Children in Adult Courts: PTC’s Opposition to Victoria’s New Youth Justice Plan
Progressive Therapeutic Collective strongly opposes the Victorian Government’s proposal to try children as young as fourteen in adult courts and sentence them under adult frameworks.
This shift is dangerous, unsupported by evidence, and incompatible with trauma-informed, community-led youth justice.
As a national mental health service based in Victoria, we work every day with children, young people, and families who are navigating trauma, discrimination, unstable housing, disability, racism, and systemic inequality. We know what helps young people stabilise and heal. This reform moves in the opposite direction.