On an average night in the June quarter 2022, there were 818 young people in youth detention in Australia due to their involvement, or alleged involvement, in crime (Figure 2.1).
On an average night in the June quarter 2022, most (709 or 87%) young people in detention were aged 10–17. Of these, 44 were aged 10–13 and 665 were aged 14–17. The remainder (110 or 13%) were aged 18 or over. The average nightly population is rounded to whole numbers, so components might not sum to the totals due to rounding (see ‘Technical Notes’).
Over the 4-year period from the June quarter 2018 to the June quarter 2022, the number of young people in detention on an average night declined from 969 in the June quarter 2018 to a low of 720 in the September quarter 2020, rising back up to 818 in the June quarter 2022 (Table S11).
The number of young people in detention on an average night declined in all age groups from the June quarter 2018 to 2022:
- The number of those aged 10–13 in detention declined slightly over the 4-year period from 53 to 44.
- The number of young people aged 14–17 in detention declined from 745 to 664 and was lowest in the September quarter 2020 (537). This age group drove an overall decline in the number of young people aged 10–17 in detention, from 798 to 709 over the 4-year period.
- Those aged 18 or over showed a steady decline from 171 to 110 young people over the 4-year period (Figure 2.1).
In the June quarter 2022, 9 in 10 (740 or 90%) young people in detention on an average night were male. This was the case in all quarters throughout the 4-year period (89%–92%). However, for young people aged 10–13 there was a slightly lower proportion of males in detention on an average night (75%–85%) and a higher proportion of females.
