The Ashley Youth Detention Centre is a

Youth detention In criminal justice systems, a youth detention center, known as a juvenile detention center (JDC),Stahl, Dean, Karen Kerchelich, and Ralph De Sola. ''Abbreviations Dictionary''. CRC Press, 20011202. Retrieved 23 August 2010. , . juvenile de ...

centre outside

Deloraine, Tasmania Deloraine is a town on the Meander River, in the central north of Tasmania, Australia. It is 50 km west of Launceston and 52 km south of Devonport along the Bass Highway. It is part of the Meander Valley Council. Deloraine recorded ...

, Australia. It is the only such centre in Tasmania and has a capacity of 51 beds for 10 to 18 year old offenders. The site was originally an experimental

agricultural school Agricultural education is the teaching of agriculture, natural resources, and land management. At higher levels, agricultural education is primarily undertaken to prepare students for employment in the agricultural sector. Classes taught in an ...

, similar to the one at nearby

Hagley Hagley is a large village and civil parish in Worcestershire, England. It is on the boundary of the West Midlands and Worcestershire counties between the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley and Kidderminster. Its estimated population was 7,162 in 20 ...

, that opened in 1914 as the State Farm. The experiment was not successful and the school closed. The site was subdivided in 1922 and set aside for a boy's home. The original 1913 building was retained for accommodation of the boys, and cottages kept for staff. From 1869 youth offenders had been housed in the ''Boys' Training School'' in Hobart. In 1922 the Deloraine school site was reopened as the ''Ashley Home for Boys'', taking over the Hobart facility's function. it was first opened with a focus on farm work as a reform method. It has remained as a youth detention centre since, and became known as the Ashley Youth Detention Centre in 2000. In September 2021, it was announced that Ashley Youth Detention Centre would close within 3 years, and be replaced by 2 new facilities. In 2022, a Tasmanian Government inquiry revealed that 55 workers at Ashley Youth Detention Centre had been accused of

child sex abuse Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in sexual activities with a child (wheth ...

by former child detainees. One former worker was accused of abusing 11 children over the course of 3 decades. Another former staff member was accused of using sexual violence and intimidation, including forced

masturbation Masturbation is the sexual stimulation of one's own genitals for sexual arousal or other sexual pleasure, usually to the point of orgasm. The stimulation may involve hands, fingers, everyday objects, sex toys such as vibrators, or combinatio ...

, against 26 former child detainees. The alleged crimes span from recent years back to the 1970s.

References

Prisons in Tasmania Juvenile detention centres in Australia {{Australia-prison-stub