All prisons in Western Australia will be smoke free by the end of next year, with the state government to introduce a phased tobacco ban for inmates, staff, contractors and visitors.
Western Australia is currently the only state or territory in Australia to still allow smoking in its prisons.
The ban has already been introduced in women’s prisons in the state and will be rolled out next year in men’s and regional facilities.
Corrective Services Commissioner Brad Royce said the ban will be introduced in a “cautious, considered and collaborative way with a focus on safety and security” and that those in prison will be offered help from health staff to quit smoking, have access to cheaper nicotine products and be able to call Quitline for tips and advice.
A new report by the state’s prison inspector has found significant staffing shortages in non-custodial roles such as nurses, doctors and rehabilitation workers.
The Office of the Inspector of Custodial Services (OICS) annual report found that there were long-running shortages in health, mental health, rehabilitation and reintegration and that these were leading to delays in people in prison getting help.
The report found that more than 220 extra nurses are needed in the Western Australian prison system, along with 15 more doctors, five more psychiatrists and 29 more prison support officers.
“Shortages in non-custodial staffing need to be addressed sooner rather than later,” Inspector of Custodial Services Eamon Ryan said in the report.
“Without comprehensive reform and sustained investment, the department risks continued service shortfalls that compromise the wellbeing, rehabilitation and reintegration outcomes for people in custody.”
“This means people will stay in prison for longer and come out no better than when they went in, driving up the size of the prison population and not making communities any safer.”
The department has convened the Clinical Shortages Workforce Group to try to address these shortages, with an aim to make it an employer of choice.
The OICS acknowledged that some promising strategies have been introduced to tackle this problem but said that “more robust retention measures and competitive incentives are urgently needed”.
People in prison in Tasmania are getting the least time out of their cells out of any state or territory in the country, according to the Office of the Custodial Inspector’s annual report.
The report said that the most common complaint to the inspector was with regard to inadequate time out of cells and that this issue was the worst it has been since the office started reporting on it.
In the 2023–24 financial year, people in prison in Tasmania received an average of 7.5 hours out of their cells per day, the lowest of any jurisdiction.
The issue is the worst in Risdon Prison’s max units, where incarcerated people spend an average of just 2.8 hours out of cells – 5.5 hours less than what is planned. Those in Risdon’s medium units have an average of 3.4 hours out of cells, while those incarcerated at the Southern Remand Centre get 3.9 hours. At Mary Hutchinson Women’s Prison it is 7.2 hours, which is still over 2 hours less than what they are meant to get.
“Lockdowns are consistently, and understandably, the issue most often raised with us during monitoring visits,” the inspector’s report said.
“Lockdowns negatively impact people in custody’s mental and physical health – issues which will affect health services in the community.”
A First Nations woman has died in custody at Mary Hutchinson Women’s Prison in Tasmania after experiencing a “serious medical episode”.
The woman was transferred to Royal Hobart Hospital in late October but passed away the following day.
Tasmanian Aboriginal Legal Service (TALS) CEO Jake Smith said her death will “profoundly impact” her family and community.
“TALS stands ready to support the family and community during this difficult time,” Smith said.
“It is with great sadness that we have seen an Aboriginal death in custody here in Tasmania.”
The death has been referred to the coroner for investigation.
Culturally safe, Aboriginal-led healthcare services will be provided to women at the Wellington Correctional Centre and to incarcerated First Nations men for the first time, under a partnership between Justice Health NSW and Wellington Aboriginal Corporation Health Service (WACHS).
WACHS will be delivering “trauma-informed, culturally safe healthcare to Aboriginal patients in custody in the state’s Central West”, as part of an in-reach model based on the Justice Our Way program.
This will see local Aboriginal community-based health services working with First Nations people in the Wellington prison and those transitioning to the community.
The Justice Our Way program launched in 2014 to address a “critical gap in support for Aboriginal people transitioning out of the justice system” and is currently delivered in Dillwynia and Silverwater prisons.
In July this year the program was expanded to First Nations women at the Mid North Coast Correctional Centre under a partnership with Durri Aboriginal Corporation Medical Service.
A review has been launched into inmate classifications in NSW prisons.
These security ratings – maximum, medium or minimum – determine where someone is placed in a prison and what conditions they are managed under.
