ongoing, systematic and rigorous evaluation of
anti-violence interventions and programs.
A clearinghouse for the dissemination of information to policy
makers and other interested parties should be an integral part of the
considerations. (para 5.27)
Recommendation 10
The Committee recommends that the Attorney-General’s
Department examine the need for change to current classification categories of
film and TV in relation to violent content. Consideration should be given to
the potential impacts on children and young people of exposure to media
violence with a view to better aligning classification categories with key
developmental stages occurring in childhood and adolescence. (para 5.77)
Recommendation 11
The Committee recommends that the Australian Communications
and Media Authority establish a ‘Mediasmart’ website aimed at providing
children, young people and their parents with up-to-date, comprehensive and
age-appropriate information to assist them to make informed, discerning and
responsible choices in relation to media content, including exposure to media
violence. (para 5.80)
Recommendation 12
The Committee recommends that the Department of Education,
Employment and Workplace Relations develop and implement a social marketing
campaign to promote positive images of young people and combat stereotypical
and negative community perceptions. (para 5.90)
Recommendation 13
The Committee recommends that the Australian Government
ensures that evaluations of social marketing campaigns undertaken in relation
to youth violence or anti-social behaviour that can lead to youth violence,
incorporate evaluation methodology to assess rates of behavioural change where this
is an intended outcome. (para 5.106)