The situation at the Banksia Hill youth detention centre in Perth has "never been as bad as it currently is", according to a former guard who left the facility last year.
In July, Banksia Hill received national attention after 17 teenagers were temporarily relocated from the juvenile detention centre to the maximum security Casuarina Prison following a reported "escalation in extreme behaviour".
On August 5, the West Australian government said moving "violent young offenders", some as young as 14, out of WA's only youth detention centre to a bespoke unit at the adult prison had "worked", and Banksia Hill was now a "much better environment".
But former custodial officer Alex (whose name we've changed to protect his identity) has told The Drum that according to his former colleagues, staffing issues have led to rolling lockdowns at the facility, putting intense pressure on both the children detained, and the guards employed there.
Staffing crisis
According to Alex, because they don't have enough staff to run it safely, the facility goes into rolling lockdowns.
"They utilise staff in certain units, get the boys up for a certain amount of time, then they have to lock them down and move onto another unit and do the same thing," he says.
"For the boys it's terrible. They've been locked down for the night-time period, then they're up for maybe one or two hours before they have to go back to their cell. And that obviously increases the angst and the agitation of the detainees."
Megan Krakouer is project director of the National Suicide Prevention & Trauma Recovery Project and a restorative justice advocate. In the past she's worked inside Banksia Hill offering care to detainees.
She describes the situation there as a "humanitarian crisis".
"The staffing levels are particularly bad," she says.
She says it's wrong for the government to say everything is fine: "Ask the kids, ask their families. The rolling lockdowns are still ongoing."
In April, the WA government announced $25.1 million of funding for Banksia Hill, one day before the release of a report that labelled the facility "not fit for purpose".
That report by the Office of the Inspector of Custodial Services found staff shortages had resulted in "rolling lockdowns".
According to Alex, staffing remains a "revolving door", with "a lot of experienced officers leaving in the last year".
According to the WA Department of Justice, daily staffing at Banksia Hill has improved since the commencement of nearly 50 new probationary officers in April.
A spokesperson said that since the 17 detainees were moved to Casuarina Prison, rolling lockdowns have become the exception and the average out-of-cell time in August is almost eight hours.
Self-harm and suicide
However, there are continuing concerns among advocates over the welfare of detainees at both facilities.
Since the 17 teenagers were relocated from Banksia Hill to the Casuarina maximum security prison, there have been at least 13 incidents of self-harm and three suicide attempts among that group.
This information was revealed in the WA Parliament following a question from Greens MP Brad Pettitt to the state government.
The government also revealed that despite claims Banksia Hill was now a "better environment", there had been 36 incidents of self-harm and one suicide attempt at the facility in July, and in just the first eight days of August, a further three self-harm incidents.
Former custodial officer Alex says that "the system is broken and it needs to be changed", and while there is some mental health support available to detainees at Banksia Hill, many of them need to be in a "better supported mental health environment".
"You've got children who may have been beaten by their mother and father, kids that have left home because there might be a step-dad that's come along and wants to touch them up. Wards of the state that have been bounced from house to house," he says.
Ms Krakouer has worked closely with Banksia Hill detainees and their families.
She says that "some of them are children with so much unaddressed trauma, and they haven't received the psychological care they need".
"We're talking about horrific circumstances," she says.
"They need to send in caregivers who can work with these children after they leave prison. It will save lives."
Alex agrees, claiming that often detainees go straight back to the environment they've been pulled out of, even if it's not safe for them.
"There's no through-care system. I've heard stories of detainees being picked up in the car park and offered drugs straight away," he says.
"They're right back on the slippery slope."
The WA Department of Justice says all young people in custody have a diverse range of supports available, including a mental health nurse and psychiatrist.
Support for guards
Reflecting on his four years at Banksia, Alex says like many custodial officers, he got into the job to make a positive difference.
But he left after years of stress that manifested in physical ailments.
"It wasn't until I left that these things cleared up by themselves," he says.
He adds that during his time at Banksia Hill he went to work every day expecting to be assaulted.
"If I was expecting it, I was in a sense ready for it, and I could act accordingly," he says.
He says he's worried that the guards at Banksia Hill aren't being properly supported and are being demonised in the media.
The WA Department of Justice says youth custodial staff routinely face a challenging environment, and their health and wellbeing is a top priority.
Justice system
According to Alex, the officers at Banksia Hill all have the interests of the juveniles at heart.
"You could not do this job just to earn money. It's not easy, it's not that kind of job," he says.
He says that without proper support, custodial officers will continue to leave or be unable to do their jobs properly, all of which negatively impacts the children detained at Banksia Hill.
"We talk about justice and the justice system — it's a legal system, because it's about dotting i's and crossing t's. It's not about getting justice."
