Adults and young people in ACT detention centres appear to have increased access to condoms and lubricants according to new data from Canberra Health Services.
Financial year figures released by Justice Health Services (JHS) show it ordered almost 600 more condoms and nearly 1300 more lubricant sachets in 2025-26 compared to the previous year.
The figures show the collective quantity of products ordered by JHS which operates within Alexander Maconochie Centre (AMC) and the Bimberi Youth Justice Centre (BYJC).
JHS manager, Bruno Aloisi, said the service did not track condoms and lubricant sachets supplied to each facility and could not provide a breakdown of quantities.
"JHS have no restrictions on the number of condoms and lubricants that detained people and young people can access," Mr Aloisi said.
Mr Aloisi said condoms and lubricants were also included in discharge packs provided to detained adults and young people at the time of release.
An ACT government spokeswoman said there was no policy prohibiting consensual sexual or intimate encounters between AMC detainees and products associated with sexual health and wellbeing were an important part of maintaining the health of detained people.
The spokeswoman said intimate or sexual activity was not allowed at Bimberi.
It is understood a 2019 corrections management policy related to hygiene states ACT detainees must have access to condoms or dental dams to protect them against sexually transmitted infections.
"There is zero tolerance for sexual coercion, sexual violence or any form of exploitation at the AMC and Bimberi Youth Justice Centre," the spokeswoman said.
The JHS data, released after a freedom of information request, follows the government's recently announced sexual coercion and violence strategy aiming to track and respond to sexual harm reported inside the AMC.
The strategy was developed because of a 2022 recommendation from the Office of the Inspector of Custodial Services which in its most recent review found detainees were increasingly reporting incidents of sexual harm in custody.
The percentage of detainees reporting they were "Never" harassed or assaulted dropped from 81 per cent in 2019 to 75 per cent in 2022.
By 2025, just over half (54 per cent) said they had never been sexually harassed, and 71 per cent said they had never been sexually assaulted.
Additionally, internal emails released following a freedom of information request for reports of romantic, sexual or inappropriate relationships between staff and detainees revealed two such complaints.
In November 2023, the ACT Corrective Services (ACTCS) integrity unit managed a complaint alleging such contact between an employee and "a current ACTCS client".
In July 2025, documents show the integrity unit requested a new investigation relating to an ACTCS employee.
ACT's custodial services inspector Rebecca Minty said free access to condoms and lubricants was an important harm-minimisation measure and her office's recommendation related to stigma-free access rather than the provision of condoms.
"We want them freely available for detained people to use as they wish," Ms Minty said.
"Different prisons will have different rules and cultures around those things. I think from our point of view, we see it as a right and a standard that [detainees] have access to products that are freely available in the community to keep them safe."
The rise in orders in 2025-26 follows a significant decline recorded in previous years when condom orders fell to about 1600 in 2024-25 and just over 430 lubricant sachets in 2023-24.
Even with the reported increase, the number of orders remains lower than what Justice Health Services recorded in 2022-23.
The ACT government spokeswoman said order quantities could vary from year to year based on order timing and available stock.