It is determined by the seriousness of someone’s offence, the length of their sentence, their attitude and conduct in prison and programs completed while incarcerated.
Currently, an inmate’s classification should be reviewed at least once a year by Corrective Services NSW (CSNSW) or if they are involved in a serious incident.
The NSW Minister for Corrections has ordered CSNSW to review the effectiveness of the inmate classification system and case management processes, with an aim to “ensure an inmate’s record of behaviour in custody carries appropriate weight when decisions are being made about an inmate’s classification”.
As part of the review, CSNSW will consult with prison staff, the Public Service Association and other stakeholders.
The NSW Government said the review is part of efforts to improve safety within prisons and comes after a strike by prison officers around the state in protest of a court’s decision to not extend the sentence of a man found guilty of assaulting four prison officers earlier this year.
The strikes plunged prisons around the state into lockdowns in late October and saw thousands of prison officers walk off the job.
All prisons in Western Australia will be smoke free by the end of next year, with the state government to introduce a phased tobacco ban for inmates, staff, contractors and visitors.
Western Australia is currently the only state or territory in Australia to still allow smoking in its prisons.
The ban has already been introduced in women’s prisons in the state and will be rolled out next year in men’s and regional facilities.
Corrective Services Commissioner Brad Royce said the ban will be introduced in a “cautious, considered and collaborative way with a focus on safety and security” and that those in prison will be offered help from health staff to quit smoking, have access to cheaper nicotine products and be able to call Quitline for tips and advice.
A new report by the state’s prison inspector has found significant staffing shortages in non-custodial roles such as nurses, doctors and rehabilitation workers.
The Office of the Inspector of Custodial Services (OICS) annual report found that there were long-running shortages in health, mental health, rehabilitation and reintegration and that these were leading to delays in people in prison getting help.
The report found that more than 220 extra nurses are needed in the Western Australian prison system, along with 15 more doctors, five more psychiatrists and 29 more prison support officers.
“Shortages in non-custodial staffing need to be addressed sooner rather than later,” Inspector of Custodial Services Eamon Ryan said in the report.
“Without comprehensive reform and sustained investment, the department risks continued service shortfalls that compromise the wellbeing, rehabilitation and reintegration outcomes for people in custody.”
“This means people will stay in prison for longer and come out no better than when they went in, driving up the size of the prison population and not making communities any safer.”
The department has convened the Clinical Shortages Workforce Group to try to address these shortages, with an aim to make it an employer of choice.
The OICS acknowledged that some promising strategies have been introduced to tackle this problem but said that “more robust retention measures and competitive incentives are urgently needed”.
People in prison in Tasmania are getting the least time out of their cells out of any state or territory in the country, according to the Office of the Custodial Inspector’s annual report.
The report said that the most common complaint to the inspector was with regard to inadequate time out of cells and that this issue was the worst it has been since the office started reporting on it.
In the 2023–24 financial year, people in prison in Tasmania received an average of 7.5 hours out of their cells per day, the lowest of any jurisdiction.
The issue is the worst in Risdon Prison’s max units, where incarcerated people spend an average of just 2.8 hours out of cells – 5.5 hours less than what is planned. Those in Risdon’s medium units have an average of 3.4 hours out of cells, while those incarcerated at the Southern Remand Centre get 3.9 hours. At Mary Hutchinson Women’s Prison it is 7.2 hours, which is still over 2 hours less than what they are meant to get.
“Lockdowns are consistently, and understandably, the issue most often raised with us during monitoring visits,” the inspector’s report said.
“Lockdowns negatively impact people in custody’s mental and physical health – issues which will affect health services in the community.”
A First Nations woman has died in custody at Mary Hutchinson Women’s Prison in Tasmania after experiencing a “serious medical episode”.
The woman was transferred to Royal Hobart Hospital in late October but passed away the following day.
Tasmanian Aboriginal Legal Service (TALS) CEO Jake Smith said her death will “profoundly impact” her family and community.
“TALS stands ready to support the family and community during this difficult time,” Smith said.
“It is with great sadness that we have seen an Aboriginal death in custody here in Tasmania.”
The death has been referred to the coroner for investigation.
Culturally safe, Aboriginal-led healthcare services will be provided to women at the Wellington Correctional Centre and to incarcerated First Nations men for the first time, under a partnership between Justice Health NSW and Wellington Aboriginal Corporation Health Service (WACHS).
