Todays Story In The Gouldburn Valley News

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Goulburn Valley
Community leads petition to reopen ‘valuable’ Dhurringile prison
A grassroots campaign is building to reopen a prison 160km north of Melbourne, with locals claiming its closure pulled millions from the local economy as the number of inmates in state’s correctional facilities rises.

Abby Walter
 
2 min read
July 16, 2026 - 4:00PM
The Goulburn Valley News
 

A petition has been launched to push for the reopening of Dhurringile Prison. 

A grassroots campaign to reopen a minimum security prison in the state’s north is building after its closure ripped million of dollars from the local economy and the number of adults incarcerated in Victoria surges.
Dhurringile Prison, 160km north of Melbourne, closed in August 2024 as part of the state government’s attempts to modernise the correction system. but locals say it ripped million of dollars from the local economy.

Deniliquin resident Catherine Cooper who visited incarcerated family members at the prison is leading the petition, which had so far attracted more than 1000 signatures, and said it was a “no-brainer” to reopen it.

“I know how good change is for prisoners when they’ve got the skills, education and everything the prison offered,” she said.

“I believe it was a valuable rehabilitation facility that should not be lost.”

 More than 1000 people have signed a petition to advocate for the reopening of Dhurringile Prison.
Ms Cooper said 160 people were working at the prison when it closed.

Dhurringile was one of two prison farms in Victoria, with the other being Langi Kal Kal Prison, which is still operational.

Ms Cooper said she has spoken to former staff and many said they would apply for their old jobs if the prison did reopen.

“It was a substantial loss not just to the workers,” she said.
As one of two prison farms in the state Dhurringile Prison had a dairy, which inmates worked at. 

Ms Cooper has an advanced certificate in offender rehabilitation and said years ago a family member called her from the prison and told her he had learned to fence and loved it.

“It’s amazing they were working out in paddock rather than just being locked in a cell,” she said.

“I’d like the government to look at the evidence, listen to former staff, former prisoners and the community, and consider reopening Dhurringile to provide what it used to for the region and it’s economy.”

Euroa state National MP Annabelle Cleeland said the “abrupt” closure of Dhurringile ripped millions from the local economy, cost regional jobs and happened without meaningful consultation with the community.

 Member for Euroa Annabelle Cleeland says prison capacity is under strain while Dhurringile remains closed and unused. 
“It was shut before Labor changed Victoria’s bail laws, and now the government is facing the very prison capacity pressures many warned about at the time,” she said.

“With incarceration rates rising and prison capacity under increasing strain, Victorians deserve to know why a proven facility remains closed while the government searches for solutions elsewhere.”

The latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed there were 6593 adult prisoners in Victoria at the end of June 2025, an increase of 11 per cent within 12 months.

 Dhurringile Prison was involved in a greyhound adoption program, which placed greyhounds in prisons to socialise and train the dogs, ready for adoption. 
Last year, Northern Victoria Liberal MP Wendy Lovell said more than $2m had been spent to maintain the prison while waiting for a buyer.

“Closing Dhurringile Prison was a shortsighted decision and now there aren’t enough beds in Victoria’s prison system – but if the Labor government is determined to sell the site it must find the right buyer quickly because the delay is costing taxpayers millions of dollars,” she said.

A Department of Transport and Planning spokesman said there were no plans to reopen Dhurringile Prison.

“After almost 60 years operation, Dhurringile was closed as part of a commitment to delivering a modern correctional system,” he said.

The department is working with the Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority and Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation to finalise a sale this year, subject to a formal agreement.