The Middlesex County Youth Shelter has been serving troubled adolescents and their families from Middlesex County for 25 years. Originally operated as a JINS shelter in New Brunswick, the facility moved to its present location on Route 130 in North Brunswick in 1985. It was expanded to a 24-bed Juvenile/Family Crisis Shelter at that time. The Shelter is operated by the Middlesex County Board of Freeholders and is administered by the Middlesex County Department of Youth Services. The Shelter is a direct supervision, non-secure facility that houses male and female youths through referrals from the Family Court, the Family Crisis Intervention Unit and the New Jersey Division of Youth and Family Services. The role of the Shelter is to provide a safe, structured environment that allows the child to prepare for and accept placement plans including family reunification, group home placement, residential and foster care placement or substance abuse treatment.