WACHS will be delivering “trauma-informed, culturally safe healthcare to Aboriginal patients in custody in the state’s Central West”, as part of an in-reach model based on the Justice Our Way program.
This will see local Aboriginal community-based health services working with First Nations people in the Wellington prison and those transitioning to the community.
The Justice Our Way program launched in 2014 to address a “critical gap in support for Aboriginal people transitioning out of the justice system” and is currently delivered in Dillwynia and Silverwater prisons.
In July this year the program was expanded to First Nations women at the Mid North Coast Correctional Centre under a partnership with Durri Aboriginal Corporation Medical Service.
A review has been launched into inmate classifications in NSW prisons.
These security ratings – maximum, medium or minimum – determine where someone is placed in a prison and what conditions they are managed under.
It is determined by the seriousness of someone’s offence, the length of their sentence, their attitude and conduct in prison and programs completed while incarcerated.
Currently, an inmate’s classification should be reviewed at least once a year by Corrective Services NSW (CSNSW) or if they are involved in a serious incident.
The NSW Minister for Corrections has ordered CSNSW to review the effectiveness of the inmate classification system and case management processes, with an aim to “ensure an inmate’s record of behaviour in custody carries appropriate weight when decisions are being made about an inmate’s classification”.
As part of the review, CSNSW will consult with prison staff, the Public Service Association and other stakeholders.
The NSW Government said the review is part of efforts to improve safety within prisons and comes after a strike by prison officers around the state in protest of a court’s decision to not extend the sentence of a man found guilty of assaulting four prison officers earlier this year.
The strikes plunged prisons around the state into lockdowns in late October and saw thousands of prison officers walk off the job.
A study into a trial involving painkillers being available in prison buy-ups in Queensland has reported positive results, with this access “affirming agency, dignity and self-reliance”.
A trial was conducted at a regional Queensland prison allowing inmates to purchase over-the-counter medications – paracetamol and ibuprofen – from the prison store, rather than having to obtain them from prison doctors or nurses.
Packs of 10 were available at the buy-up for $1 each, available weekly in the women’s prison and fortnightly in the men’s.
More than 9,300 packers were purchased during the trial, equalling 9.5 packets per person in both prisons, or less than one packet per person per month.
Women in the trial bought about 20 packets per year, while men purchased 7.5.
Nearly 80 per cent of the women involved said it was a good idea, and three-quarters of the men agreed.
Participants said that having access to these painkillers provided peace of mind, allowed them to proactively manage pain and gave back some “self-reliance, control and power”.
“If you are old enough to go to jail, you are old enough to take Panadol,” one person said.
The writers of the report said that the findings show that people in prison “view themselves as capable decision-makers, knowledgeable of the risks and deserving of trust to manage over-the-counter medications”.
“A growing body of evidence encourages a paradigm shift toward recognising prisoners as trustworthy and capable agents in managing their own healthcare and underscores the value of providing equivalent healthcare in prisons,” they said.
A coroner has recommended that the Queensland Government “consider” whether it needs to continue using spit hoods in prisons, following an inquest into the death of 44-year-old woman Selesa Tafaifa at Townsville Women’s Correctional Centre in 2021.
The family of Tafaifa have called for spit hoods to be banned since her death, but the coroner stopped short of making this recommendation, saying there was limited evidence that the use of a spit hood contributed to her death.
However, the coroner did point to several other states having banned the use of spit hoods.
“The fact that other jurisdictions have ceased the use of safety hoods is a basis upon which, if it has not already occurred, Queensland Corrective Services should consider whether its operational needs require the devices to continue to be used,” the coroner said.
Spit hoods can be used in prisons in Queensland and Western Australia but are banned in the ACT and South Australia and are also not used in New South Wales, Tasmania and Victoria.
Children as young as 14 years old found to have committed certain serious crimes will potentially receive a life sentence under new laws promised by the Victorian Government.
The Adult Crime, Adult Time reforms will mean that courts treat children accused of crimes such as home invasion, aggravated carjacking and armed robbery as adults, and their cases will be heard in the County Court rather than the Children’s Court.
Currently, the maximum jail sentence the Children’s Court can impose is 3 years, but the County Court can impose a prison sentence of up to 25 years for aggravated home invasion and carjacking and up to 20 years for intentionally causing serious injury through gross violence.
