Future use of Ashley Youth Detention Centre

Government’s decision on the future use of the AYDC

On Tuesday 26 May 2026, the Hon Guy Barnett MP, Deputy Premier and Minister for Justice, Corrections and Rehabilitation announced the Government’s intention to repurpose the Ashley Youth Detention Centre site into a minimum-security adult prison and agriculture-based prisoner rehabilitation and training facility.

The transfer will occur after the site is vacated by the Department for Education, Children and Young People.

The Government has taken into account feedback received during the previous community consultation phase, which indicated that any future correctional use of the AYDC site should focus on minimum-security accommodation and operate under a rehabilitation focused model, similar to the former Hayes Prison Farm, with an emphasis on structured work, skills development, and reintegration.

The repurposed facility is expected to accommodate approximately 40‑minimum-security prisoners and be contained entirely within the current AYDC footprint, with the option to use the farmland attached to the site for farm and agriculture-based training.

Establishing an additional adult correctional facility in northern Tasmania will broaden recruitment opportunities for the TPS, help address current correctional officer workforce pressures, and create new career pathways for staff based in the north.

Repurposing the existing AYDC facilities presents a unique opportunity for the Tasmanian Prison Service to accommodate minimum-security prisoners in a setting focused on rehabilitation and education. This decision builds on our Government’s ongoing commitment to greater rehabilitation opportunities for offenders.

The Government has already made significant investments to the AYDC facility and site. Repurposing the facility is a practical and responsible pathway to ensuring the significant investment already made in the AYDC site continues to deliver value for Tasmanians, while strengthening our corrections system more broadly.

It is important to note that the AYDC will not transfer to the Department of Justice, until the youth facility is closed and a repurposing project can be delivered on the existing infrastructure at the site.

A new youth justice facility at Pontville (new facility) is being designed to deliver a child-centred and therapeutic model of care that addresses the individual needs and risk factors of young offenders, while keeping the community safe.

Young people in the new facility will have access to education, skills pathways and services that will support them to change their lives and avoid re-offending when they return to the community, which is better for community safety.

Learn more about the new Youth Justice Facility here.

The Government remains committed to delivering on the recommendations of the CoI regarding AYDC, to establish a memorial in consultation with the victim-survivors, and ensuring that no former detainee would be detained in a prison facility at the AYDC site, other than with their consent and agreement.