Tasmania records over 300 child detentions in adult watch houses last year

Right-to-information data reveal that Tasmanian children were placed in adult prison watch houses more than 300 times in the past financial year, including one youngster held for 55 hours.

Data released under right-to-information rules indicate that Tasmanian children were detained in adult prison watch houses 306 times over the previous financial year, involving 140 individual youths, some of whom were held repeatedly. The most prolonged detention lasted 55 hours at Hobart Reception Prison, where the child remained while waiting for a slot at Ashley Youth Detention Centre; the longest stay at the Launceston facility was about 26 hours.

Critics, including Greens MP Cecily Rosol and Interim Commissioner for Children Ros Cornish, contend that the state’s youth-justice blueprint fails to address the continued use of adult cells, a practice the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child says should be eliminated. Government officials acknowledge the issue and claim to be working on “alternate options” for a dedicated youth remand centre, while noting recent safety upgrades like body scanners and procedures for handling suicidal detainees.

Interviews with former detainees describe unsanitary conditions, exposure to adult inmates, and isolation rooms lacking basic amenities. The Department of Justice maintains that the watch house system is temporary and that its new Model of Care aims to provide trauma-informed, culturally safe services across all youth-justice settings.