Department of Corrections

Youth detention

We operate 2 youth centres in the Northern Territory (NT).

These centres accommodate young people who are on remand or have been sentenced.

This includes:

We are making changes to our youth justice system and centres to better meet the needs of young people in youth detention, staff and visitors.

We work under a model of care that guides how staff and others care for young people in our centres.

We also compile daily and quarterly data on the number of people in our youth justice centres in Darwin and Alice Springs through the youth detention census.

Join our team

We’re looking for new youth justice officers to join our team.

Youth justice officers support and encourage the social development and improve the welfare of children and young people in our centres.

A youth justice officer is someone who:

  • is responsible for the safety, security, care, wellbeing and developmental needs of young people in custody
  • works with young people in challenging situations by diffusing and managing conflict
  • is a positive role model for young people
  • can work with young people from Aboriginal or diverse cultural backgrounds and is culturally competent.

For more information about the role, read the fact sheet DOCX (59.4 KB).

We have full-time and casual youth justice officer positions available. To find out more, go to the NT Government's Employee Opportunities website and search for ‘youth justice officer’.

Darwin

Construction is underway for a new youth dentention centre in Darwin at a greenfield site at 498 Taylor Road, Holtze.

It will replace the Don Dale Youth Detention Centre and

  • responds to the recommendations made in 2017 by the Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the NT
  • will have facilities that are secure, safe, robust and durable
  • will meet the therapeutic and rehabilitative needs of young people.

Scheduled completion is end of 2024.

Read more about the Don Dale Youth Detention Centre on the Northern Territory Government website.

Alice Springs

Redevelopment of the existing Alice Springs Youth Justice Centre is now complete.

Refurbishments improve the:

  • general amenity, security and safety for young people and staff
  • centre's ability to deliver therapeutic programs aimed at rehabilitating young people.

Completion was finalised in April 2024.

Read more about the Alice Springs Youth Detention Centre on the Northern Territory Government website.