New program, $300,000 funding for at-risk youths in Rockhampton

A traumatised Central Qld victim of crime ‘robbed of peace’ has praised a new state government initiative aimed at preventing young people from ‘going down a life of crime’.

Queensland Minister for Youth Justice and Victim Support and Minister for Corrective Services Laura Gerber and State Minister for Rockhampton Donna Kirkland talk to Rockhampton crime victim Steve Kumar.

A Rockhampton victim of crime has praised a new grant program for the region aimed at preventing young people from falling into a life of crime.

Youth Justice and Victim Support Minister Laura Gerber was in the Beef Capital to announce the program for non-government organisations in Central Queensland to apply to be early intervention providers and receive up to $300,000 in state government grants.

Having had his home burgled, his car stolen and been physically injured, Steve Kumar believes it is “is a powerful move in the right direction”.

“For so long we’ve had things that are just bandaid and patch up jobs and they never got anywhere,” he said.

“While those injuries have healed the fear and the emotional trauma lingers on.

“Everybody gets affected in the area… it robs you of your peace, too.”

The Crime Report, Queensland 2023-24 from the state government’s statistician’s office showed that there has been a 31.8 per cent rise in recorded offences in Central Queensland over the past decade, with 33,669 recorded in the 2023-24 financial year compared to 24,195 in the 2014-15 financial year.

Rockhampton will receive the early intervention Kickstarter Program, and Regional Reset Program, which provides a one to three week “reset” for kids already at-risk or are known by police.

Youth participants will be assisted in reintegrating into society through training for a pathway to a job and have support systems in place to prevent them from falling into a life of crime or otherwise retreat from an already established life of crime.

Ms Gerber said the program would provide “early intervention to prevent crime at its roots... to allow for young people to get the intervention and support they need so they don’t go down a life of crime in the first place.”

Rockhampton will also play host to a state government crime prevention school.

Rockhampton MP Donna Kirkland said it was good news for youths who are “on the wrong pathway”.

“What we want to do is make sure those youths (who take part in the intervention programs) become constructive members of our community rather than destructive,” Ms Kirkland said.

“We want to make sure that we’re get children off the streets that are committing crime and help them get onto a pathway of becoming constructive members of the community.

Mr Kumar believes the program “is a powerful move in the right direction”.

“For so long we’ve had things that are just bandaid and patch up jobs and they never got anywhere,” he said.

Originally published as New program, $300,000 funding for at-risk youths in Rockhampton