From the outside, Yasmar Boys’ Home may have looked like a grand heritage estate, but for the boys sent there, it was a place of fear, cruelty, and abuse. Hidden behind high fences in Haberfield, Sydney, Yasmar was a detention centre where children were locked away, punished, and too often forgotten.
This is one of the many youth detention centres across New South Wales where the state failed in its duty of care, and survivors are still living with the trauma.
A history built on control, not care
Yasmar was established in 1946 on the grounds of a historic mansion once owned by the Ramsay family—its name, “Yasmar,” is “Ramsay” spelled backwards. The New South Wales Government purchased the estate in 1944 and converted it into a remand centre for boys as young as 12.
Initially known as Yasmar Shelter, the facility went by other names over the years, including Yasmar Child Welfare Home and Ashfield Remand Home. What never changed was the strict, institutional atmosphere.
Boys were held in overcrowded dormitories behind timber walls built over old tennis courts. There was minimal privacy, rigid routines, and little to no contact with family. Punishment was prioritised over any real attempt at rehabilitation.
In 1981, Yasmar was formally turned into a juvenile detention centre under the Department of Youth and Community Services. Despite upgrades to buildings and the opening of the Sunning Hill Education and Training Unit, the mistreatment of children continued behind closed doors.
Stories of abuse that can’t be ignored
Survivors have spoken out about the devastating abuse they suffered inside Yasmar.
One survivor recalled being taken there at just nine years old. He said Yasmar was “an evil place where men would sexually abuse children and the women would mentally abuse children.” He described being raped, beaten and psychologically tormented — robbed of his childhood and left to deal with the consequences well into adulthood.
Another former detainee shared her experience as a transgender woman. In the 1990s, she was transferred to Yasmar after being gang-raped by male inmates at Cobham Juvenile Justice Centre. At Yasmar, she alleged that a guard raped her.
Her story is one of many that shows the extreme vulnerability of children in detention, particularly those who didn’t conform to gender norms.
In 1990, a boy took his own life inside Yasmar. A coroner found that staff were poorly trained in resuscitation and that dangerous features like grilles and hanging points had not been removed, despite known risks.
His death was a tragic but avoidable consequence of institutional neglect.
A system stacked against children
The boys held at Yasmar were often locked up for being “uncontrollable,” stealing food, or simply having no safe home to return to. Many were victims long before they arrived. And once they were in the system, they were subjected to further abuse, with no one listening and nowhere to turn.
Even basic safety was lacking. In 1950, two boys, aged 12 and 13, escaped over the fence. They had been detained for being “uncontrollable” after damaging school property. Instead of being protected or helped, they were criminalised and held in conditions that only made their situations worse.
We believe survivors, and we’re here to help
At Kelso Lawyers, we work every day with brave individuals who were failed by the institutions meant to protect them. We know that speaking out about abuse is incredibly difficult, but it can also be a powerful first step toward healing and justice.
If you or someone you know was detained at Yasmar Boys’ Home or any other juvenile justice centre in New South Wales and experienced abuse, you are not alone. You may be entitled to compensation or redress. More importantly, your story deserves to be heard.
Contact us today for a confidential consultation. We’ll listen — and we’ll fight for you.
If you suffered institutional abuse in a youth detention centre or children’s home, we want to hear from you. Share your story with us. We’re here to help.
Feature Image: State Archives NSW / Find & Connect
