Locally based youth services for young people at risk of harm and poor life outcomes living in the City of Wanneroo including the delivery of:

• A Target 120 program for the City’s northern suburbs and a Target 120 program for the City’s central and southern suburbs.
• Low barrier intensive case management services to facilitate access to wraparound supports
• Increased provision of locally based secondary supports¹ in the City of Wanneroo including specialised services.

The City of Wanneroo (the City) is one of the fastest growing and largest metropolitan local government authorities (LGA) in Australia, covering over 685km² extending to Perth’s outermost northern suburbs. The City has the highest youth population in all WA metropolitan local government areas (as a percentage and in total numbers)² and this is predicted to grow significantly in coming years.

The City also has the highest number of young offenders of any local government area in WA³. Many suburbs in the City have high levels of disadvantage with socio-economic and demographic factors placing youth at higher risk of harm and poor life outcomes.

The WA Government’s At Risk Youth Strategy 2022-2027 provides a framework to improve outcomes for vulnerable young people through delivery of prevention, early intervention, secondary supports and targeted initiatives aligned with a continuum approach to risk of harm for young people⁴. This advocacy seeks services addressing medium to very high risk of harm.

The City of Wanneroo is helping to meet some of the needs for prevention and early intervention services through the delivery of after school drop-in programs across four youth centres, and school holiday and place-based outreach programs; attendance rates have more than doubled in the past three years⁵.

Advice from government agencies, service providers and intelligence from the City’s own youth services indicate the City has high numbers of at risk young people with multiple and complex problems with risk of harm and increased vulnerability for poor life outcomes. The City’s southern area includes the suburbs of Girrawheen, Koondoola and Marangaroo which are areas of very high relative disadvantage⁶. Although nearby Mirrabooka district (in the City of Stirling) provides a local services hub, not all of these services are available to City of Wanneroo residents and many services are already oversubscribed. These require additional funding and a removal of service constraints (e.g. geographic eligibility) to ensure they are accessible to all who need them. In the City’s northern suburbs there is no equivalent services hub and poor accessibility secondary supports (including specialised services addressing mental health, homelessness, educational engagement and family and domestic violence amongst other issues) which are increasingly absent in the City’s far northern suburbs. This is despite data showing that a number of suburbs have a prevalence of factors putting youth at risk; suburbs in the City’s north that score under the average on the SEIFA Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage include Butler, Clarkson, Merriwa, Ridgewood, Two Rocks and Yanchep.

Community consultation with residents across the City indicates concerns with community safety which is seen as a priority for many suburbs, as well as concerns around social cohesion and lack of services for young people⁷.

The City has the largest youth population of all WA local government areas with over 34,000 young people aged 10-19 in 2024⁸.Population growth is expected to continue with the cohort predicted to reach over 43,000 by 2034. Analysis of population forecasts over the next 10 years (to 2034) show that of the increased numbers of 10–19 year-olds in WA, 19% will live in the City of Wanneroo⁹. Much of this growth is predicted to occur in the City’s northern suburbs which has very limited services available for young people and many suburbs that have been identified as having high numbers of at risk youth facing complex and intersecting challenges. These include, but are not limited to, family and domestic violence, alcohol and drug concerns, homelessness, educational disengagement, mental health, aggressive and antisocial behaviours, risk-taking behaviours and challenges with care arrangements causing increased vulnerability for harm, youth offending and poor life outcomes.

The City has the highest number of resident youth offenders of any local government area in WA¹⁰.Consultation with local and out of area service providers has identified gaps in the City for targeted initiatives for diversion of at risk youth from punitive justice responses. Additionally, service providers have advised that low barrier intensive case management services and secondary supports are required for young people with complex intersecting challenges at the earlier stages of the risk continuum prior to police and statutory service response. Existing services are mostly delivered out of area or via outreach and are at capacity with waitlists. As referenced in the WA At Risk Youth Strategy, secondary support refers to specialised services needed for young people experiencing frequent situations that place them at higher risk¹¹. These includes services addressing issues related to mental health, homelessness, school disengagement, family and domestic violence and alcohol and drug use. If additional services are not made available the current gaps in access to these secondary supports are likely to worsen in coming years as population continues to increase.

Currently, the State government’s key diversionary program for young offenders which requires at least one police contact for eligibility, the Target 120 program has limited availability in the City. The nearest Target 120 program in the Mirrabooka district only accepts referrals from the suburbs of Alexander Heights, Girrawheen, Koondoola and Marangaroo in the City of Wanneroo. This means that young offenders residing in the City are provided no alternatives to court-based justice interventions and possible incarceration. Evidence shows that over half of the young people sentenced to detention in WA return to detention within two years of their release¹². Community based services and interventions have been shown to be far more effective, economical and cost efficient¹³.

