There has been a big reduction in the number of young people who offend, but a greater proportion of them are ending up in the Youth Court, a new report into the youth justice system shows.
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The number of young people who offended in 2016/17 was almost 5200, well down on the close to 14,200 who offended in 2009/10.
But the report said that in recent years, the youth justice system has been dealing with a different mix of young people and types of offences committed.
Both minor and serious crime have dropped, but minor crime has dropped more, meaning serious crime now makes up a larger proportion of all youth offending.
While the overall number of young people who offend has decreased since 2013/14, the proportion who appeared in the Youth Court increased by 27 percent over the same period.
And despite the overall drops in youth offending volumes and rates, the degree of improvement has not been as significant for some groups, particularly young Māori.
The reduction in the offending rate for young people since 2009/10 has been much higher for European/other - 74 percent - compared to Pasifika - 61 percent - and Māori - 59 percent.
Also, between 2014/15 and 2016/17, the Youth Court appearance rate for Māori increased by 23 percent, while the rate for non-Māori reduced 12 percent in comparison.
Associate Justice Minister Aupito William Sio said more needed to be done to prevent Māori and Pasifika young people from ending up in the Youth Court.
While the Rangatahi and Pasifika Youth Courts were a good move, he said Māori and Pacific culture needed to be valued from the very beginning of a young person's interaction with the justice system.
