First Nations people make up 3.3% of the general population but 33% of people in prison are First Nations people. In some jurisdictions, this is significantly higher. In the Northern Territory, First Nations people make up 88% of incarcerated adults and in Western Australia, 43% of adults in prison are First Nations people.

Most children who enter the youth justice system (including children as young as 10) come from backgrounds where they have already experienced disadvantage and trauma, with a significant number also having experienced out of home care. Prison increases disadvantage and disconnection. Children in the youth justice system need family and community support, education, and life opportunities, not punishment that compounds disconnection and disadvantage.

In Australia the vast majority of incarcerated women have themselves survived crime in the form gendered violence. This includes many women who have survived family and domestic violence.

More than half of all adults entering prison report being diagnosed by a health professional with a mental health condition. 39% of people in prison have a disability or long-term health condition that impacts their daily life. People with cognitive impairment are also over-represented. The numbers of people in prison who have some form of cognitive impairment vary considerably but estimates sit between 15% and 33%. This is even higher for children. A 2018 study by the Telethon Kids Institute and the University of Western Australia showed 9 out of 10 children who were incarcerated in WA had some form of neuro-disability.

The cost of adult incarceration in Australia is more than $6.3 billion per annum. The cost of keeping someone in prison each year is approximately $147,890.

The majority of people incarcerated in Australia come from circumstances where they have experienced multiple and intersecting disadvantages.

Victims of crime frequently call for better support alongside better access to justice. Victims of crime also often advocate for processes and responses that genuinely address the causes of crime, and also ensure that people who have committed crime are held accountable for their actions.

61% of all people in prison in Australia have been in prison before. In 2022-23, 43% of people released from prison in Australia returned to prison within two years.

In order to break the cycle of incarceration, people need access to support services that address the drivers of contact with the criminal justice system. People need access to post-release support, help to address homelessness, and access to education, alcohol and other treatment, and genuine work opportunities.