The Victorian Government has also said it plans to remove the rule that jail is the “last resort” for children and require judges to “clearly prioritise community safety” when making sentencing decisions.
A bill introducing the new regime will be introduced to state parliament this year, with plans for it to be in place from next year.
A number of legal and human rights organisations have criticised the announcement.
The Victorian Government also recently announced that the Malmsbury Youth Justice Centre will reopen next year, just 2 years after it was shut down by the state government following a number of incidents.
The Malsbury centre will open with 30 beds at first under a “new model”, which will see lower risk children aged 17 years and over incarcerated there and provided a “more intensive program of education, vocational training and job opportunities”.
Under recent changes to the Youth Justice Act, rehabilitation programs can now be offered to children on remand, rather than just those who have been sentenced.
Work has already begun to upgrade the site, and it is expected to be reopened early next year, with more than 100 staff needing to be recruited.
A new cafe has officially opened at the Metropolitan Remand Centre visitor area.
The One3Four cafe opened in early November and will operate from 9.30 am to 2.30 pm every day of the week apart from Tuesdays.
It will allow visitors to the prison to buy and share food and drinks with whomever they are visiting in the prison, with the menu including coffee, hot chocolate, milkshakes, meat pies, sausage rolls, ham and cheese toasties and apple turnovers.
Only visitors will be allowed to order food, and this must be done within the first 10 minutes of a visit starting.
There have been two serious alleged assaults in South Australian prisons in the space of a few weeks.
A corrections officer and an incarcerated person were taken to hospital after an incident at Adelaide Women’s Prison in late October.
Just weeks later, an incarcerated person was taken to hospital following an alleged attack by nine other inmates at the Yatala Labour Prison. A spokesperson for the state government said this inmate has since been discharged from hospital and is back in the prison.
The incidents are now under investigation by South Australia Police.
South Australian Attorney-General Kyam Maher said the incidents would be properly investigated.
“I do know that, when there are incidents that occur in our prison system, they are properly and thoroughly investigated and people are held to account for what they do, like they are outside the prison system,” Maher said.
Programs for people in prison in the Northern Territory are being cancelled more often than they are actually running, new data has revealed.
According to Northern Territory corrections data, in the 6 months to March this year, 10 of 11 scheduled drug and alcohol sessions were cancelled, five out of every six Safe Sober Strong sessions were canned and 34 of 46 scheduled psych-educational programs did not run due to lockdowns.
The majority of rehabilitation programs in the Territory are being cancelled more than 60 per cent of the time, as the prison population reaches record highs.
Medical experts have raised significant concerns about conditions in prisons in the Northern Territory due to overcrowding and a lack of medical staff.
The coronial inquest into the death of Wayne Hunt at Darwin Correctional Centre in August last year recently heard from a prison doctor, who highlighted a lack of medical staff in prisons in the Territory.
The doctor said that a recent increase in the number of people in prison and a shortage of prison officers had made prisons across the Territory less safe.
A study into a trial involving painkillers being available in prison buy-ups in Queensland has reported positive results, with this access “affirming agency, dignity and self-reliance”.
A trial was conducted at a regional Queensland prison allowing inmates to purchase over-the-counter medications – paracetamol and ibuprofen – from the prison store, rather than having to obtain them from prison doctors or nurses.
Packs of 10 were available at the buy-up for $1 each, available weekly in the women’s prison and fortnightly in the men’s.
More than 9,300 packers were purchased during the trial, equalling 9.5 packets per person in both prisons, or less than one packet per person per month.
Women in the trial bought about 20 packets per year, while men purchased 7.5.
Nearly 80 per cent of the women involved said it was a good idea, and three-quarters of the men agreed.
Participants said that having access to these painkillers provided peace of mind, allowed them to proactively manage pain and gave back some “self-reliance, control and power”.
“If you are old enough to go to jail, you are old enough to take Panadol,” one person said.
The writers of the report said that the findings show that people in prison “view themselves as capable decision-makers, knowledgeable of the risks and deserving of trust to manage over-the-counter medications”.
“A growing body of evidence encourages a paradigm shift toward recognising prisoners as trustworthy and capable agents in managing their own healthcare and underscores the value of providing equivalent healthcare in prisons,” they said.