There are also no low barrier intensive case management services (i.e. accessible prior to police contact) that provide the type of integrated interventions required for young people at risk of harm and poor life outcomes. Where case management services do exist these are siloed according to single issues such as mental health, alcohol and drug recovery, LGBTQIA+ support and homelessness. Discussions with service providers indicate waitlists of up to 4 months for these services which means young people in crisis cannot access timely interventions. As these services are only available for clients with specific needs, they do not provide the holistic, wraparound care required by young people experiencing multiple complex issues. Dedicated case management programs with low barrier eligibility to facilitate access to wraparound services are required to address this service gap. Successful case management programs being delivered in other jurisdictions that could be funded and delivered in the City of Wanneroo include those being delivered by the Y in Belmont (and other areas), and the Youth Beat being delivered by Mission Australia. Both services provide a collaborative approach with secondary support service provides and intensive case management follow up.

In addition to the City’s high youth population, there are other socio-economic and demographic factors that support the need for services. There are pockets of relative disadvantage across all City suburbs and several suburbs with significant and widespread socio-economic disadvantage in the north of the City. These include Banksia Grove, Butler, Clarkson, Merriwa, Ridgewood, Two Rocks and Yanchep which all have low SEIFA scores with some areas scoring within the top 10-20% for relative socio-economic disadvantage¹⁴. These suburbs also show significant risk factors for youth offending such as youth disengagement, low school attendance, early school leaving and parents without employment¹⁵. Juvenile convictions are particularly high in relation to other suburbs in Yanchep and Two Rocks¹⁶ – the two most northern suburbs with the lowest accessibility to social and community services. Unemployment rates are high in Two Rocks (7.6%), Yanchep (6.3%) and Butler-Merriwa-Ridgewood (6.6%)¹⁷.

In the south, the suburbs of Koondoola, Girrawheen, Marangaroo, and Alexander Heights are all in the bottom five (5) suburbs in the City for socio-economic disadvantage¹⁸ and between 12-15% of the population is currently aged 10-19 years. Girrawheen and Alexander Heights-Koondoola have the highest rates of unemployment in the City at 13.2% and 8.8% respectively¹⁹. These areas also have a high concentration of low-income households, housing stress, disengaged youth, early school leaving, parents without jobs and long-term unemployment²⁰. Adequate provision of services and accessibility of these services to the youth population in these areas is also critical.

With the disproportionate number of youth in detention in WA being Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander²¹, the need to provide alternatives is particularly significant for those suburbs with high Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations, including Butler, Clarkson, Girrawheen, Koondoola, Merriwa, Two Rocks and Yanchep²². This is essential to meeting Closing the Gap targets²³.

A number of hotspots for crime and antisocial behaviour have been identified within the City through our community safety monitoring and reporting program. These include locations within Banksia Grove, Butler, Ridgewood, Two Rocks and Yanchep as well as Girrawheen, Alexander Heights and Koondoola²⁴.

The City’s Strategic Community Plan (SCP), developed through extensive community consultation, prioritises community safety and provision of places and spaces that embrace all through ensuring that people have access to a wide variety of programs and services that assist with health and wellbeing²⁵. Recent community engagement indicates a need to prioritise neighbourhood safety across the whole of the City with community and personal safety being highlighted as particular priorities in the southern suburbs of Girrawheen, Koondoola and Marangaroo and the northern suburbs of Banksia Grove, Butler, Clarkson, Merriwa and Ridgewood²⁶. Recent consultation on community wellbeing showed that parents and guardians of young people do not feel their needs are catered for by the community citing a lack of age-appropriate activities and social issues as their primary reasons²⁷.

Provision of the requested services will provide an opportunity to greatly improve outcomes for at risk young people in the City, and better meet the aspirations of the WA At Risk Youth Strategy that “at risk young people can access early, timely and targeted interventions to address their priority needs and transition positively into adulthood”²⁸. Funding appropriate services in the area will deliver positive outcomes for young people and communities aligned with the At Risk Youth Strategy and Closing the Gap, and bring investment in these vital services in line with other similar areas in Perth.

