When in operation, the centre was managed by Corrective Services NSW, an agency of the Department of Communities and Justice of the Government of New South Wales.

When the first building was completed in 1842 by (James) Houison and Payten, Thomas Duke Allen was installed as the gaoler, with his wife Martha acting as matron for the female prisoners.

As a result of the population boom caused by the gold rushes, both Victoria and New South Wales were forced to expand their penal facilities between 1858 and 1865.

During this time, the perimeter wall of the original gaol was extended to enclose a portion of land equal in size to the existing allotment.

Owing to overcrowding of the observation ward at Darlinghurst Gaol part of one of these wings was set aside for prisoners who had been deemed insane.

[5][2] The 1940s began a period of official mistreatment of nineteenth century institutional establishments and a number of unsympathetic buildings were approved for construction.

[2] A new development scheme completed in 1993 included a pedestrian and large vehicle entry off Dunlop Street and new adjacent buildings for reception, administration and visiting facilities.

The constructional character and quality of the early buildings, in particular the stone slab floors, ashlar walls and timber roof trusses, are exceptional.

It is significant in its physical and spatial quality as an enclosed complex: in particular the character established by its coherent architectural form and predominant sandstone and slate materials.

The fabric reflects the shifts in penal philosophy and changes in use from the 1830s to the construction of Long Bay in the early twentieth century.

The fabric is an educational and archaeological resource, as a continuing document of Australian social history and a potential source of information about the cultural past of the colony since 1788.

[2] The song "Tomorrow", recorded by Australian rock band Cold Chisel on their 1980 album East, apparently portrays the desperation of a Parramatta Gaol inmate on a life sentence who, having escaped three days earlier, faces imminent recapture.

[16] The Parramatta Correctional Centre has been the filming location of various Australian productions, including Wake in Fright, Home and Away, Rake, Redfern Now, Packed to the Rafters and Underbelly.