Corrective Services employees throughout Western Australia have spent the week being celebrated for their achievements in helping to keep the community safe.
Today is National Corrections Day and events have been held this week throughout the State’s corrective services prisons, work camps, farms, youth detention centre, and offices to recognise the often unheralded achievements of WA’s corrective services staff.
Corrective Services Minister Francis Logan joined staff at Bandyup Women’s Prison today to mark the national day and to commemorate the prison’s 50th anniversary of operation.
Bandyup prison sits on previous farming land and began as the ‘Bandyup Training Centre’ in 1970 to house female prisoners who had been accommodated at Fremantle Prison.
Today the facility holds maximum, medium and minimum-security prisoners as well as mothers and their babies in specially designed accommodation.
It focuses on providing women with skills to help employment opportunities on release as well as rehabilitative programs.
The key to the prison’s success, which included recently introducing a beauty therapy training facility, is down to the staff.
Today many were recognised for their achievements with various awards by the prison’s superintendent.
Similar awards ceremonies have been held throughout WA’s corrective services facilities this week to recognise the important and rewarding efforts of the State’s 4,500 corrective services employees.
Perth landmarks including the Bell Tower, Elizabeth Quay and the Matagarup Bridge were also illuminated in the National Corrections Day colours of blue and green this week and each day Yagan Square featured the faces of corrective services staff.
As stated by Corrective Services Minister Francis Logan:
“It was fantastic to attend today’s celebrations for the staff at Bandyup Women’s Prison who are doing remarkable work in trying to turn prisoners’ lives around.
“The prison is also commemorating 50 years of operations. It is a very different facility to how it started with a very different cohort of female offenders.
“It is not an easy job working in corrective services, but is a very important one.
“Whether you are in a prison, work camp, head office or a community offender management office your work is vital to keep the community safe and for making a difference in an offender’s behaviour.
“I have visited every prison, work camp and prison farm in WA on multiple occasions and I have visited nearly all the Youth Justice offices and Adult Community Corrections offices throughout the State, and there is always a common theme of wanting to make a difference.
“I am glad that this week, and especially today, we have turned the focus on the 4500 corrective services staff who make a significant difference to community safety, but whose efforts can often go unheralded.”
