The ACT's Commissioner for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People has said she was not allowed into a youth prison.

In a statement on Wednesday, Commissioner Vanessa Turnbull-Roberts said she was "dismayed" when she was prevented from entering the Bimberi Youth Justice Centre in Kenny, ACT, to provide both "oversight" and meet young Indigenous inmates.

The ACT Director-General has issued an edict whereby Commissioners and oversight bodies can only visit places of detention between 4pm and 5pm on weekdays.

Under section 153A of the ACT's Children And Young People Act 2008, when exercising functions under the Human Rights Commission Act 2005, "the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner or the ombudsman may, at any reasonable time, enter a detention place for the purpose of exercising the person's functions under this Act".

Commissioner Turnbull-Roberts, a lawyer, and Bundjalung Widubul-Wiabul Woman, said she was "gravely concerned" at the efforts to restrict the powers and functions of the Commissioner.

"I have been attending the prison each week to talk with children and young people and to provide oversight of the conditions or detention," she said.

"Attending the prison is crucial to ensure that our children and young people know there is safety attending each week, and if there is a breach of their human, cultural and fundamental rights, that there remains independent oversight, and I can intervene."

It has been confirmed the ACT Police received a detainee's complaint last week relating to an alleged incident late last year.

An ACT Government spokesperson said the 4 pm – 5 pm timeslot is to "ensure proper coordination and oversight" as staff at Bimberi are "busy".

A letter seen by National Indigenous Times sent to Commissioner Turnbull-Roberts from Bimberi management highlighted an Education Directorate on February 25 this year, which requested "all agencies visiting young people in the centre be mindful of interruptions during school time to ensure young people remain as engaged as possible".

Commissioner Turnbull-Roberts said on Thursday the time allocated was not sufficient to adequately investigate claims and support children in the youth prison.

"[Prison management] are now trying to dictate and give us certain time periods that we can come," she said.

"It defeats the purpose of being independent, it defeats the purpose of accountability."

The latest Closing the Gap data revealed the ACT has an average daily Indigenous incarceration rate of 28.6 per 10,000 children, above the national average of 26.1 per 10,000 and more than 14 times more than the rate for non-Indigenous children and young people.

Accounting for the small population of the Territory, this still saw an average of 4.2 Indigenous children and young people in detention in the ACT on an average day in 2023-24.

Commissioner Turnbull-Roberts said it was "vital" operation agencies, including the Commissioner and ombudsman, could operate at "any reasonable time" to know what is happening in youth detention.

"[F]or example, whether education and other services are being provided appropriately or if young people are being locked down during the day, or if there is any use of force or abuse used towards children and young people," she said.

"We must also be able to respond to urgent concerns raised with us by young people.

"Restricting the time that we may visit severely impacts our ability to perform our functions. It raises more questions than it does appropriate solutions."

In response, an ACT Government spokesperson told National Indigenous Times the government had "not prevented" Commissioner Turnbull-Roberts from entering the youth prison.

They said children and young people at Bimberi "have school, therapeutic, medical, and legal appointments to attend".

"We have an obligation to look after them, and this includes making time for oversight visits when it is most appropriate and reasonable,' the spokesperson said.

"Oversight bodies can visit the centre each day. This frequency has not changed."

Australian jurisdictions have been widely condemned by various national and international bodies for their lack of oversight and transparency with authorities visiting places of detention.

Last month, National Indigenous Times revealed Australia's child commissioner Anne Hollonds was prevented from entering youth prisons in Victoria and Western Australia during a national tour in 2023.

Whilst WA officials said an over-consultation of children in a short space of time was the reason for not allowing Commissioner Hollonds to visit, no response was forthcoming from Victoria.

The state's former ombudsman, Deborah Glass, called Victoria "one of the laggard states" last year due to its lack of compliance with the UN's Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture (OPCAT).

The Justice Map reported on Thursday morning there was no mention of OPCAT in Tuesday's budget, and Victoria, NSW and Queensland have refused to implement it - despite Australia being a signatory to the convention.

An offer of a one-off Commonwealth payment to the jurisdictions was rejected by every jurisdiction apart from Tasmania and the ACT and expired late last year.

The Justice Map reported an Attorney-General's Department spokesperson confirmed this funding offer was no longer on the table.

This article was amended on March 27 at 1745 to include comments from the ACT government