Sick children languishing without help at watch-houses, prison inspector finds

Qld watch-houses have been deemed not suitable for holding children triggering calls for youths to be moved to dedicated detention centres as quickly as possible.

Accommodation cells in the boys unit at the Cairns watch-house: Picture: Queensland Ombudsman

Children are being locked up in windowless watch-houses for days or weeks without proper access to medical care despite being sick, recently attempting suicide, or being on drugs.

A new report by the state’s prison inspector uncovered cases where a child wasn’t seen by a mental health professional for six days despite attempting suicide just 48 hours earlier while another youth waited eight days before seeing a nurse for a chest infection.

Detention Services Inspector Anthony Reilly said inadequate admission processes at the state’s watch-houses meant medical issues and other risks were being left unaddressed.

“The consequences could be catastrophic,” he said.

Mr Reilly has ruled watch-houses are not suitable for holding children, particularly for long stretches of time, and called for youths to be moved to dedicated detention centres as quickly as possible.

Accommodation cells in the boys unit at the Cairns watch-house. Picture: Queensland Ombudsman

But Queensland also uses its youth prison cells more than any other jurisdiction in the country, with the inspector warning this means it was likely kids will continue to be locked up in watch-houses for the “foreseeable future”.

The report focused on two watch-houses at either ends of the state - one in Cairns and the other in Murgon. It revealed the watch-house in Cairns had no natural light in the cells or common areas while children in Murgon had no access to fresh air.

“We are concerned that the infrastructure of both watch-houses is not suitable for detaining children, especially for longer periods of time,” Mr Reilly said.

A total of 19 recommendations were made and included calls for Queensland Police watch-house staff to undergo compulsory training on how to admit children into the facility and to refer children to mental health staff immediately if deemed at risk of self-harm or suicide.

Queensland Police has also been asked to develop guidelines for how children are fed while in the watch-house, after the inspector found there were no set standards on what food was supplied.

Queensland Police Commissioner Steve Gollschewski. Picture: Tertius Pickard

Police Commissioner Steve Gollschewski, in his response to the report, said “unfortunately” law changes had “forced the QPS to detain an unprecedented number of remanded people in watch-houses for longer periods of time”.

He confirmed a review into this “critical issue” was underway with a focus on “people, operations, and capital”.

“The role and responsibility of QPS in extended custody operations, especially for young people, will be a substantial consideration within this body of work,” Mr Gollschewski said.

Youth Justice Minister Di Farmer said the government - which last year overrode human rights law to hold children in watch-houses indefinitely - didn’t want to see “any children in watch-houses”.

She pointed to the government’s ongoing work to build a dedicated youth remand centre at Wacol and two new “therapeutic” youth prisons - one in the southeast and another in Cairns.