Thursday 30 July 2026 – for immediate release
Victoria needs urgent, evidence-based action to keep younger children out of the criminal justice system and support a safer community. This is a key theme of With us, not against us: A systemic inquiry to learn from the experiences of children who entered the criminal justice system before 14, tabled in the Parliament of Victoria today by the Commission for Children and Young People.
‘If this inquiry tells us anything, it is that we need to listen to children early on, to look at their lives before they ever become involved in the criminal justice system. The stories of the children in this report show the significant harms they experienced before they offended that could and should have been addressed through stronger prevention and early intervention,’ said Tracy Beaton, Victoria’s Principal Commissioner for Children and Young People, today.
The findings are stark. The 26 children in the inquiry’s file review were collectively the subject of 250 Child Protection reports raising concerns for their safety and wellbeing. Most were the subject of reports before turning five. Family violence was the most commonly identified harm. Eighty-eight percent of the children lived with disability and most were chronically absent from school.
Once in contact with the criminal justice system, children and young people were exposed to further harms, undermining their capacity for positive changes and increasing the likelihood of further offending.
Despite some investment and progress towards early intervention in Victoria, Commissioner Beaton said the State’s response remained an overwhelmingly reactive one that was damaging children without an evidence base to show it actually worked to reduce youth crime.
‘Safer communities depend on acting earlier and supporting children’s wellbeing. That means stronger efforts to keep children connected with education and recreation, help for families when they need it, and tailored and therapeutic supports for children experiencing family violence and other harms.
‘Children under 14 make up around one per cent of ‘unique alleged offenders’ recorded in police data. For the small number of children under 14 who offend, the evidence is now overwhelming that we need an alternative response to the criminal justice system. That alternative should be one that keeps them safe and treats them as children. A response informed by their developmental needs, supports their wellbeing and connection, and addresses the root causes of harmful behaviour is our best chance to avoid further offending,’ Commissioner Beaton said.
‘As we work to prevent children entering the system, we must also ensure that the children who are placed in youth justice facilities have access to services that support rehabilitation. Making sure they are protected from the harms within that system is part of achieving a safer community,’ Commissioner Beaton said.
Consistent with previous inquiries, the inquiry found the criminal justice system disproportionately targets Aboriginal children and children from multicultural backgrounds, who are starkly overrepresented in the youth justice system.
‘We know the majority of children in our file review come from communities who experience racism and marginalisation. We all have a responsibility to call out systemic racism and counter the harmful stereotypes so often applied to these children,’ said Dallas Widdicombe, Commissioner for Aboriginal Children and Young People, today.
‘This inquiry presents recommendations on how we can start showing up for children earlier, listening to the evidence about what works, and listening to the stories of children themselves. Aboriginal children are proud of their culture, families, and communities, and their cultural pride is a source of strength, connection and safety.
‘We know that Aboriginal children are safer when they are connected with Aboriginal organisations who support them to thrive in their communities, far away from the criminal justice system,’ Commissioner Widdicombe said.
As the Commission Youth Council notes in the report: ‘We know too often that children and young people are defined by the decisions they make at a crossroads very early in their lives. People focus on the offence, the behaviour, or the mistake, but rarely stop to ask what happened early in our childhood.’
‘We owe children solutions that work, not punishments that prime them to start or keep offending,’ Commissioner Beaton said.
‘It is at this vital stage in their young lives that our obligation as adults is most urgent. We have the opportunity to work with a small number of children to make a massive difference in their lives and for the community,’ Commissioner Beaton concluded.
The With us, not against us inquiry's 15 recommendations include:
- placing children’s experiences and voices at the centre of solutions (Recommendation 1)
- improving outcomes for children through collective systems action (Recommendation 2)
- strengthening coordination of responses for the children involved in both the child protection and youth justice systems (Recommendation 3)
- examining the feasibility of an alternative first-responder model for children instead of police (Recommendation 9)
- evaluating and expanding the current pilot for children aged 10–11 years at risk of justice engagement for high-harm behaviours (Recommendation 10)
- raising the age of criminal responsibility to 14, without exceptions (Recommendation 12).
The report embeds the voices and experiences of children, including through five stories of children who were involved with the criminal justice system before the age of 14.
Download the With us, not against us inquiry report (PDF, 3.4MB).
Watch the animation of Liam’s story.
For interview:
Tracy Beaton
Principal Commissioner for Children and Young People
Dallas Widdicombe
Commissioner for Aboriginal Children and Young People
Media contact:
Darren Lewin-Hill
0437 046 360
Senior Communications & Media Adviser
Commission for Children and Young People