Making our prisons work : an inquiry into the efficiency and effectiveness of prisoner education, training and employment strategies

This report considers vocational education, post release support and, significantly, innovative strategies to better address the issue of Aboriginal recidivism. This report is the second and final report of the Inquiry ‘Making our Prisons Work’. The first report focussed on prison employment and industries. This report found that there are significant successes achieved by Department of Corrective Services (DCS), most notably in the area of vocational education and training, there are a number of critical deficiencies. These include: · the failure to fully implement an Integrated Offender Management System despite several attempts. This is attributed to the lack of an integrated IT system and staff culture. However this failure means that there is a significant shortfall in the ability of DCS to provide adequate case management of prisoners; · the termination of the role of ‘Director of Women’s Prisons’; this has had a negative impact on staffing, female prisoners, prison design and the adequacy of support; all of which are factors in the successful rehabilitation of female prisoners; · the failure to adequately translate policy into practice when delivering Aboriginal rehabilitation programs and services. In looking at the statistics, the Committee was surprised to learn that: · Aboriginal male adult recidivism is 70% · Aboriginal female adult recidivism is 55% · Aboriginal male juvenile recidivism is 80% · Aboriginal female juvenile recidivism is 64% Although Aboriginal recidivism rates are extraordinarily high, the problem of both Aboriginal imprisonment and recidivism is not considered to be primarily related to anything that DCS is doing or failing to do, but rather is attributable to a range of social, health and education factors in their communities, notably: · high levels of alcohol and substance abuse and the lack of services; · the lack of employment, with an unemployment rate 3 times higher than that of their non Aboriginal counterparts leading to a median household income that is half that of the rest of the community; · very low levels of functional literacy; and · child abuse and neglect nearly four times higher than in other communities. For these reasons the justice system can only have limited impact on Aboriginal recidivism rates. What is acknowledged by many in the judiciary and other arms of the justice system is that the issue requires ‘a holistic approach drawing on the strengths of these communities at the same time as well as addressing the problems in health, education, and welfare.’ This report accordingly makes a strong recommendation that an alternative pilot strategy be adopted in a community where there is a high concentration of offenders. This strategy is generally known as Justice Reinvestment. Justice Reinvestment is a data-driven approach which seeks to reduce corrections spending and reinvest savings in strategies that can decrease crime and strengthen communities. Part of the strategy is its focus on reducing re-offending by ex prisoners. Justice Reinvestment is not just about tinkering around the edges of the justice system – it is about trying to prevent people from getting there in the first place; although it retains detention as a measure of last resort for dangerous and serious offenders. Because the success of Justice Reinvestment depends on the effectiveness of interagency collaboration this Report makes several recommendations in this respect