'Not listening': Youth crime wave linked to early services say experts

Experts are warning the dire lack of paediatric services in regional NSW is contributing to the youth crime epidemic in the bush.

Youth crime rates have risen statewide according to the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research.

From 2019 to 2023, the rate of young people coming into contact with police in regional NSW increased by 9.2 per cent, compared to Sydney, which dropped by 3.8 per cent.

The Orana Far West (encompassing Dubbo, Cobar and Broken Hill) is by far the worst area.

NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Gavin Wood told ACM that children as young as 10 are stealing cars and using them in "different and varying" types of crimes.

While police aim to disrupt crime, "diversionary" practices also need to be considered, he said.

"We need to look at where we can get in front of these kids and divert them from the criminal justice system. In the longer term that is a better result for everyone."

NSW Premier Chris Minns announced controversial bail laws that will make it harder for offenders aged 14 to 18 to get bail if they commit a crime while already on bail.

But the Minns Government has refused to commit to funding two new regional-based paediatric assessment clinics, despite Health Minister Ryan Park saying he recognised families faced "challenges" securing an appointment with a paediatrician.

Children with significant development challenges must wait up to six years to see a paediatrician in regional NSW.

Children's charity Royal Far West is seeking funding for a three-year pilot to expand their treatment service based in Manly with two new rural-based clinics in Wagga and Dubbo.

Experts say preventative measures like paediatric services are just as important as bail laws.

Head of the Discipline of Psychiatry and Mental Health at the University of New South Wales, Professor Kimberlie Dean told ACM that children who display "vulnerabilities as far back as their first year of school are more likely to find themselves in very early contact with police".

"If we are going to prevent ongoing contact with the justice system, we need to go intervene with children and families in early life," said Prof Dean, who was the lead author of a study of 79,000 children looking at the link.

"We know that people with mental health problems are more likely to have contact with the criminal justice system in adulthood and adolescence, but this study indicates that the association can begin much earlier in life," she said.

John Southon, of Trundle Central School, said the resulting paediatric crisis "absolutely" led to more youth crime.

"If you've got a child that has a disability and that stops them from reading, and they become an angry young man, where do you think that's going to go as a society?" Mr Southon told ACM.

Youth services ACM spoke to raised concerns about the "flow on impact".

YP Space Mid North Coast Deb Tougher told ACM that when a child is untreated early in life, the issues "snowball" later in life.

"Trying to get our young people into paediatricians or mental health services is a real struggle," she said.

"These children are all suffering from some form of trauma.

"They are usually leaving a fairly toxic environment, they may have drug and alcohol dependency, they are usually homeless, they are not doing well at school because they are in survival mode."

Joh Leader, the founder of LeaderLife in Dubbo, which works with marginalised kids, told ACM "children need to get the fundamentals right in the early years to help them navigate the bigger stuff when they are older".

Opposition Police Minister Paul Toole said Labor is "not listening" to the cries coming from the bush.

"These are kids in our communities that are at risk," he said.

"If they are not going to a paediatrician in a timely manner then we are going to see behavioural problems, they are going to fall further behind at school and ultimately they are going to end in jail cells."

He urged the government to be "proactive, not reactionary".

"The current focus is on western Sydney but anyone west of the divide seems to be forgotten," he said.