Report: What sparked the riot at the Cleveland Youth Detention

SEE THE VIDEO: A damning report has finally revealed what sparked a riot at the Cleveland Youth Detention Centre.

A riot at Cleveland Youth Detention Centre left several people injured. Picture: DOMANII CAMERON

TWO of the children selected to play a rugby league match which preceded a riot at the Cleveland Youth Detention Centre should never have been named on the team as they posed too high a risk.

The State Government’s report into the riot at Cleveland released today states that there was not enough planning ahead of the game and a decision to tell two young offenders that they could not play just before kick-off was flawed.

Chief Inspector Samay Zhouand’s report states a number of the young offenders playing the game “posed an unacceptable and imminent risk of harm to others”.

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It also found that the decision to inform the two young offenders that they could not play just prior to the game was the catalyst for “two high risk activities occurring at the same time, weakening the centre’s capacity to safely respond to the incidents which subsequently occurred”.

Although the review found the planning and the way staff went about cancelling the game was flawed, it did find that cancelling the game was the appropriate given the risks.

The report highlights the failings that led up the riot on November 10, but also the failings in the months and years before, with staff not adequately trained to use personal protective equipment and the lack of a plan for if a riot would occur.

The review also found that staff were not properly trained and there was not enough personal protection equipment for all staff, which “weakened the incident response, further jeopardising the safety and security of the centre, the young people in the incident and the responding staff”.

The review recommended that a clear structure be put in place for when these types of incidents take place, which would detail when and under what circumstances to contact police, with the findings suggesting centre management waited too long to get police involved.

Mr Zhouand concluded that staff involved in the November 10 riot needed “immediate attention paid to the provision of basic emotional first aid, as well as longer term wellbeing support”.

The State Government also released an independent report into Youth Detention in Queensland, which delved into allegations of mistreatment of young offenders.

Kathrym McMillan QC and Professor Megan Davis prepared the report, with 83 recommendations ranging from staff uniforms through to the transitioning of 17-year-olds back to youth detention.

The Labor Government has accepted all of the 83 recommendations brought forward by the report.

The review was unable to conclude on whether or not there was systemic mistreatment of young people in youth detention centres in Queensland.

“The review is unable to form any concluded view as to whether there is or is not systemic mistreatment of young people in Queensland youth detention centres,” the report reads.

“The review finds that the incidents reviewed are not sufficient to support a finding that there is systemic mistreatment of young people in CYDC (Cleveland Youth Detention Centre).

“However, the review is unable to conclude that there is no systemic mistreatment of young people in Queensland youth detention centres.”

Although the report could not come to any conclusion about systemic mistreatment across the two youth detention centres, it did find some “concerning systemic mistreatment indicators”.

More in tomorrow’s Townsville Bulletin.

Originally published as Report: What sparked the riot at the Cleveland Youth Detention