Complaints

Statistics about Children's Rights

Education

25/03/2025

In Australia, most children enjoy their right to education, healthcare, and a good standard of living. Most live in safe, caring homes and communities where they can grow and develop, play and have fun, be involved in activities, and look forward to the future. But some children need more support to enjoy all their rights and freedoms.

Children and their caregivers tell us, and national data shows us, that there is more work to be done to support children in the areas of disability, mental health, safety (including online safety), housing, and child justice, among others.

Demographics

  • There are 5.8 million children aged under 18 in Australia. That’s almost 1 in 5 people in Australia.[1]

Mental health

  • 1 in 3 children aged 12-17 report high or very high levels of mental distress.[2]

Where and how children are living

  • Over 45,000 children are in out-of-home care.[3]
  • Over 40% of children in out-of-home care are First Nations.[4]

Safety

  • People in Australia who report that as a child they experienced:
    • exposure to domestic violence: 40%
    • physical abuse: 32%
    • emotional abuse: 31%
    • sexual abuse: 29%
    • neglect: 9%[5]
  • Young women reported substantially higher rates of child sexual abuse and higher rates of neglect and emotional abuse than young men.[6]
  • 44% of 12 – 17 year olds in Australia reported having a negative online experience in the last 6 months.[7]
    • 30% were contacted by a stranger or someone they didn’t know
    • 15% received threats or abuse online[8]

Disability

  • Over 1 in 5 students in Australian schools received an educational adjustment due to a disability.[9]

Standard of living

  • 1 in 6 children live in poverty[10] and on Census night in 2021, nearly 29,000 children were experiencing homelessness.[11]

Contact with the criminal justice system

  • In most parts of Australia, the minimum age of criminal responsibility is 10 years.[12] The United Nations recommends that it be at least 14 years.[13]
  • On an average day in Australia in 2022-23, over 4,500 children were under youth justice supervision. 82% were supervised in the community, and 18% were in detention.[14]

Young peoples’ future and the environment

  • Over 1 in 2 young people report feeling fearful about their future due to climate change.[15]

References

[1] Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2023). 31010do002 National, state and territory population. Data downloads – Data cubes. [Sheet: Population by age and sex – national. Table: Estimated resident population by age and sex at June 30 2023].

[2] Headspace. (2020). Insights: youth mental health and wellbeing over time. Headspace National Youth Mental Health Survey 2020, p. 2. 1 in 3 = 34%

[3] Productivity Commission. (2024). Report on Government Services 2024: Child protection services 2022 – 2023. [Sheet: Child protection services data tables. Tab: 16A.7]. (original figure: 45,356)

[4] Productivity Commission. (2023). Closing the Gap Annual Data Compilation Report July 2023, p. 67.

[5] Haslam, D., Mathews, B., Pacella, R., Scott, J.G., Finkelhor, D., Higgins, D.J., Meinck, F., Erskine, H.E., Thomas, H.J., Lawrence, D., & Malacova, E. (2023). The prevalence and impact of child maltreatment in Australia: Findings from the Australian Child Maltreatment Study: Brief Report. Australian Child Maltreatment Study, Queensland University of Technology, p. 14.

[6] Haslam, D., Mathews, B., Pacella, R., Scott, J.G., Finkelhor, D., Higgins, D.J., Meinck, F., Erskine, H.E., Thomas, H.J., Lawrence, D., & Malacova, E. (2023). p. 21.

[7] eSafety Commissioner. (2021). The digital lives of Aussie teens, p. 11. 

[8] eSafety Commissioner. (2021). The digital lives of Aussie teens, p. 11. 

[9] Productivity Commission. (2024). Report on Government Services 2023: School education. [Sheet: School education data tables. Tab: 4A.7]. 
Educational adjustments are actions taken to enable a student with disability to participate in education on the same basis as other students. 
The Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability. (2020, February 19). What’s reasonable?, Australian Government & Education Services Australia.

[10] Bradbury, B., Davidson, P., & Wong, M. (2023). Poverty in Australia 2023: Who is affected, Poverty and Inequality Partnership Report no. 20. Australian Council of Social Service & UNSW Sydney, p. 9. 16% = 761,000.

[11] Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2024, May 1). Estimating Homelessness: Census. [Tab: Age].

[12] Davis, C. (2022, June 17). The minimum age of criminal responsibility in Australia: a quick guide. Parliament of Australia.

[13] OHCHR. (2018). General Comment No. 24 (201x), replacing General Comment No. 10 (2007) Children’s rights in juvenile justice, p. 9

[14] Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2023). Youth justice in Australia 2021-22, p. 6. Youth justice supervision means that a young person is supervised by a youth justice agency, under a legal order.

[15] Headspace. (2023). Young people show resilience in the face of eco-anxiety [Fact sheet].

Visual representation of facts from the Children’s Rights fact sheet. The contents of the facts depicted in these graphics are shared on this page in text format.
Visual representation of facts from the Children’s Rights fact sheet. The contents of the facts depicted in these graphics are shared on this page in text format.

Downloads

Suggested citation

Australian Human Rights Commission. (2025). Stats & Facts: Children’s Rights.