Supported by
Quest is designed to break the reoffending cycle by equipping young offenders with the skills, support, resources, network and ethics to compete more effectively for employment.
Quest also actively encourages participants to develop an entrepreneurial mindset and encourages young offenders to see starting a business as a realistic and viable career option.
This project is part funded by the Northern Ireland European Social Fund Programme 2014 - 2020 and the Department for Economy.
Project Overview
Young Offenders represent some of the most marginalised people in our society.
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More than 43% of young people in custody have emotional and mental health needs
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60% of those who offend have communication difficulties
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Almost 33% of young people who offend are not in full-time education, training or employment at the end of their period of youth justice supervision.
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More than 25% of young people in the youth justice system have a learning disability, while more than 75% have serious difficulties with literacy.
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More than 50% of young people who offend have themselves been victims of crime.
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42% of children on custodial sentences had been ‘held in care', while 17% were on the child protection register
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63.8% of offenders had committed previous offences prior to coming into custody.
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Within Northern Ireland (2019), 56 crimes were committed per 1000 people which equates to over 100,000 victims of crime in NI each year.
Tackling these issues in a non-traditional way not only has a powerful social impact on society but improves the cost-effectiveness of rehabilitation within the criminal justice system.
Quest, delivered in Hydebank Wood Secure College, is designed to break the reoffending cycle by equipping young offenders with the skills, support, resources, network and ethics to compete more effectively for employment.
Through our bespoke programme, we have a proven track record of reducing short and long-term re-offending.
Quest training and work experience help YO work on both hard and soft skills that they can carry into the rest of their lives as well as their careers.
We work with our participants on a 1-to-1 basis to develop:
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interview skills
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disclosure of convictions
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relationship building
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teamwork skills
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timekeeping
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workplace management
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addressing drug and alcohol misuse
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mental health awareness
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self-motivation
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self-confidence
All our participants that complete our programme in its entirety receive employability support post-release, similar to the support they receive in Hydebank Wood as well as access to a professional development bursary to help support their employability journey.
