By Lillian Hanly of RNZ
The cost of mentoring the serious young offenders picked for the Government’s military style academies could be $100,000 for each teenager, documents show.
The Oranga Tamariki-run pilot - involving 10 boys aged 15-18 - starts at the end of this month, but there has been little detail about what exactly the boot camps will look like, and how the teenagers will move back into the community.
RNZ has obtained documents given to organisations who are interested in providing the intensive mentor service that is a critical part of the 12-month programme, and continues through the three-month residence and nine-month community stages.
The pilot will cost approximately $5.1 million, and the documents show two options for how the mentor service would be funded.
The first option is a fixed, all-inclusive $100k per young person. This includes costs such as staffing, ordinary travel, overheads, on-costs such as KiwiSaver and ACC, and any other costs for the chosen provider to deliver the service.
Option two is a variable cost as proposed by the provider, made up of the hourly rate the mentor receives - with capped monthly hours according to the maximum requirements of the service - on-costs, a percentage margin for overheads and foreseeable travel.
The mentors are expected to be on board by August 12 and the ratio will be one to each teenager and whānau.
The documents say the mentor is someone who will be a “continuous relationship holder for each teenager and whānau”, who will be resourced to “intensively support reintegration back into the community and achievement of goals and commitments.” The purpose is to “remove ambiguity and unknowns” for the teens after the academy.
The mentor must meet certain specifications:
[LI ]Skilled and accustomed to working with high-risk young people with offending behaviour
During the pilot, the mentor must also be available for the following actions:
There will be reporting requirements for the mentor, including contact and non-contact hours, but also quarterly reports on activities by the mentor and progress towards the teen’s goals. The mentor is expected to take note of any barriers the teenager faces, as well as outcomes achieved.
During the residential phase, a typical day for the teens might look like this:
The documents state the in-residence component focuses on engaging with the teenager and their whānau, and building trust.
During the first three months, the mentor must have weekly visits to the residence, weekly engagements with the whānau of each teenager, and attend weekly meetings with the local multi-disciplinary teams (MDT), and the academy team.
The documents show that at this stage the mentors will be part-time, working up to 20 hours a week. At least 10 hours must be contact time with the young offender and their whānau which could be face-to-face meetings or via technology.
The mentors are expected to travel to the residence at least once a fortnight.
During the nine month transition period, the mentor will have up to 40 hours contracted contact focused on the teen. There will also be regular meetings with the MDT - these could potentially be daily.
This period is divided into a six-month and three-month stage.
During the first six months of the community component, the expectation is to intensively support transition. This includes:
During the last three months of the community component, the focus is on sustaining and maintaining, with the mentor expected to continue the activities mentioned above but to a less intense level. The focus is on “stable, wraparound support to ensure the teenager’s enduring success in the community”.
It will be a part-time job of up to 20 hours a week, with the young person and whānau, inclusive of travel.
The organisations who have applied to provide the intensive mentor service will be notified on July 25 if they are successful.
Reporter Herikō is at Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ngaa Papaonekura, where tamariki from kura all over the motu are running their hearts out in cross country races.