The ACT Government has responded to the Health Centre Review 2024 on the Bimberi Youth Justice Centre. Photo: File.
Bimberi Youth Justice Centre detainees are allowed to hug their loved ones again – and have chairs in their rooms – following a report by the independent custodial inspector.
ACT Custodial Inspector Rebecca Minty called for physical contact at visits, banned in 2020 following a riot in 2019, as part of her 2024 review into the centre.
Nine months on, the ACT Government has responded to the recommendations, which included calling on the government to respond to previous recommendations from reports issued in 2020 and 2023.
Children, Youth and Families Minister Michael Pettersson said physical contact had been reinstated in December 2024.
He said other completed recommendations included making it easier for young people to communicate confidentially with their lawyers and making internet access available to young people attending the Murrumbidgee School.
All young people now also have access to alternative seating in their rooms after purpose-designed ottomans arrived at Bimberi in the second half of 2024.
Mr Pettersson said one large piece of upcoming work to respond to the recommendations would be developing an ACT Youth Justice Strategic Plan.
“The plan will be aimed at strengthening the youth justice system and delivering on government commitments to improve outcomes for young people,” he said.
“The plan will establish a five-year roadmap for the ACT’s youth justice system, mapping our ongoing commitment to youth justice reform. It aims to improve the wellbeing of young people who are at risk of offending or are already involved in the youth justice system.
“At its core is a commitment to Closing the Gap, specifically Target 11, which aims to reduce the overrepresentation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people in detention by at least 30 per cent by 2031.”
Kurrajong independent MLA Thomas Emerson said the ACT’s previous youth justice blueprint expired three years ago.
He asked why the ACT Government had allowed the plan to lapse without having a replacement.
Mr Pettersson responded: “I’m not going to speculate on the decision-making of the government at that moment in time.
“I think it’s a wise thing that this government recommits itself to a new youth justice strategy … this is a priority for the government.”
Other recommendations are expected to be satisfied through the development of a new model of care for young people at risk.
It will consider, among other issues, the processes for induction and the first hours of a young person upon arrival at Bimberi; the physical environments of induction and residential spaces; contact arrangements between young people, their families and their legal representation; searches; and incentives programs.
The recommendation for the ACT Government to expedite the use of body scanner technology at Bimberi, the ACT Watch House and ACT court cells, and to prohibit strip searches, was noted.
“The procurement of body scanner technology [at these facilities] will be considered by government and will be subject to future consideration as part of the whole government budget process,” the response stated.
“Prohibiting the use of strip searches will be considered as part of future legislative reform.”
The only recommendation not agreed upon – and also recommended in the Health Centre Review 2020 – was to remove two sections (163 and 190) from the Children and Young People Act 2008.
These refer to giving young detainees security classifications.
The government response said this suggestion was contrary to recommendations made in reviews of the 2019 riot and that a review of its classification system, including timeframes and “dynamic risk factors”, had been completed.
Ms Minty welcomed the response, but was disappointed it had taken 10 months to be finalised.
“The government’s support for meaningful reform is encouraging, but it’s vital this momentum leads to real, measurable change,” she said.
“Our review highlighted many previously accepted recommendations about Bimberi, which had not yet been implemented and remain relevant.
“Our visit in May 2025 indicates Bimberi has some way to go to ensure force is always a last resort, is proportionate, and appropriate records are kept. Developing Bimberi’s model of care must drive change in this and others to ensure young people are less likely to reoffend when they leave Bimberi.”
The government response did not address a second report which warned about “festering tensions” at Bimberi.
A response to this report is expected by the end of the year.
