Northern Territory

When comparing the youth justice system in the Northern Territory (NT) to those in other countries, several key differences emerge. For example, the age of criminal responsibility in the Northern Territory is 10 years old, which is one of the youngest in the world. In contrast, many European countries set the age of criminal responsibility at 14 or higher. The United Nations has recommended that the minimum age of criminal responsibility should be at least 12 years old.

The Northern Territory (NT) is a relatively small jurisdiction by population so the incarceration rate for children fluctuates significantly.  Over the longer term, however, it has had some of the highest rates of detention use in the world.  https://corrections.nt.gov.au/youth-justice/youth-detention-census

Indigenous Overrepresentation

One of the most pressing issues within the NT youth justice system is the overrepresentation of Indigenous youth.  This disparity has meant that Indigenous children, who are 26 times more likely to be incarcerated than their non-Indigenous peers.  Rates fluctuate but sometimes there are only a handful of non-Indigenous children incarcerated in the NT. https://corrections.nt.gov.au/youth-justice/youth-detention-census

Rehabilitation and Community Safety

Youth detention centres in the NT focus on rehabilitating young offenders and keeping the community safe. These centres provide various programs and services aimed at addressing the underlying issues that contribute to youth offending and helping young people reintegrate into society 3. However, the effectiveness of these programs in reducing recidivism among Indigenous youth remains a challenge.

1: Amnesty International Australia. (2022). The overrepresentation problem: First Nations kids are 26 times more likely to be incarcerated than their classmates.

2: Griffith University. (2025). Reducing Indigenous over-representation.

3: Northern Territory Department of Corrections. (2025). Youth Justice.

Age of Criminal Responsibility: 10 years - Schedule 1 of the Criminal Code Act (1983) file:///C:/Users/derek/AppData/Local/Temp/MicrosoftEdgeDownloads/6a2c07c3-0f23-48f7-978e-9208572a1a13/serial%202_ES_Criminal%20Code%20Amendment%20Bill%202024%20pdf.pdf

Utilisation of detention centres: 54.2%

https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pc.gov.au%2Fongoing%2Freport-on-government-services%2F2025%2Fcommunity-services%2Fyouth-justice%2Frogs-2025-partf-section17-youth-justice-data-tables.xlsx&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK

The Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory published its report in 2017. Despite not investigating children's courts or police the final report uncovers systemic failures and makes recomendations for improvements to laws, policies and practices in the NT.

The Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory | Royal Commissions

Incarceration rate: 22 per 10,000 children in detention Youth justice in Australia 2023–24, Northern Territory - Australian Institute of Health and Welfare