With pre-trial detentions at record highs, a new report looks at alternative approaches for NSW. The Australian Public Policy Institute (APPI) has released a new report highlighting alternatives to pre-trial detention, offering evidence-based pathways to reduce costs, improve justice outcomes and strengthen community safety.
The report, Alternatives to pre-trial detention by Dr Bernhard Ripperger, was developed as part of his APPI Policy Fellowship and comes as the number of people held on remand in NSW – meaning people in custody while awaiting trial – reaches record levels, now accounting for nearly half of the adult prison population. Almost 9 in 10 people received into a correction centre on any given day are on remand.
The research finds that the current reliance on remand is placing significant pressure on the criminal justice system, with costs estimated at approximately $1.8 million per day, alongside broader social and economic impacts. At the same time, the use of remand is not always proportionate to outcomes. Between 2022 and 2024, only 42.6 per cent of people received into custody on remand were sentenced to further time in custody, meaning the majority did not receive a prison sentence. Up to 20 per cent do not receive a prison sentence even if convicted. The median time spent on remand has also increased significantly from 3.1 months in 2015 to 5.9 months in 2025.
“With remand numbers at record levels, there is a clear opportunity to introduce practical alternatives, drawing on international best practice, that can reduce pressure on the system while ensuring community safety. Alternatives to pre-trial detention can strengthen the system’s effectiveness and integrity through smarter policy design,” said Dr Ripperger.
The report sets out alternatives centred on expanding structured bail supervision and developing community-based approaches to managing individuals outside of full-time custody. Drawing on successful models in Scotland and South Australia, the research shows these approaches can strengthen compliance with bail conditions, reduce pressure on the prison system and more effectively and efficiently deliver corrective services.
“This research highlights a pragmatic agenda grounded in what works,” said Marianna Brungs, APPI’s Acting Head of Social Policy. “By shifting to a more targeted, supervised community approach, governments can ease system pressure while delivering better outcomes for individuals and communities in the short and long term.”
