Snapshot

This is a combined report of our 2025 inspections of Queensland’s 3 youth detention centres (YDCs) – West Moreton, Brisbane and Cleveland.

Our report focuses on standards relevant to early days and daily life to show what the day‑to-day experience of a child in youth detention looks like. Our report also considers the nature of services, activities and support provided to Aboriginal children and Torres Strait Islander children. 

The main issues and positive practices identified for each focus area are listed below. 

Early days in the youth detention centre

  • Not all YDCs complete individualised risk assessments to justify conducting partially clothed searches of children on admission.
  • Brisbane YDC does not conduct partially clothed searches in accordance with policy and procedure.
  • Cleveland YDC ensures most children receive a section induction and a phone call on arrival at the centre. 

Daily life

  • Separations due to staff shortages occur but have reduced in frequency and duration.
  • Units designed for independent living are not being used across all YDCs, with the exception of a boys unit at Cleveland YDC.
  • Boys and girls are accommodated in close proximity at Cleveland YDC.
  • Cleanliness and graffiti management at some YDCs have improved; however, children’s rooms are usually cleaned by children, and maintenance regimes require improvements to address ageing YDC infrastructure.
  • Visitors are provided support by all YDCs to enable personal visits but the facilities are not sufficient to meet demand from professional visitors at Cleveland YDC.
  • Some children do not receive regular time outdoors.
  • Leave of absence applications lack consistent recordkeeping processes across YDCs.
  • YDCs do not consistently comply with food safety standards, however, children receive varied meals and can provide feedback.

Service delivery to Aboriginal children and Torres Strait Islander children

  • Staff currency with cultural awareness and capability training requirements is low.
  • Decisions about exclusion from cultural programs and associated risk assessments are not adequately documented. 
  • Levels of cultural program provision to children is difficult to assess due to a lack of recordkeeping. 
  • Elder involvement at West Moreton YDC is high, but there is no or limited involvement of Elder groups at Brisbane and Cleveland YDCs.
  • There are gaps in cultural support available to children, particularly after hours and on weekends. 

Youth detention centres

Hero-WMYDC-Gardens-and-amphitheatre-Koala-Section-in-background-(optimised)

West Moreton 

  • Located on Yuggera and Ugarapul Country in Brisbane
  • Medical centre operated by West Moreton Hospital and Health Service
  • 5 accommodation units
  • 32 operating capacity, 27 safe capacity.

On 20 February 2025, it had: 

  • 4 girls, 28 boys
  • 60% identified as Aboriginal children and Torres Strait Islander children.

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Brisbane

  • Located on Yuggera and Ugarapul Country in Brisbane
  • Medical centre operated by West Moreton Hospital and Health Service
  • 11 accommodation units
  • 162 operating capacity, 137 safe capacity.

On 24 June 2025, it had: 

  • 16 girls, 125 boys
  • 62% identified as Aboriginal children and Torres Strait Islander children.

alternative-CYDC-photo

Cleveland

  • Located on Wulgurukaba Country in Townsville
  • Medical centre operated by Townsville Hospital and Health Service
  • 15 accommodation units
  • 112 operating capacity, 95 safe capacity.

On 26 August 2025, it had: 

  • 16 girls, 85 boys
  • 90% identified as Aboriginal children and Torres Strait Islander children.

Recommendations

Recommendation 1
The Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support ensures staff adhere to the stated procedures for partially clothed searches outlined in the Youth Detention Centre Operations Manual Chapter four – Security management.
Recommendation 2
The Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support ensures section inductions are conducted for all children entering a youth detention centre and these occur within the required timeframes.
Recommendation 3

The Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support works with West Moreton and Brisbane youth detention centres to ensure:

  • children have an opportunity to make a phone call to family, guardian or another personal support as soon as possible after admission
  • attempts to make the phone call and the completion of the phone call are documented 
  • offers of phone calls declined are documented.
Recommendation 4
The Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support assists each youth detention centre to establish independent living units or recommence use of existing units.
Recommendation 5
The Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support develops minimum maintenance and cleaning standards for children’s accommodation rooms and shared living areas, including that rooms are deep cleaned, at a minimum, when children change rooms. 
Recommendation 6
Cleveland Youth Detention Centre manage accommodation arrangements to minimise or eliminate the risk of antisocial and inappropriate communication between boys’ and girls’ units.
Recommendation 7
The Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support ensures Cleveland Youth Detention Centre facilities can meet the demand for access to professional visitors.
Recommendation 8

The Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support: 

  • ensures children are given equitable opportunity to participate in activities in the open and fresh air and during daylight hours for a minimum of 2 hours each day
  • improves the capability of the department’s database to record how much time children spend in open and fresh air and structured recreational activities.
Recommendation 9
Recommendation withdrawn.
Recommendation 10

The Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support reviews and updates the policy 
YD 2-2 Youth Detention – Leave of absence to include: 

  • identifying the appropriate delegates for declining an application
  • recordkeeping requirements for all requests for a leave of absence including reasons for the decision being made on the application
  • a risk assessment process for communicating outcomes to the child and/or applicant
  • a process for seeking review of a decision including who can conduct the review and timeframes in which they are to be conducted.
Recommendation 11
The Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support improves completion rates for cultural training for all staff who interact with, or contribute to decisions about, Aboriginal children and Torres Strait Islander children or their families.
Recommendation 12
The Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support develops recordkeeping requirements to ensure attendance at programs, and documents the scheduling, delivery and cancellation of programs. 
Recommendation 13

The Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support implements a recordkeeping practice across all centres that:  

  • keeps records regarding decisions made to exclude a child from a cultural program
  • appropriately considers the human rights impacts and any alternative cultural support offered to the child.
Recommendation 14
The Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support develops a strategy that provides for after-hours and weekend cultural support for children.
Recommendation 15
The Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support assists Brisbane and Cleveland youth detention centres to re-establish regular Elder visits to support children’s connection to community and provide gender appropriate cultural support.