The Pontville Immigration Detention Centre is now home to 136 unaccompanied minors but can accommodate up to 260 detainees.
TASMANIA'S Commissioner for Children Aileen Ashford has painted a damning picture of life inside the Pontville Detention Centre.
Ms Ashford says the 136 young men and boys at the centre need better educational opportunities, documents written in their language and should be processed in the community instead of behind wire.
And she says they asked for better sports equipment and facilities because they urgently need more physical activities for their mental well-being.
The asylum seekers, aged between 13 and 17 years, are desperate to play cricket and soccer, Ms Ashford says.
The call for equipment was heeded by local sporting clubs yesterday who vowed to do all they could to help.
Football Federation Tasmania chief executive John Boulous said local club the Glenorchy Knights had started conversations with the detention centre about opportunities for the young boys, who are from from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq and Kuwait.
"We see there is a big need to integrate these players and give them participation opportunities," Mr Boulous said.
"We have a community responsibility."
Mr Boulous called on the Tasmanian football community to help out.
"We will donate some essentials and we are calling on the football community to pass on old football boots they are not using."
Cricket Tasmania yesterday committed to donate cricket balls, bats and protective gear for use at the centre.
Cricket operations general manager Andrew Dykes said the good quality equipment donation would help in the short-term, but longer term initiatives were being worked through.
"These opportunities are in conjunction with a variety of local stakeholders and involve co-ordinating skills, coaching and game sessions which we hope may lead to further opportunities such as facility upgrades at the centre in the future," Mr Dykes said.
Ms Ashford said unlike the Ashley Detention Centre, the state's prison for youth that houses an average of about 20 minors at any one time, Pontville had no school or decent ovals for the minors to play sport.
She said the children were injuring themselves by attempting to play sport on "rubble" not fit to play sport on.
A spokeswoman from the Commonwealth Immigration Department said yesterday the centre did have an oval.
"There is an oval and other areas for other recreational activities," she said.
However, Brighton Mayor Tony Foster said he would be pushing for an upgrade for outdoor facilities during his regular meetings with Serco, which runs the centre.
Deputy Premier Bryan Green said yesterday the state government would like to see the youths living in the community instead of in detention.
"We don't like it," Mr Green said.
"We would much prefer these young people be placed in community care.
"We don't like the situation where minors find themselves in institutionalised care."
Ms Ashford, the first Commissioner for Children to be given free access to children within a commonwealth detention centre, said with the facility able to hold 260 minors, serious work was needed to improve their conditions.
"My strong view is that they are bored with life within the facility," Ms Ashford said.
"They require both intellectual and physical stimulation.
"Simple solutions like soccer balls, cricket sets and the space to play games would greatly assist.
"They also voiced a strong desire to go to school in the Tasmanian community."
Education minister Nick McKim said courses would soon be provided by the Polytechnic.
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