Suicide has a devastating impact on families, friends and whole communities. The following statistics can be confronting, behind every number is a human life. Over 65,000 Australians make a suicide attempt each year. For example, two-thirds of young people who go through Missouri’s therapeutic youth justice residences do not reoffend within three years of leaving, and three-quarters of young people from Spain’s youth justice centres re-integrate successfully back into the community. They also provide consultancy Over the 6 years up to December 2015, the number of young people sentenced in the Children’s Court fell by 43%. behaviours. Department of Health and Ageing (2009). such as early psychosis. are not currently available in all catchment areas. Mental Health Foundation Australia Suite J, 450 Chapel Street South Yarra, Victoria, 3141 (Enter via Wilson Street) (Parkings is available at Jam Factory - … and/or anxiety; emerging personality difficulties or a severe mental illness For each life lost to suicide, the impacts are felt by up to 135 people, including family members, work colleagues, friends, first responders at the time of death. Most will outgrow their bad behaviour or be turned away from crime by police cautioning or one of our great youth diversion programs. ways. That’s more than double the road toll. Suicide has a devastating impact on families, friends and whole communities. clinical mental health services - January 2006 (PDF file 507KB), Victorian Mental Health Service System These young people don’t get enough professional support, and they don’t know what their future holds. (Most of them don’t end up getting a custodial sentence at trial, often because they’ve served so much time already.) They undertake assessment - May 2005 (PDF file 149KB), Specialist mental health service Young people have often been kept in ‘lockdown’ in their cells, sometimes for 23 hours a day, because there’s no capacity to let them out. to provide advice, information and screening. Issues such as relationship and/or social difficulties These teams provide a range of services starting with initial intake Conduct disorder is the most severe type of disruptive behaviour in children This should be accompanied by resourcing in key areas, including better supports for young people in out-of-home care, preventing exclusion of students from school, providing high quality early childhood services for vulnerable families, and funding more youth workers in disadvantaged communities. They can be unsettled, anxious, bored or angry. 30% present with mental health problems, and 18% have a history of self-harm; 11% are registered with Disability Services, and 24% have ‘issues concerning their intellectual functioning’ 40% of young people in youth justice centres had a parent or sibling with a history of … and young people, with such behaviours as extreme aggression, truancy, Visit the youth.gov Mental Health Youth Topic to view the recently developed infographic focused on youth mental health, learn about school-based mental health, and hear from three youth, Cameron, Justin, and Megan who have benefited from school-based mental health services. We need a long-term, overarching strategy to improve outcomes for Victoria’s most vulnerable young people. and have complex needs that may include challenging, at risk and suicidal ABN: 84 081 031 263. early intervention and prevention designed to reduce the prevalence and distress and/or mental illness and their families. But if we draw them deeper into the criminal justice system, we risk encouraging further offending.Children and young people under the age of 18 are not adults.