Q&A - Just Reinvest NSW and the Bourke Project

What is justice reinvestment?

  • Justice reinvestment recognises that there is a strong correlation between areas of disadvantage and high rates of young people coming into contact with the criminal justice system.
  • It is a smarter approach to justice that builds stronger communities by redirecting money that would be spent on prisons, into community services and supports. It is about addressing the underlying causes of crime and preventing it from happening in the first place.
  • The crux of justice reinvestment is long-term funding of what works. What works to improve the lives of children and young people, to stop them offending, and to create safer communities.
  • Justice reinvestment uses data in two ways; identifying communities where there are high numbers of people going into the prison system– whichmeans they are costing the government a lot on incarceration. It then uses data to answer what is happening and why?What is causing people to offend in those communities?
  • It is also place-based– it looks at local problems and local solutions. For us, this means Aboriginal led, community-driven initiatives. From a human rights perspective, the principle of self-determination is paramount.

What are the origins of justice reinvestment? Where has it been successful?

  • In the United States, there are 30 justice reinvestment initiatives at the national level and another 18 at the state level.The reason it is so widespread is that it has the support of both sides of the political spectrum. It appeals to conservatives because it is fiscally responsible.
  • In Texas in 2007, they were looked at a projected rise in the prison population that was going to cost two billion dollars. They looked at what they could to halt that rise – including diversionary options, more drug and alcohol services – and they were able to save around $450 million dollars – half of that they could invest back into those diversionary options.

Why is it important in NSW and Australia?

  • In NSW, over half the children in jailare Aboriginal. This costs $800 per child per day. In 2014 NSW taxpayers spent an average of $293,200 on each childin custody.
  • The overall prison population, and the rate of over-representation of Aboriginal young people in our prisons are both rising, yet property and violent crime rates are going down. Something isn’t working.
  • Meanwhile, the NSW Government has just announced plans to spend $3.8 billion on new prisons beds over the next four years. This is a bad investment because it isn’t going to make communities safer. The research tells us that.
  • We cannot afford to keep doing what we’re doing. The social and economic costs are too high.

What is Just Reinvest NSW?

  • Just Reinvest NSW formed in 2012 to reduce the over-representations of Aboriginal young people in in the criminal justice system by improving understanding of justice reinvestment and helping it in become policy in NSW. It is an independent, non-profit, membership-based, incorporated association auspiced by Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT) Ltd.
  • There are now more than 20 organisations actively engaged in Just Reinvest NSW as membersor sponsors, with a broad coalition ofindividuals and organisations providing support.
  • In 2013, Just Reinvest NSW began a partnership with the Bourke community to implement the first major justice reinvestment trial in Australia, assisted by the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation, the Dusseldorp Forum and the St Vincent de Paul Society Foundation.

What is Just Reinvest NSW calling for?

  • We are calling on the NSW Government to develop and implement a justice reinvestment policy as a matter of urgency.
  • In particular, we are calling for the NSW Government to:
  • investigate how current prison numbers can be reduced
  • redirect a portion of the $3.8 billion earmarked for prisons over the next four years into community-based justice reinvestment solutions, and
  • assesss how justice reinvestment can be adpoted as an alternative to spending more on prisons in NSW.

Is Justice Reinvestment soft on crime?

  • The idea that tackling the root causes of crime and stopping it from happening is“soft on crime” couldn’t be further from the truth. Justice reinvestment is hard on crime by stopping it from happening in the first place. That is what is going to create safer communities – not sending more people to prison. It is a smarter way of spending. It is common sense. It needs to happen now.

How has the Bourke Justice Reinvestment Project come about?

  • The story of what is happening now in Bourke doesn’t start with the justice reinvestment project. Aboriginal leaders in Bourke have been working for many years to address problems facing the community. What they saw was money going to services that weren’t working together, over which they had no control, and money going into imprisoning children and young people.
  • Maranguka (which can be translated as ‘caring for others’) is a grassroots organisation with aim of achieving positive change in the community. Since 2013, Just Reinvest NSW has been working in partnershipwith the Bourke Community to develop a justice reinvestment framework. The Maranguka Justice Reinvestment Project is the first major justice reinvestment project in Australia.
  • The first stage of the justice reinvestment project has focused on building trust between community and service providers (including police and government agencies), identifying community priorities and developing ‘circuit breaker’ programs to reduce offending and make the community safer (i.e. addressing key issues such as breaches of bail, outstanding warrants and the need for a learner driver program in Bourke).
  • A huge amount of data has been handed over to community members through community conversations held by local facilitators, and community feedback was recorded and fed back to the Bourke Tribal Council. This feedback, together with the data, informed the development of goals, measures and strategiesfor the Maranguka Justice ReinvestmentProjectreflected in the documentGrowing our Kids Up Safe, Smart and Strong, developed by theBourke Tribal Council.
  • More detail on the project can be found at

What is the framework/ endpoint of the Bourke Justice Reinvestment Project?

  • During the implementation phase over the next three years (2016 – 2019), working groups will work together to reach the objectives set by the community. In this time, economic modelling will be conducted to demonstrate the savings from strategies identified by the community and local service providers to reduce offending among young people.
  • A comprehensive case will then be put to government that long-term investment in justice reinvestment can reduce prison populations, save money, and build stronger communities and brighter futures for young people.
  • Beyond the three years (this is long-term project –someof the changes won’t be seen for five or 10 years) there will be ongoing changes and we will carefully track and report progress.

What is different about what is happening in Bourke?

  • Decisions about what needs to happen aren’t being made in Sydney or in regional offices – they are being made on the ground in Bourke. Community leaders have made decisions about what needs to happen, informed by data and research – and most importantly – broad community input. Young people are also being given a voice in the process.
  • The government is being responsive, and coming in behind the community’s agendato empower local services to work with community in different ways.We are in the early stages, and there isn’t a magic wand,but there is a shift – what we are seeing is an optimism, and a real sense of momentum.

If government is coming in behind community’s agenda what more do you want it to do?

  • We are calling on the NSW Government to develop and implement a justice reinvestment policy as a matter of urgency. In particular, we are calling for the NSW Government to:
  • investigate how current prison numbers can be reduced
  • redirect a portion of the $3.8 billion earmarked for prisons over the next four years into community-based justice reinvestment solutions, and
  • assesss how justice reinvestment can be adpoted as an alternative to spending more on prisons in NSW.
  • We also want governments to support their workers in Bourke to do things differently and to work with community. This should include giving people permission to innovate, to move resources around where necessary, to ensure data is shared so we can track progress – and to create a supportive environment for the work.The NSW Government should take the lead on this way of working. They have multi-partisan support – and the most progressed example of justice reinvestment in the country.
  • Bourke is just one community. Ultimately, we want all Australian governments to look at justice reinvestment approaches – and assess how it can be adopted as an alternative to spending more on prisons.

How can I get involved and support this initiative?

  • You can help by raising awareness of the issues and the advantages of justice reinvestment approaches. For example, by:
  • promoting Just Reinvest NSW and justice reinvestment online
  • engaging your local community in the need for justice reinvestment (e.g. using the online justice reinvestment calculator)
  • raising the importance of these issues with your local MP, and/or
  • engaging with local media.
  • You can volunteer or become a memberof Just Reinvest NSW. Membership is open to individuals (18 years and older) and organisations, and costs as little as $5. There are now more than 20 organisations actively engaged in Just Reinvest NSW, with many others providing support.Contact us to become aMember of Just Reinvest NSW today.
  • You can also make a donation via our website ( All donations will support the work of Just Reinvest NSW and the Maranguka Justice Reinvestment Project in Bourke.

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