As Queensland’s peak body for the community service sector, we welcome the Review as an opportunity to repeat our call for the immediate removal of children from detention in watch houses and assurance that this harmful practice does not continue.

QCOSS acknowledges that the Queensland Police Service (QPS) cannot solely address the systemic failures of the entire youth justice system. However, our members believe QPS procedures and practices can be improved to immediately reduce the number of children who are in contact with the criminal justice system or held in adult watch houses.

We call on the QPS to engage with the community and provide their support for evidence-based programs that address the root causes of youth crime and reduce offending rates.