Report of the HRD on the activities of the National Preventive Mechanism in Poland in 2011 Defender explained that provisions on the functioning of youth care centres and youth sociotherapy centres do not impose on their directors an obligation take on responsibilities of a family or a guardian of a juvenile. The Defender also stressed that the educational grant is divided among specific local government units, taking into account the scope of educational tasks carried out by these entities, i.e. it covers first and foremost the cost of education and the cost of implementing preventive, educational and sociotherapeutic measures. Juveniles staying in such establishments receive financial support from their parents, whereas children placed in an orphanage should be financially supported by the establishment, which in turn receives funds for this purpose from a relevant poviat. The Defender was informed that the provision stipulating that if a court, pursuant to the provisions on proceedings in juvenile cases, decides to place in a youth care centre or a juvenile detention centre centre a child, who is under institutional substitute care, the decision to place this child under institutional substitute care is repealed, was deleted from the draft. National Prevention Mechanism recommended to: • Renovate the building, especially the living rooms and bathrooms for juveniles; • Ensure that sanitary facilities in the establishments function property; this includes equipping the showers with shower curtains which give the users a feeling of privacy. 2.5. Juvenile detention centres and juvenile shelters In 2011, the Human Rights Defender, acting in the capacity of the National Preventive Mechanism176, visited two juvenile detention centres177, two juvenile detention centres functioning together with juvenile shelters178 and two juvenile shelters179. The visit in Juvenile Detention Centre and Juvenile Shelter in Zawiercie was aimed at evaluating the implementation of recommendations formulated after the visit paid between 2 and 4 April 2009. The National Preventive Mechanism stated that the majority of its recommendations had been implemented. However, a number of issues still required improvement, as presented in more detail below. a) Protection against degrading treatment and the use of coercive measures In one of the visited establishments, residents interviewed by the National Preventive Mechanism negatively assessed the atmosphere in the establishment (JDC and JS in Konstantynów Łódzki). They indicated that some teachers and tutors behaved aggressively, both verbally and physically. Some juveniles stated that they did not feel safe in the  Hereinafter: NPM or Mechanism.  Świecie, Nowe nad Wisłą.  Zawiercie, Konstantynów Łódzki. 179  Dominowo, Chojnice. 176 177 178 100