The country is now spending a record $22.3 billion each year on late-stage interventions for vulnerable young people. This surge in expenditure, driven largely by child protection and youth welfare services, suggests that existing reactive policies may be missing key opportunities to prevent serious problems before they emerge.
Governments are increasingly directing funds towards crisis-level support for at-risk youth under the age of 24, with these costs rising by nearly 50% over the past five years. A new study, commissioned by a major philanthropic foundation, found that yearly spending has increased by 7.7% since 2019. This is growing at double the rate of inflation and three times faster than population growth. Child protection services have placed the greatest pressure on resources, with spending rising more than 70% to reach $10.2 billion. Other areas are also experiencing major funding strains, including youth justice, homelessness and family violence programs.
This steep cost growth is linked to delays in delivering support during early childhood and teenage years. The report argues that when developmental issues are left unchecked, they often evolve into more costly and difficult challenges. Policymakers are being urged to fund early-stage services across health, education and social sectors such as prenatal care, early learning and mental health support. The foundation behind the research says adopting a national plan, strengthened by coordinated government action and better data use, could deliver long-term savings and improved outcomes.
The wider concern is that Australia's approach to youth hardship remains reactive, not preventive. New South Wales and Victoria receive the largest shares of spending on late interventions, at $6.4 billion and $5.3 billion respectively. However, the Northern Territory leads on a per-capita basis, spending $2808 per resident – close to three times the national average. Youth crime alone accounts for $3.4 billion each year, with spending on youth homelessness and family violence rising steadily as well.
Evidence suggests that early intervention is more effective. Past research cited in the report estimates that every dollar invested early returns two dollars in savings, mainly through reduced welfare dependency and greater productivity. Aligning funding across state and federal governments remains difficult. Moving towards early support would mean states incur upfront costs, while the Commonwealth benefits later through improved workforce participation and lower social service demand.
This report adds to growing momentum behind a national push to rethink how Australia looks after its youngest citizens. The foundation conducting the research, with over $8 billion in assets, is advocating for structural change rather than simply increasing expenditure. While some progress has been made, the data clearly shows the current approach is unsustainable.
