Villawood Immigration Detention Centre - Villawood, New South Wales

THE GOOD CHOICES

Villawood Immigration Detention centre

My perspective as a current detainee here this centre is somewhere you can put on a lot of unwanted belly fat haha we are defiantly not starving. The complex has a modern 2004 look witch comes fully fenced off and under lock and key. The section I'm living in is named Mitchel there are seven sections five four men and two for women and are kept completely separate. Every section has there own names and lvl of security to accommodate detainees according to there temperament. Mitchel has five unit buildings each unit has six rooms each room keeps two detainees and comes with a double closet bunks with there own walk in toilet and shower basin and mirror. Every individual room is air-conditioned each unit has its own computer that is censored the security company running the centre I'm on it now😁 .Each unit has its own kitchen and lounge. Every section has basketball court and soccer field plus a gym witch is open all hours. On site includes a medical centre that accommodates for all needs mental health help etc. There is a visitation area for friends and family they also cater for all religious practising detainees. You can have things brought in by your family or purchased online your packages get screened (some things can take a couple of weeks) to be processed nevertheless less its a lot better than prison example you could if you wanted purchase a television and play station,laptops, cellphones, clothing this n that. At the entrance of the complex there is a large parking lot and shopping centres near by so please bring your person some munchies. The reception is wheelchair accessible and has accessible toilet/bathrooms🧑‍🦽also.

Could be my last post in Australia i hope that my reviews have been helpful good bye . 👋 😄

G S

Very horrible staff. Visiting for the first time and we had some questions but instead of showing empathy they yelled, banged on the window and threatened us. Staff trying to harass and scare us since we’re women. Worse than a correctional centre.

kamran haider

Better than other detention places. It Still needs to improve and should have proper education system for kids and mental health.

Seb Luva

They didn't have enough seasoning on the chicken.

David H

I have visited Villawood. Although it is a detention centre, I would describe it as a secured compound. Depending on the stages of residence, the detainees have more privileges than an ordinary prisoner in the Australian prison system. I have seen detainee’s children attending the local schools.

The contractor serco staff are respectable and are like Airport customs officers. I have met detainees waiting deportation because they have exhausted all avenues of appeal, including ministerial intervention. Many are waiting for travel papers from their country of origins.

Respectfully, Australia has observed more human rights of the detainees than elsewhere. Despite the negative publicity, I feel i need to tell the truth of what I saw.

Ondrej Sedlak

My family and I stayed here for about a year from 1986, following our escape from a communist dictatorship.

While the place wasn't THAT bad, it was certainly a step down for us as we led fairly decent middle-class lives, albeit under an iron thumb.

Having said that, the sense of community back then was excellent and as a kid, I did have heaps of fun there, especially during the weekends when the kids playroom would show child friendly movies such as The Terminatror and Robocop.

The not-so-fun parts were the extremely cramped rooms, and the downstairs neighbours that insisted on doing #1's on their front door step. The smell was wonderful during summer.

Overall it was a bit of a craphole but the road to freedom isn't always lined with velvet.

Bella Ratapu

Don't waste your money paying for express post for female detainees. My Aussie Post tracking info indicated that the package arrived on Tuesday, it's Friday now and Villawood Immigration Detention Centre hasn't given her, her express posted package yet. Maybe they need more staff to deal with the volumes of female packages. Or maybe the female detainees just aren't that important enough on their priority list bc the men detainees get theirs more frequently and the female detainees are told that they're busy🤔
And don't bother calling them about your expressed package bc they'll tell you to take it up with Australia Post, even though your tracking indicates delivered🤦🏼‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️. Wasted my money and phone call.

mr bean2

This place is worse then prison and a lot died here. occupied by once Australian permanent residents, but with visa cancellation for going to jail for minor to serious crime. Don't matter if you been in Australia all your life and call it home, sad 😢 isn't it?