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Prison 'not fit for purpose': Vic govt

Victoria's youth affairs minister says the Parkville youth prison is not fit for purpose despite ongoing works on the facility since November.

Police outside Ravenhall Prison, where inmates are rioting over a smoking ban that takes place tomorrow in Melbourne, Tuesday, June 30, 2015.
Source: AAP

Victoria's youth minister says the Parkville youth detention centre is "not fit for purpose", after a riot at the facility overnight.

A group of up to 20 inmates had broken out of the southern secure unit of the centre and were trying to force their way into another unit about 8pm on Saturday night.

Staff were evacuated and more than 35 police were brought in, including the public order response team and the dog squad, to bring a riot under control at the Melbourne Youth Justice Centre in Parkville.

Youth Affairs minister Jenny Mikakos said the government had been working "around the clock" for months to improve the prison and make it fit for purpose after a similar riot in November.

"The young offenders have always sought to push the envelope and take advantage of the weaknesses in the infrastructure," Ms Mikakos told reporters in Melbourne on Sunday.

The minister says it's too early to make an assessment of the damage but it mostly relates to broken glass and very superficial wreckage.

A number of inmates also broke into the roof cavity of the building despite the minister saying that the government had been working to secure the roof space since a similar incident last year.

"I agree that is completely unacceptable," Ms Mikakos said.

"We're going to go in and fortify all the accommodation to make sure it's fit for purpose."

Victoria Police said on Sunday morning that all those involved in the disturbance were located and accounted for by about 1.20am.

Seven prisoners were removed from the facility and moved to the Grevillea Unit at Barwon Prison and the Malmsbury Youth Setention Centre.

A Department of Health and Human Services spokesman said there were no injuries during the incident and repairs would begin as soon as the police investigation is completed.

The latest disturbance follows a series of incidents at Victorian youth justice facilities, including a riot at Parkville in mid-November in which about 30 inmates trashed their cells, and another disturbance at the Malmsbury detention centre.

Some of the youths involved in those disturbances were transferred to the state's highest security adult prison, Barwon.

The youths remain in the prison's Grevillea unit in single cells despite two courts ordering they be moved to more suitable facilities.

Lawyers challenged the transfer in the Supreme Court, which found the government had acted unlawfully.

The government appealed and lost, with the Court of Appeal ordering them to move the teens, but the government instead rebranded the Grevillea unit as a youth facility.


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