Over the past two years the number of children held in youth detention centres in NSW has increased by 30%.
Around three quarters of those children are on remand, which means they’re being held there until they can have their day in court. Sometimes they’re held for months before being found not guilty.
The jump in numbers reflects the NSW Government’s so called ‘tough approach’ to youth justice.
But while there are different opinions about how to tackle this issue, everyone seems to agree that what the Government’s doing now isn’t working.
A NSW Parliament inquiry has started hearing evidence about how to improve the youth justice system and will make recommendations to the Government.
Jonathan Hall Spence from the Justice and Equity Centre appeared at the inquiry and joined 2SER Breakfast to tell us what changes were proposed.
