There is no official definition of a boot camp as a programme for young people.
The term ‘boot camps’ is used to describe military-style training programmes for young people. The training may be delivered by the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) or a non-government organisation, in partnership with Oranga Tamariki (or its predecessors – such as the Department of Social Welfare and Child, Youth and Family) or the Ministry of Social Development (MSD).
A young person could be referred to a boot camp by the Youth Court, Oranga Tamariki (or one of its predecessors), MSD or by their parents.
Corrective Training was a three-month custodial sentence for young people aged 15-21, who would have otherwise been sentenced to imprisonment for at least three months. Corrective Training was for up to three months. At the end of the Corrective Training period, the ‘trainee’ would be on probation for one year.
It was introduced by the Criminal Justice Amendment Act 1975 (which abolished borstals) and operated between 1981 and around 1987.
Corrective Training was run by the Department of Justice, until this department was disestablished in October 1995. After this date, the Department of Corrections was established, and they took over responsibility for the New Zealand corrections system (for example, prisons and community service).
Corrective Training programmes operated before 1987 at:
There are also outdoors-based programmes which Oranga Tamariki sometimes calls ‘outdoor pursuits camps’ ‘wilderness camps’ or ‘bush programmes’.
Outdoors-based programmes were historically run by organisations approved under Section 396 of the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families Act 1989 (s396) as Child and Family Support Services.
Young people were usually referred to these programmes as part of a Supervision with Activity Order from the Youth Court, for less serious offences.
A Supervision with Activity Order is for up to six months. It requires the young person to spend time in a specified centre and do a specified activity or programme.
Examples of outdoors-based programmes run as part of Supervision with Activity Orders:
Whakapakari on Aotea Great Barrier Island.
This programme started in 1977 as a survival course to help rangatahi Māori recover from drug and solvent addiction. It was partly funded by the Department of Māori Affairs up until the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families Act 1989.
From 1989, it was run by Te Whakapakari Youth Trust and funded by Department of Social Welfare.
In 1990, Te Whakapakari Youth Trust was approved as a Child and Family Support Service under s396. It was also funded by the Department of Health in 1990 and 1991 for substance abuse programmes. They stopped being a s396 provider in 2006.
Moerangi Treks in Te Urewera
This programme was established in July 1983 as a Caregiver Venture where young people could learn bush craft, work with horses and dogs, visit a marae and learn tikanga.
Young people were referred to Moerangi Treks from the Youth Courts from 1993.
Moerangi Treks is based at 672 Ruatoki Road Whakatane.
Eastland Rescue Youth Trust
This programme operated from a bush camp near Omaio and was run by one of the directors of Moerangi Treks. It operated October 1998 – October 1999.
Tarawera Treks / Tarawera Trust
This programme operated 1990-2004.
Wairaka Kokiri Trust
The Trust was based in Whanganui, and operated the Maroera Bush Camp programme near Whakatane.
Military-style Activity Camps (MAC) were run by Child, Youth and Family (then part of the Ministry of Social Development with the New Zealand Defence Force delivering the training.
The MAC programme was introduced in October 2010 as part of the Fresh Start suite of programmes for children and young people, and based at Te Puna Wai ō Tuhinapo Youth Justice Residence in Christchurch.
The people who attended MACs were young male offenders who had received a Supervision with Residence Order from the Youth Court. The young person could choose not to attend the MAC programme, in which case the Youth Court judge could choose to order them to live at a Youth Justice Residence.
A young person would take part in the MAC programme for three to six months. The programme included a period in a wilderness camp, education at a nearby school, and regular military-style activities.
After the programme ended, a Supervision Order would take effect, which meant 6-12 months in the community with support from a social service provider.
The MAC was wound down after 2016.
The pilot of this scheme was a 12-month programme run by Oranga Tamariki and based at their youth justice residence in Palmerston North. The young people taking part had been sentenced to a Supervision with Residence Order, with the programme being part of their Youth Court plan.
A Supervision with Residence Order is a custodial sentence – the young person has to stay in a specified youth justice residence.
The pilot programme included a three-month residence stage, education and daily activities including military-style activities. It also included a nine-month period of transitioning back into the community.
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As of early 2025, legislation is being progressed which would allow a Youth Court judge to declare a young person to be a Young Serious Offender. This declaration would include allowing a judge to sentence a young person to take part in a Military-Style Academy.
The Limited Service Volunteer (LSV) programme is a free, six-week military-style training camp for young people aged from 17 to 25 years old, who are not studying or working.
The programme is run by the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) in partnership with NZ Police, with the NZDF providing the training.
LSV programmes are run on NZDF bases:
The course includes training in physical fitness, outdoor education, teamwork, life skills and job skills. NZDF provides clothing, food and accommodation (and any necessary medical support).
Tip: MSD encourages young people receiving a benefit to take part in LSV programmes, but it is voluntary.
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