← Youth Justice
State Deep DiveVIC
Victoria Youth Justice
Victoria spends $7,123/day per child in detention — the highest in Australia. 120 children detained daily, 14x Indigenous overrepresentation. $3B total ROGS spending, the second-highest nationally.
$3.0B
VIC Youth Justice (ROGS 10yr)
120
Avg Daily Detention
14x
First Nations Overrepresentation
94%
Evidence Coverage
Key Outcomes
AIHW Youth Justice 2023-24 & ROGS 2026 data.
1.4
Detention rate per 10K
120
Avg daily detention
65%
Unsentenced (remand)
Detention rate per 10,000 young people
| Metric | QLD | NSW | VIC | WA | NT | National |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Detention rate (per 10K) | 5.1 | 3.6 | 1.4 | 4.2 | 17 | 3.4 |
| Avg daily detention | 317 | 200 | 120 | 145 | 62 | 950 |
| Indigenous overrepresentation | 26x | 22x | 14x | 24x | 5x | 17x |
| % unsentenced (remand) | 86% | 72% | 65% | 78% | 80% | 75% |
| Cost per day (detention) | $2,162 | $3,200 | $7,123 | $2,573 | $4,800 | $3,635 |
| 5-year trend | +53% | +86% | +37% | -10% | 0% | +19% |
Sources: AIHW Youth Justice in Australia 2023-24, ROGS 2026 Table 17A.
Where the Money Goes (ROGS)
Productivity Commission ROGS 2026 — 10-year expenditure breakdown.
72%
Detention-based
$2.2B
27%
Community-based
$792.2M
1%
Group conferencing
$28.8M
DetentionCommunityConferencing
Funding by Program
Cotton On Foundation Limited — Investment in creating safe, empowering spaces for young people to connect and c1 grants—1 orgs
Kay & Burton Foundation — Support for 25 young people at risk of homelessness through Education Scholarshi1 grants—1 orgs
Spiritwest Foundation — 70+ young people at 2025 Youth Leadership Project camp1 grants—1 orgs
The Trustee For The Vizard Foundation Trust — $X to James Macready-Bryan Foundation for supporting young people with acquired 1 grants—1 orgs
ALMA Interventions (51)
Jesuit Social Services Youth Justice Programs VIC
Jesuit Social Services Limited
DiversionEffective (strong evaluation, positive outcomes)VIC
Rumbalara Football Netball Club Youth Programs
Rumbalara Aboriginal Co-Operative Limited
PreventionPromising (community-endorsed, emerging evidence)Goulburn ValleySheppartonVIC
Victorian Aboriginal Health Service (VAHS) Youth Programs
Victorian Aboriginal Health Service Co Operative Ltd
Wraparound SupportPromising (community-endorsed, emerging evidence)VICWA
Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency (VACCA) Youth Programs
Victorian Aboriginal Child and Community Agency Co Op Ltd
Cultural ConnectionIndigenous-led (culturally grounded, community authority)VIC
Wathaurong Aboriginal Co-operative Youth Programs
Wathaurong Aboriginal Co-Operative Ltd
Cultural ConnectionUntested (theory/pilot stage)BarwonVIC
Aboriginal Community Justice Panels
Department of Justice & Community Safety
DiversionPromising (community-endorsed, emerging evidence)Multiple locationsVIC
Brotherhood of St Laurence Youth Programs
Brotherhood Of St Laurence
Education/EmploymentEffective (strong evaluation, positive outcomes)VIC
Victoria Police Youth Programs
Victoria Police
PreventionPromising (community-endorsed, emerging evidence)VICStatewide
Melbourne City Mission Youth Services
Melbourne City Mission
Wraparound SupportUntested (theory/pilot stage)VIC
Youth Support + Advocacy Service (YSAS)
Ysas Pty Ltd
TherapeuticPromising (community-endorsed, emerging evidence)VIC
Koori Youth Justice Program
NSW GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS
Cultural ConnectionUntested (theory/pilot stage)VIC
Baroona Youth Healing Service
TherapeuticPromising (community-endorsed, emerging evidence)VIC
Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS) Youth Justice
Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/Act) Limited
DiversionPromising (community-endorsed, emerging evidence)VICStatewide
Youth Pre-Court Diversion Scheme (YDS)
DiversionPromising (community-endorsed, emerging evidence)NTVIC
Youth Engagement Grants
PreventionEffective (strong evaluation, positive outcomes)VIC
Launch Housing Youth Services
Launch Housing Limited
Wraparound SupportUntested (theory/pilot stage)VIC
Berry Street Youth Services
Berry Street Victoria Incorporated
Wraparound SupportUntested (theory/pilot stage)VIC
Youth Projects
Youth Projects Ltd
Wraparound SupportUntested (theory/pilot stage)VIC
Cherry Creek Youth Justice Centre
Victorian Department of Justice and Community Safety
Wraparound SupportUntested (theory/pilot stage)VIC
Parkville Youth Justice Precinct
NSW GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS
Wraparound SupportUntested (theory/pilot stage)VIC
Youth Programs (Aboriginal Advancement League)
ABORIGINAL ADVANCEMENT ALLIANCE PTY LTD
Cultural ConnectionPromising (community-endorsed, emerging evidence)VIC
Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (VACCHO) Youth Network
Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation Inc
Community-LedPromising (community-endorsed, emerging evidence)VICStatewide
Koorie Youth Council
Community-LedIndigenous-led (culturally grounded, community authority)VICStatewide
Parkville Youth Justice Centre
Victorian Department of Justice and Community Safety
Wraparound SupportVIC
Youth Justice Group Conferencing
DiversionPromising (community-endorsed, emerging evidence)VIC
Evidence Coverage
48 of 51 interventions have formal evidence94%
48 with evidence3 without evidence
| Intervention | Type | Evidence | Method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Youth Justice | Department of Justice and Community Safety Victoria | Prevention | Gap | — |
| Youth Justice Community Support Service | Wraparound Support | Gap | — |
| Youthlaw – Free legal assistance for young people in Victoria aged under 25. | Prevention | Gap | — |
| Aboriginal Community Justice Panels | Diversion | Yes | Evaluation of Koori Court operations across Victorian locations |
| Aboriginal Community Justice Panels | Diversion | Yes | — |
| Aboriginal Community Justice Panels | Diversion | Yes | — |
| Aboriginal Community Justice Panels | Diversion | Yes | Evaluation of Murri Court operations across Queensland |
| Aboriginal Community Justice Panels | Diversion | Yes | Evaluation of NSW police-referred early intervention program |
| Aruma Interchange Youth Programs | Wraparound Support | Yes | Meta-analysis of 47 Australian mentoring programs |
| Baroona Youth Healing Service | Therapeutic | Yes | — |
| Baroona Youth Healing Service | Therapeutic | Yes | — |
| Baroona Youth Healing Service | Therapeutic | Yes | — |
| Berry Street Youth Services | Wraparound Support | Yes | — |
| Brotherhood of St Laurence Youth Programs | Education/Employment | Yes | Evaluation of youth employment programs for those with justice history |
| Brotherhood of St Laurence Youth Programs | Education/Employment | Yes | — |
| Brotherhood of St Laurence Youth Programs | Education/Employment | Yes | — |
| Brotherhood of St Laurence Youth Programs | Education/Employment | Yes | — |
| Centre for Multicultural Youth (CMY) | Community-Led | Yes | Community-led evaluation across 28 on-country and cultural programs |
| Cherry Creek Youth Justice Centre | Wraparound Support | Yes | Evaluation of Koori Court operations across Victorian locations |
| Cherry Creek Youth Justice Centre | Wraparound Support | Yes | Independent review of incidents and operational practices. |
| Cherry Creek Youth Justice Precinct | Wraparound Support | Yes | Meta-analysis of 47 Australian mentoring programs |
| Children's Court Youth Diversion Service | Diversion | Yes | Cost-benefit analysis using Productivity Commission ROGS data 2023-24 |
| Children's Court Youth Diversion Service | Diversion | Yes | Systematic review of 23 studies across all Australian jurisdictions (2010-2024) |
| Endeavour Foundation Disability & Youth Services | Wraparound Support | Yes | Meta-analysis of 47 Australian mentoring programs |
| Engaging with Pasifika Youth | Cultural Connection | Yes | — |
| Engaging with Pasifika Youth | Cultural Connection | Yes | — |
| Jesuit Social Services Youth Justice Programs VIC | Diversion | Yes | Systematic evidence review and scan of Aboriginal-led programs |
| Jesuit Social Services Youth Justice Programs VIC | Diversion | Yes | Evaluation of intensive post-release support program |
| Jesuit Social Services Youth Justice Programs VIC | Diversion | Yes | Analysis of 37 indicators across 2,148 localities |
| Jesuit Social Services Youth Justice Programs VIC | Diversion | Yes | — |
Funding by LGA
| LGA | Orgs | Total Funding | SEIFA Decile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boroondara | 1 | — | 10 |
Community-Controlled Funding Gap
Non-Indigenous
$10.0B
2 orgs, avg grant $145.3M
Funding by Remoteness
| Remoteness | Orgs | Total | Grants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Major Cities of Australia | 2 | $10.0B | 70 |
Political Connections
No political connection data available for VIC youth justice organisations.
Network Graph
Explore Victoria Youth Justice funding flows
Interactive force-directed graph showing programs, recipients, and evidence links