One in 40 young men in the Blanchardstown area of Dublin was sent to prison last year, according to a new report on juvenile crime.
The report, by the Blanchardstown Offenders for New Directions (BOND) group, found that 32 young men from the area were sentenced to St Patrick's Institution for young offenders last year. A further 25 were sent to the prison on remand.
The BOND committee, made up of representatives from the Garda national juvenile office, the Probation and Welfare Service and the local community, is looking for £115,000 to run a 14-person programme aimed at keeping young people out of prison. BOND's chairman, Mr Tony O'Riordan, from the Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice, said the group had submitted its plan to Government.
The project would cost about £7,000 per person, compared to the cost of keeping a young offender in prison, which was £46,000 last year.