Summary
Aim
BOCSAR releases a series of products aimed to monitor the progress towards Closing the Gap targets 10 and 11.
- Target 10 - Over the two years from June 2023 to June 2025, the number of Aboriginal inmates increased by 675 adults (or up 18.2%), including a rise of 599 Aboriginal men (up 17.7%) and 76 Aboriginal women (up 23.8%). This growth is primarily driven by an increase in remand. In June 2025, 2,010 Aboriginal people were held on remand in NSW, marking a 36.3% increase since June 2023. Interactions involving Aboriginal adults have increased across several stages of the Criminal Justice System. For example, the number of Aboriginal adults proceeded against by police rose by 2.6% (an additional 908 people), those refused bail by the courts increased by 8.1% (541 people), and the number of individuals found guilty grew by 7.5% (2,658 people) compared to the previous year.
- Target 11 – As of June 2025, 140 Aboriginal young people were in detention, representing 59.8% of the total youth detention population. Of these, 70.7% (99 young people) were held on remand. Among Aboriginal young people in custody, the most common offences were break and enter (46 young people), theft (23), and robbery (19). Interestingly, while court finalisation involving Aboriginal young people increased by 6.8% compared to the previous year, the number of Aboriginal young people proceeded against by Police has declined (down 13.0% or 876 fewer young people). The number of Aboriginal young people diverted under the Young Offenders Act also declined, down 8.3% (or 307 fewer young people).
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These two products provide insights into Aboriginal contact with the NSW justice system, with data current to June 2025.
1. Closing the Gap Quarterly Report
This report tracks progress against two key indicators of Aboriginal over-representation in the justice system:
- The number of Aboriginal people in custody
- The number of court appearances involving Aboriginal people
In addition to these primary indicators, the report also examines contributing factors such as police actions, bail decisions and breaches, court outcomes, and reoffending rates. Separate reports are available for: Aboriginal adults (Target 10) and Aboriginal young people (Target 11)
2. Aboriginal Contacts with the Justice System by Region
These Excel-based datasets provide regional-level insights into justice system interactions, disaggregated by: Region and LGA. The data covers youth diversion, court appearances, and custodial sentences. As with the quarterly report, separate datasets are available for Aboriginal adults and Aboriginal young people.