Frestart Program
Freshstart Program is an intervention program designed to support young persons involved in juvenile criminal justice system and those with behaviour problems and at-risk of delinquent behaviour. The Freshstart program focuses on prevention, rehabilitation, and reintegration. It helps to prevent and mitigate antisocial behavior, delinquency and reoffending, and support juvenile offenders` rehabilitation and reintegration back into their community. It provides opportunities for young people who are in juvenile detention centres, on probation, parole, or bail as well as at risk youth to access resources, learn skills, stay out of trouble and criminal justice system, and thrive to transform their lives and reach their potential. We also support parents and guardians with parenting skills training, counselling, support services and information about the consequences of juvenile crime, and its impact on the victims, offenders, families, and society. Our multidisciplinary team works with detention centres, court services, law officers, organizations, families, and other stakeholders to support young persons involved in the youth justice system.
Focus Areas
Prevention Services
Children or young people are facing challenging times and sometimes at risk of making poor choices and engaging in antisocial behaviours that jeopardizing their future and impacts their families, other people, and the community. Freshstart Program offers prevention services that support kids, young people and their families to enhance children’s emotional, social and developmental needs, overcome the challenges of adolescence, and prevent bad behaviours, juvenile delinquency, and involvement in youth justice system. We support young people with behavioural problems, address issues facing them, guide them to get back on track, make positive changes and establish better relationships with their parents. We also support juvenile offenders to prevent or reduce reoffending, pursue new and positive directions, and reintegrate into their communities. We also work with families and guardians to assist with parenting challenges and help manage family relationships.
Rehabilitation Services
The rehabilitation service support young persons with behaviour issues and juvenile offenders in dealing with their challenging behaviours and offending, help them make positive changes in their lives, reduce the likelihood of engaging in antisocial behaviour and reoffending in the future, and help improve their skills and functioning. We also support young people facing immediate crisis at home, at school, or in the community. The program promotes and provides services and environment that enable detainees` behavior changes, promote prosocial behaviours and skills enhancement, and successful reintegration of detainees or offenders into the community. Our rehabilitation services involved life skills, skill-building, educational support, personalized counseling, mentoring, behavioural therapy, vocational training, family support, and other support.
Reintegration Services
The reintegration process begins as soon as young persons or offenders are admitted into our programs and evolves with their changing needs as they move through a range of services, transition points and eventually out of the youth justice system. Our staff develop reintegration action plans in collaboration with the young person or offender, detention facility staff, family members, and others involved. Every young person is unique, so each goal and action plan should be personalized to the young person`s challenges, goals, and interests. Juvenile offenders who are released from detention, custody, prison, on probation or bail, back into their communities and homes will continue accessing our counselling, mentoring, and other support services. We also connect juvenile offenders with appropriate community resources, services, and other opportunities they need to thrive. Family involvement can be critical for a successful reintegration and reunification. We support reunification of juvenile offenders with their families and even with their victims. Our reunification strategy is built on family strengths, safety concerns, and emotional welfare of the victim. The strategies include family engagement, regular visit or telephone contacts, education, and connecting families and victims to resources and other services. These will help them to be better equipped to focus on their future, build healthy relationships, reunite with their families, reconnect with their communities, and become productive members of society.