Department of Youth Justice, Employment, Small Business and Training
Queensland Budget 2023-24 · Palaszczuk Government
As at budget day (2023-06-13)
Key service areas
Budget initiatives
Continuation and expansion of the youth co-responder model, where youth justice workers and police engage with high-risk young people, including those on bail or subject to electronic monitoring, to break the cycle of youth crime.
Teams of youth workers and police engage with high-risk young people to divert them from offending and break the cycle of youth crime, part of the government's $446.4 million community safety package.
General Government operating, $96.2M over 4 years and $17.9M per annum ongoing across Youth Justice ($78.1M) and Police ($17.8M). The $29.9M in 2023-24 combines the Youth Justice ($24.459M) and Police ($5.447M) line items.
Funding to progress construction of an 80-bed youth detention centre at Woodford and a new centre near Cairns, plus interim capacity measures and regional response teams for young people in watchhouses.
New youth detention centres at Woodford and near Cairns, plus interim measures, increase capacity to detain young offenders and reduce the number held in police watchhouses.
General Government, total $89.7M over 3 years ($78.1M new funding + $11.6M existing) to address youth detention capacity. The $14.7M is the 2023-24 operating line; capital for Woodford construction is subject to commercial negotiation.
Additional funding to address non-discretionary budget pressures in existing youth detention centres and critical upgrade requirements.
Funding keeps existing youth detention centres operating safely and addresses critical upgrade needs.
General Government, total $122.4M over 5 years and $31M per annum ongoing (operating $109.9M + capital $12.5M). The $22.2M in 2023-24 combines operating ($20.222M) and capital ($2M) line items.
Funding to continue and expand service responses that reduce the frequency and severity of youth offending by addressing risk and enhancing young people's and families' capacity for pro-social decision making.
Intensive case management works with high-risk young people and their families to reduce reoffending and address the underlying causes of youth crime.
General Government operating, $30.1M over 4 years and $3.1M per annum ongoing
Funding for location-specific diversionary responses to youth crime, including after-hours support, cultural mentoring, bridging to flexi-school and alternative activities for at-risk young people.
Diversion programs steer at-risk young people away from crime with mentoring, after-hours support and alternative activities tailored to local areas.
General Government operating, $29.4M over 4 years and $7.4M per annum ongoing
Funding to continue and expand intensive support to high-risk young people on bail and their families, including those subject to electronic monitoring, to aid compliance with bail.
Intensive bail support helps high-risk young people on bail comply with their conditions and stay out of custody.
General Government operating, $25.4M over 4 years and $5.3M per annum ongoing
A package of measures to improve women's economic participation and outcomes, supporting women in male-dominated industries, women in business and innovation, and disadvantaged and vulnerable women.
A $16.3 million package supports women into trades and male-dominated industries, helps female founders grow businesses, and assists disadvantaged women into work.
General Government operating, $16.3M over 4 years across multiple agencies. The $6.4M is the 2023-24 whole-of-package figure from BP4 Table 1.2.
A package of initiatives under the Good people. Good jobs: Queensland Workforce Strategy 2022-2032, including the Workforce Connect Fund, Industry Workforce Advisors, micro-credentialing, diverse workforce programs and apprenticeship support.
More than $70 million in workforce initiatives helps Queenslanders gain skills and jobs, including apprentices, migrants, women and rural and remote communities, within over $1.2 billion in skills and training in 2023-24.
General Government operating, over $70M for new initiatives in the 2022-2025 Action Plan, spread across multiple agencies and line items. The budget invests more than $1.2 billion in skills and training in 2023-24 overall.
A package of initiatives to support the mental health and wellness of small business owners.
Funding supports the mental health and wellbeing of small business owners, who often work under significant stress.
General Government operating, $6.8M over 3 years
Funding to upgrade and modernise existing government Vocational Education and Training information and communication technology systems.
Modernising TAFE and training IT systems makes it easier for students to enrol in and complete vocational training.
General Government operating, $29.8M over 3 years
Funding to expand TAFE Queensland's Great Barrier Reef International Marine College in Cairns, including a new workshop, classrooms, staff facilities and a boat shed.
Expanding the marine college in Cairns gives students more training facilities for maritime careers in Far North Queensland.
Capital, $16M over 2 years
Forward estimates
Year-by-year allocations for 7 measures with published forward profiles.
| Measure | 2022-23 | 2023-24 | 2024-25 | 2025-26 | 2026-27 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Youth Justice Intensive Case Management | — | $10.7M | $13.3M | $3M | $3.1M | $30.1M |
| Youth Justice Diversion | — | $7.3M | $7.3M | $7.4M | $7.4M | $29.4M |
| Youth Justice Intensive Bail Initiative | — | $6.7M | $8.1M | $5.3M | $5.3M | $25.4M |
| Women's Economic Security Package | — | $6.4M | $7.6M | $1.6M | $0.7M | $16.3M |
| Small Business Support and Wellness Package | $2.3M | $3M | $1.5M | — | — | $6.8M |
| Vocational Education and Training Modernisation | — | $8.8M | $15.9M | $5M | — | $29.8M |
| Great Barrier Reef International Marine College Expansion | — | $8M | $8M | — | — | $16.0M |
| Total | $2.3M | $50.9M | $61.7M | $22.3M | $16.5M | $153.7M |
Performance metrics
Service standards from the Service Delivery Statement. Targets and actuals as published.
| Metric | Prior target | Actual | Target |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 2024-25 | 2025-26 | |
| Percentage of orders supervised in the community that are successfully completed — All young offenders | 87% | 82% | 85% |
| Youth detention centre utilisation rate | 92% | 97% | 99% |
| Cost per young offender supervised in the community per day | — | New | $363.71 |
| Overall customer satisfaction with employment programs | 90% | 95% | 90% |
| Percentage of new or existing businesses reporting increased capability (including digital) as a direct result of participation in small business grant programs | 98% | 99% | 98% |
| Proportion of all attempted competencies successfully completed | 93% | 90.8% | 93% |
| Number of completions — Apprenticeships | 11,500 | 9,800 | 11,500 |
| Average cost per competency successfully completed | $595 | $894 | $690 |
Source: Service Delivery Statement. Prior target and actual are for 2024-25; target is for 2025-26.
Source document
Service Delivery Statement — Department of Youth Justice, Employment, Small Business and Training (PDF)Last updated: 2026-06-21. Factual information from published budget documents.