Calls for $78m Barkly Regional Deal crisis funding package to be reviewed, five years into 10-year lifespan

The Barkly Regional Deal was struck in 2018, but residents say little has changed since. (ABC News: Dane Hirst)

As the temperature creeps past 40C in Tennant Creek, children flock to an air-conditioned oasis in the middle of the Northern Territory desert town.

Warning: This story mentions sexual assault.

With a ninja warrior course, basketball court and music and video gaming rooms, the new multi-million-dollar Tennant Creek Youth Centre is one of the town's only safe public places for kids to hang out and have a feed.

When the ABC visits during the January school holidays, it's packed.

"Given our very remote location, there's not many social avenues for kids or many sporting opportunities," says Brody Moore, Barkly Regional Council's operations director.

"Having a centre like this is integral to get kids off the street, and [give] them some positive avenues."

Although it was the site of Australia's last gold rush, high unemployment, overcrowding, addiction, and crime have long gripped Tennant Creek and the surrounding Barkly region.

Five years ago, a historic $78 million deal by all tiers of government to deliver 28 measures over 10 years sparked hopes of change in the region.

But the youth centre is one of just a handful of promises to be delivered so far under the agreement, known as the Barkly Regional Deal.

The region is still waiting for promised infrastructure including a new youth bail accommodation facility, addiction rehabilitation centre and police watch house.

"How much longer have we got to wait? There's a lot of money there," said community leader LT, known by her initials for cultural reasons.

Multi-million-dollar deal to be reviewed

The Barkly Regional Deal is majority-funded by the federal government and overseen by a "governance table" of community members, government representatives, local stakeholders and an independent chairperson.

They aimed to complete 27 of the 28 promised initiatives by the end of 2023.

So far, only six have been delivered.

Halfway through its lifespan, the ABC can reveal the governance table is now seeking to review how the multi-million-dollar deal is managed.

They will approach all three levels of government for extra funding to employ an independent reviewer.

In statements, the local, NT and federal governments reiterated their commitment to delivering the promises set out under the deal.

Barkly Regional Council official manager Peter Holt said the council had delivered the Tennant Creek Youth Centre and was progressing a second centre in nearby Ali Curung.

He denied the suspension of its councillors for an investigation into the council's financial management and service delivery was impacting progress.

NT Chief Minister Eva Lawler said she was focused on speeding up progress and that work was underway to deliver a "visitor park", youth bail accommodation and boarding facilities promised under the deal.

Accountability concerns for promises sparked by horrific crime

The Barkly Regional Deal was announced in the wake of the sexual assault of a Tennant Creek toddler in 2018.

The perpetrator was sentenced to 13 years in prison in 2020.

The ensuing outrage from local Indigenous leaders drew national attention and forced then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull to act.

Former Barkly mayor Steve Edgington, who helped develop the deal, believes there has been little oversight since.

"There is no focus on identifying where the money's going, how it's being used," said Mr Edgington, who now represents the region as an opposition member of the Legislative Assembly.

But Sean Gordon, who chairs the deal's governance table, believes the delays have been caused by unexpected hurdles including the COVID-19 pandemic and that plans are progressing.

Many Tennant Creek residents are concerned the impacts of entrenched disadvantage, social dysfunction and crime have worsened in the years since the deal was announced.

"[Children] are finding it hard at home, there's too much drugs, alcohol and just people sleeping rough," said Warumungu traditional owner John Fitz Jakamarra.

Since 2018, the Department of Territory Families says child protection cases in the Barkly region have remained "steady", with more than 200 investigations substantiated in the past financial year.

In the same timframe, the waitlist for a 1-2-bedroom home has risen from 6-8 years to 8-10 years.

And NT Police data shows the rate of crimes against the person – such as assaults and robberies – increased by 30 per cent and the rate of property crimes increased by 26 per cent between 2019 and 2023.

Calls to re-think approach to social challenges

Mr Jakamarra believes the Barkly Regional Deal focused too heavily on infrastructure from the get-go, without properly resourcing social services for the community.

"We're talking all separately, [but] if we all get together somehow as a larger group, we could achieve something better for the place," he said.

Even Mr Gordon admits it is an imperfect tool.

"We need government to not just commit to the facilities but commit to the services that are going to be running out of these facilities, [to] ensure that they're funded long-term," he said.