Revelations security staff at a Tasmanian youth detention centre used a young person's t-shirt to create an improvised spit hood have sparked an outcry from Aboriginal legal and advocacy groups.

Tabled in state Parliament on Tuesday, Tasmanian Custodial Inspector Dr Grant Davies' review, Security contractor transport of young people in custody: safeguarding review 2025, revealed "significant inconsistencies" in the Tasmanian Department for Education, Children and Young People's (DECYP) safeguarding of those in their care.

They included revelations contract security staff supervising the transportation of a young person between Ashley Youth Detention Centre (AYDC) and the Launceston General Hospital covered the young person's head with their own t-shirt, creating an improvised 'spit hood' while their hands were handcuffed behind their back.

Tasmanian Aboriginal Legal Service chief executive Jake Smith said TALS holds "grave concerns" about "systemic issues" highlighted in the review.

"The use of a spit hood or the use of an improvised spit hood is completely unacceptable, it contravenes United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, is dangerous and dehumanising," Mr Smith told National Indigenous Times.

"All children and young people deserve to feel safe and supported, and should be, no matter where they, are and particularly in the care of the Tasmanian Government, its contractors and service providers."

Tasmania, like other Australian jurisdictions, detains First Nations youth at a dramatically higher rate per capita than non-Indigenous youth.

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare data indicates the rate of First Nations youth detained in Tasmania during the June 2024 quarter was 9.1 per 10,000, making the rate ratio for First Nations young people aged 10-17 in detention in the state 3.5 times that of the non-Indigenous rate.

TALS says Aboriginal children and young people currently represent close to 30 per cent of those held at AYDC, labelling the figure a "significant over-representation" of the broader community.

"The report highlighted the improvised use of a spit hood on a young person among other concerns such as concerns including the use of force, the vetting and training of contractors, and the inconsistent therapeutic care for children and youth while being transported," TALS said.

Dr Davies' report confirmed "systemic issues" and "significant inconsistencies" are compromising the safety and wellbeing of children and young people in Tasmanian state care.

The Inspector said despite concerns being raised by his office - along with other oversight bodies such as the Commissioner for Children and Young People over a number of years - private security officers continue to be used to transport children sand young people to and from AYDC, resulting in safeguarding gaps which compromise their safety and well-being.

He said while the Department for Education, Children and Young People (DECYP) have some safeguards to protect children and young people during transport, they did not have systems in place to oversee their use and effectiveness.

"Safeguards can only protect children and young people if they are consistently applied, meaningfully embedded and overseen by robust internal systems as well as independent bodies," Dr Davies said.

Following the report's release, the National Network of Incarcerated & Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls (National Network) condemned "in the strongest possible terms" the ongoing violence inflicted on children and young people at AYDC, including the use of force, physical restraint, and the "shocking deployment" of an improvised spit hood on a child.

The Tasmanian Custodial Inspector's safeguarding review "exposes a system that continues to violate the basic human rights of the children it imprisons," the National Network's Debbie Kilroy said.

"These are not isolated events. These are systemic, predictable, and preventable harms in a system that cannot keep children safe."

The National Network said the Custodial Inspector's findings show nothing has changed, instead saying "the harms have escalated".

"This is torture-adjacent practice. Children deserve care, not suffocation," Ms Kilroy said.

The National Network said private security contractors have no place transporting vulnerable children in state care.

"Despite repeated warnings from the Custodial Inspector and the Commissioner for Children and Young People, the Tasmanian Government continues to outsource responsibility for children's safety to private security firms," Ms Kilroy said.

"This is incompatible with any claim to safe or responsible care."

Despite the incident detailed in the Tasmanian Custodial Inspector's review, Tasmanian Minister for Children and Youth, Jo Palmer, said spit hoods "are prohibited and not in use at Ashley Youth Detention Centre".

"This includes spit hoods of any type - including makeshift spit hoods such as t-shirts or any material that covers the face, and the prohibition extends to use on transports to or from the centre," Ms Palmer said.

Ms Palmer said the DECYP is "actively progressing work to ensure all practices at AYDC and during transport of young people remain aligned with contemporary therapeutic models at all times".

"The Awareness, De-escalation and Protection (ADP) training provided to AYDC Operations staff, including new Youth Workers, now includes a section on how to identify a risk of spitting behaviours and protective measures that can be taken," Ms Palmer said.

"A condensed version of this training has also been provided to workers contracted to provide secure and safe transport of young people in detention."

Ms Palmer confirmed the Youth Justice Act 1997 is currently under a "comprehensive review", which she said "provides an opportunity to consider legislative reinforcement of existing operational practices that prohibit the use of spit hoods of any kind".

Ms Kilroy said every child has the right to be "held in care, not cages".

"Tasmania has been warned for years by children themselves, by oversight bodies, by Aboriginal communities, and by advocates," she said.

"Tasmania must act now. Not one more child should suffer violence in state custody."

The National Network also made their position on forced face coverings clear - that Tasmania must legislate a total ban on spit hoods and improvised spit hoods.

"Tasmania remains one of the only jurisdictions where children can still be subjected to such degrading practices," Ms Kilroy said.

"No child should ever again have their airway restricted as a behaviour-management tool."

The Tasmanian Aboriginal Legal Service backed the National Network's view.

"We stand beside the calls of the Commissioner for Children and Young People and others, that the Tasmanian Parliament move to legislate and ban the use of spit hoods and improvised spit hoods in all circumstances," Mr Smith said.