Alice Springs crime falling as CLP Government delivers new women's prison

20 February 2026

• Crime continues to fall in Alice Springs, with total offences down 43% and house break-ins down 79% when comparing December 2025 to December 2024.
   
• Opening of the new Alice Spring's women's prison with capacity of 95 beds, ensuring women are housed in a dedicated facility separate from men for the first time. 
   
• This investment strengthens rehabilitation and reduces reoffending, supporting the Crime Reduction Strategy and delivering safer communities across the Territory.

Crime is continuing to fall in Alice Springs, with the latest figures showing significant reductions across key offence categories as the Finocchiaro CLP Government delivers critical corrections infrastructure to support long-term community safety. 

These strong results come as the government delivers on their commitment to reform the Territory's correctional system, announcing today the opening of the first-ever Alice Spring's dedicated women's prison, with 95-bed capacity. 

Minister for Corrections Gerard Maley said the facility is a key reform under the Corrections Master Plan and the Crime Reduction Strategy, aimed at reducing reoffending and strengthening community safety. 

“This new women’s facility in Alice Springs delivers a key component of our Corrections Master Plan and directly supports the Crime Reduction Strategy by increasing capacity and strengthening rehabilitation pathways,” Minister Maley said.

“In our year of growth, certainty and security, we are investing in infrastructure that ensures women are accommodated in environments designed around their needs, with better access to education, training and meaningful work opportunities - helping to break the cycle of reoffending and reduce crime across the Territory.”

The Alice Springs women’s prison will accommodate both sentenced and remand prisoners, providing a dedicated environment for women-specific programs and case management. 

The first stage of the facility is now complete, with 38 beds opening and additional capacity coming online this month. For the first time in Alice Springs, women in custody will be housed in a dedicated facility separate from male prisoners, improving rehabilitation outcomes, safety and operational effectiveness.

As part of the second stage of the project, 12 beds for low and open-security women will become available when young people are transferred to the new Youth Intake and Transfer Facility by the end of April 2026.

Delivering dedicated women’s facilities right across the Territory supports the Government’s broader reducing crime strategy - ensuring the right infrastructure is in place to improve rehabilitation, strengthen community safety and reduce reoffending.

The new facility complements broader crime reduction initiatives already underway, including the recently opened bail supported accommodation facility for women in Alice Springs and the interim women’s prison, Sector 11 in Darwin.

The CLP Government has invested $10.35 million in the 95-bed Alice Springs women’s facility and brought online more than 745 beds since August 2024.

Comparing Alice Springs data from December 2025 with December 2024:

• Total offences down 43%
• Offences against the person down 24%
• Assault offences down 28%
• Total property offences down 50%
• House break-ins down 79%
• Commercial break-ins down 56%
• Motor vehicle theft and related offences down 65%
• Other theft down 32%
• Property damage offences down 43%

Media contact: Olivia Sherlock - 0407 089 389

Images: Alice Springs Women's Prison