COURT WORKER PROGRAM

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With the support of our court worker, Edmonton youth address issues and conflicts with the justice system. The court worker mediates with Duty Counsel, the court bureaucracy, Probation Officers, and the Police to facilitate alternative measures to help youth address their issues, and thereby preventing youth incarceration.

 

How It Works

Staff and youth meet in a circle three times each day. In this way, youth are encouraged to participate in discussions and come to see their voice is valued. From that a respectful and caring community develops. As the program continues, one-on-one and small group meetings can lead to informal counselling. Relationships continue to grow through sports and other recreational activities. When the youth feel supported, respected, in a safe place, provided with basic needs, they begin disclosing legal and other issues that often block their development. If not addressed many of these issues will drive them deeper into a world of desperation, marginalization, dependency and possibly further criminal activities.

In addition to the above, we host regular visits by Public Health nurses, and offer weekly parenting programs. As well, we provide breakfast and lunch five days a week. Addiction workers from Alberta Health Services provide regular visits and offer formal counselling where necessary.

From this, the court worker mediates between youth and the justice system to help youth clear their warrants and add a new degree of stability to their lives.

Typical Court Based Activities Include:

  • Represents youth in provincial court

  • Together with youth, works to vacate warrants for their arrest

  • Works to avoid youth spending time in jail and exposure to a more hardened criminal element; instead supervises community service hours, keeping them out of jail

  • When required, as part of the process, ICYDA social workers in collaboration with youth, create suicide safety plans for those expressing suicidal thinking.

The Court Worker program was generously funded by the Edmonton Community Foundation.