Tasmania's Commissioner for Children and Young People is calling on the state government to progress the closure of Ashley Youth Detention Centre immediately, ahead of a 2024 deadline.
During the past week, Tasmania's Commission of Inquiry has heard harrowing evidence of child abuse from former detainees and Ashley staff.
Leanne McLean said she understood the centre's closure would take some time and asked the government to urgently establish a rapid response team on the ground at Ashley in the meantime.
"It would include a group with specialist leadership skills and child safety practitioner expertise", she said.
Ms McLean said the team would provide child-centred solutions for care and ensure the safety of detainees. It would also assist with the chronic staff shortage at Ashley.
"On any given day, you wait to find out if there is enough staff available to let the children out of their room," she said.
Ms McLean said she understood there were significant and complex issues impacting on Ashley and efforts to recruit and train new staff.
Alysha, who worked as a clinical practice consultant at Ashley and asked for her last name to be withheld, joined the push for the immediate closure of the detention centre.
"There is nothing justifying keeping it open. Ashley is not safe for children," she said.
Despite the growing calls for the notorious youth detention centre to close it doors, the government says concerns over transitioning detainees make the process difficult.
Premier Jeremy Rockliff said he understood why people wanted the closure of Ashley, but insisted the centre could not be shut early without proper support for people in the youth justice system.
"We need to ensure we have that transition in place," he said.
While the state government announced last September that Ashley would close by 2024, no actual date has been announced.
The detention centre is set to be replaced with two smaller therapeutic care facilities.