• WA Police Joondalup District
• WA Department of Communities Joondalup District

City of Wanneroo role is to:

• Provide localised data and other relevant information
• Act as a connector for local organisations and stakeholders
• Deliver untargeted childhood and youth services as aligned with the City’s Strategic Community Plan

State Government’s role is to:

• Commission services and fund ongoing operational costs
• Provide land or a facility to enable delivery of services
• Fund and maintain a suitable facility

Target 120 is currently not available to all residents living within the City of Wanneroo. There are five (5) Target 120 sites in the Perth metro including Rockingham, Mandurah, Armadale, Ellenbrook and Mirrabooka. The nearest Target 120 program in the Mirrabooka district only accepts referrals from the suburbs of Alexander Heights, Girrawheen, Koondoola and Marangaroo in the City of Wanneroo.

There is currently a lack of low barrier intensive case management services which service providers have identified as a gap together with a need for increased availability of secondary supports in the City of Wanneroo.

Due to lack of facilities and services in the City’s northern suburbs, a facility in this area may be required to enable a base for service provision; this facility could provide a youth services hub to deliver integrated, holistic services including targeted initiatives and secondary supports. There is currently no similar facility within the City of Wanneroo. The City is open to a staged approach with delivery of services facilitated first, and, if necessary, evolving to provision of a dedicated facility in the future. This could potentially be facilitated through hire of City facilities, or the State or Federal Government leasing property.

Delivery of two Target 120 programs (southern and northern suburbs) in the City of Wanneroo is estimated to require approximately $700,000 per annum for operational costs.

Delivery of low barrier case management services would cost an estimated $900,000 annually²⁹.

Increased funding for delivery of local secondary support services for at risk young people and their families will require ongoing increased investment for operating costs of a number of service providers. Costs are unique to each program/service.

No commitment has been made to deliver the requested services to date. There are a number of service providers who would be able to deliver these services in line with the WA Government’s Delivering Services in Partnership Policy and Procurement rules.

¹ Government of Western Australia, At Risk Youth Strategy 2022 - 2027 (Figure 2, p.19)

² Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing, 2021

³ Telethon Kids Institute, Child Development Atlas

⁴ Government of Western Australia, At Risk Youth Strategy 2022 - 2027

⁵ City of Wanneroo, Youth Services, Combined attendance and trend statistics

⁶ Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing, Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage (SEIFA), 2021

⁷ City of Wanneroo Community Wellbeing Survey 2024; City of Wanneroo Liveability Survey 2023

⁸ Population and household forecasts, 2021 to 2046, prepared by .id (informed decisions), March 2024

⁹ WA Tomorrow Report No.12 (March 2024) indicates there will be an additional 60,740 10–19-year-olds living in WA by 2034 (from 2022 figures). Population and household forecasts, 2021 to 2046, prepared by .id (informed decisions) for the City over the same time period shows an additional 11,664 10–19-year-olds living in the City of Wanneroo

¹⁰ Telethon Kids Institute, Child Development Atlas; Currently sourcing recent WAPOL data.

¹¹ Government of Western Australia, At Risk Youth Strategy 2022 - 2027 (Figure 2, p.19)

¹² Government of Western Australia 2024. 2024-25 Budget Statements, Budget Paper No. 2, Volume 2, p. 425.

¹³ Social Reinvestment WA, 2022, Blueprint for a Better Future: Paving the Way for Youth Justice Reform in Western Australia

¹⁴ Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing, Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage (SEIFA), 2021

¹⁵ Dropping Off the Edge 2021, WA State Ranking Data, Jesuit Social Services; Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing, 2021

¹⁶ Ibid

¹⁷ Department of Social Services - JobSeeker and Youth Allowance recipients - monthly profile via data.gov.au. Compiled and presented by .id (informed decisions), April 2024

¹⁸ Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing, Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage (SEIFA), 2021

¹⁹ Department of Social Services, JobSeeker and Youth Allowance recipients, monthly profile via data.gov.au. Compiled and presented by .id (informed decisions), April 2024

²⁰ Dropping Off the Edge 2021, WA State Ranking Data, Jesuit Social Services; Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing, 2021

²¹ Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 14 Dec 2021, Youth detention population in Australia 2021

²² Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing, 2021

²³ The National Agreement on Closing the Gap, Targets and Outcomes

²⁴ City of Wanneroo, Community Safety Working Group, Minutes January to May 2024

²⁵ City of Wanneroo, Strategic Community Plan 2021-2031

²⁶ City of Wanneroo, Liveability Survey 2023, Place Score,

²⁷ City of Wanneroo, Community Wellbeing Survey 2024

²⁸ Government of Western Australia, At Risk Youth Strategy 2022 - 2027 (Figure 2, p.19)

²⁹ Costs based on Youth in Partnership Project in Armadale and duplicated over three place-based locations in the City of Wanneroo (Yanchep, Clarkson/Butler, and Girrawheen)