7 May 2014

Shadow Minister for Justice visits T2A Pathway project

News and events, Uncategorized

Dan Jarvis, Labour MP for Barnsley Central and Shadow Minister for Justice, visited a new Rotherham service for young adults in contact with the criminal justice system.  Part of the national T2A Transition to Adulthood Alliance Pathway programme, the service supports young adults to access community resources to help with areas such as employment and training, housing, mental health and substance misuse. They are supported to identify, understand and alter any behaviours that are creating distress, and to develop tools to uphold these changes. This might include building emotional awareness, confidence, negotiation and problem-solving skills, as well as strengthening their relationships with others, such as family and friends.

 

Run by national mental health charity Together, the service provides support to 17 to 24-year-olds from the point they come into contact with police and emergency services in Rotherham. Staff help young adults to manage their mental well-being and to avoid future contact with police or overuse of emergency services. Dan Jarvis’ visit coincides with the official launch of the project, which started taking referrals this March.

 

Dan Jarvis talked to staff and heard about young people’s experiences to learn about how the service works in practice and how young adults benefit.  He said: “Young people with mental health problems are significantly over-represented in youth custody, and far too many end up coming into contact with the criminal justice system because they are unable to access support at an earlier stage.  Much more needs to be done to tackle this if we want to stop youth crime before it starts and successfully rehabilitate young people who do commit offences.