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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
Politics
Ben Smee

Cairns watch house worker sounds alarm over ‘massive deterioration’ in children’s physical and mental health

Cairns Mental Health Police Guardian Australia QPS Queensland
A street view of the Cairns Courthouse
A Cairns watch house worker has detailed serious concerns for children who have been kept in the adult lockup for extended periods. Photograph: Dan Peled/AAP

A child locked in the Cairns police watch house is self-harming by banging his head against the cell walls.

Anonymised notes about more than a dozen children in the far north Queensland watch house last week, seen by Guardian Australia, detail concerns about sickness spreading in the overcrowded cells, injuries and serious security incidents.

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