A coroner has recommended that the Queensland Government “consider” whether it needs to continue using spit hoods in prisons, following an inquest into the death of 44-year-old woman Selesa Tafaifa at Townsville Women’s Correctional Centre in 2021.
The family of Tafaifa have called for spit hoods to be banned since her death, but the coroner stopped short of making this recommendation, saying there was limited evidence that the use of a spit hood contributed to her death.
However, the coroner did point to several other states having banned the use of spit hoods.
“The fact that other jurisdictions have ceased the use of safety hoods is a basis upon which, if it has not already occurred, Queensland Corrective Services should consider whether its operational needs require the devices to continue to be used,” the coroner said.
Spit hoods can be used in prisons in Queensland and Western Australia but are banned in the ACT and South Australia and are also not used in New South Wales, Tasmania and Victoria.
Children as young as 14 years old found to have committed certain serious crimes will potentially receive a life sentence under new laws promised by the Victorian Government.
The Adult Crime, Adult Time reforms will mean that courts treat children accused of crimes such as home invasion, aggravated carjacking and armed robbery as adults, and their cases will be heard in the County Court rather than the Children’s Court.
Currently, the maximum jail sentence the Children’s Court can impose is 3 years, but the County Court can impose a prison sentence of up to 25 years for aggravated home invasion and carjacking and up to 20 years for intentionally causing serious injury through gross violence.
The Victorian Government has also said it plans to remove the rule that jail is the “last resort” for children and require judges to “clearly prioritise community safety” when making sentencing decisions.
A bill introducing the new regime will be introduced to state parliament this year, with plans for it to be in place from next year.
A number of legal and human rights organisations have criticised the announcement.
The Victorian Government also recently announced that the Malmsbury Youth Justice Centre will reopen next year, just 2 years after it was shut down by the state government following a number of incidents.
The Malsbury centre will open with 30 beds at first under a “new model”, which will see lower risk children aged 17 years and over incarcerated there and provided a “more intensive program of education, vocational training and job opportunities”.
Under recent changes to the Youth Justice Act, rehabilitation programs can now be offered to children on remand, rather than just those who have been sentenced.
Work has already begun to upgrade the site, and it is expected to be reopened early next year, with more than 100 staff needing to be recruited.
A new cafe has officially opened at the Metropolitan Remand Centre visitor area.
The One3Four cafe opened in early November and will operate from 9.30 am to 2.30 pm every day of the week apart from Tuesdays.
It will allow visitors to the prison to buy and share food and drinks with whomever they are visiting in the prison, with the menu including coffee, hot chocolate, milkshakes, meat pies, sausage rolls, ham and cheese toasties and apple turnovers.
Only visitors will be allowed to order food, and this must be done within the first 10 minutes of a visit starting.
There have been two serious alleged assaults in South Australian prisons in the space of a few weeks.
A corrections officer and an incarcerated person were taken to hospital after an incident at Adelaide Women’s Prison in late October.
Just weeks later, an incarcerated person was taken to hospital following an alleged attack by nine other inmates at the Yatala Labour Prison. A spokesperson for the state government said this inmate has since been discharged from hospital and is back in the prison.
The incidents are now under investigation by South Australia Police.
South Australian Attorney-General Kyam Maher said the incidents would be properly investigated.
“I do know that, when there are incidents that occur in our prison system, they are properly and thoroughly investigated and people are held to account for what they do, like they are outside the prison system,” Maher said.
Programs for people in prison in the Northern Territory are being cancelled more often than they are actually running, new data has revealed.
According to Northern Territory corrections data, in the 6 months to March this year, 10 of 11 scheduled drug and alcohol sessions were cancelled, five out of every six Safe Sober Strong sessions were canned and 34 of 46 scheduled psych-educational programs did not run due to lockdowns.
The majority of rehabilitation programs in the Territory are being cancelled more than 60 per cent of the time, as the prison population reaches record highs.
Medical experts have raised significant concerns about conditions in prisons in the Northern Territory due to overcrowding and a lack of medical staff.
The coronial inquest into the death of Wayne Hunt at Darwin Correctional Centre in August last year recently heard from a prison doctor, who highlighted a lack of medical staff in prisons in the Territory.
The doctor said that a recent increase in the number of people in prison and a shortage of prison officers had made prisons across the Territory less safe.
We put a call out for messages from loved ones of people in prison across the country, and more than 100 people responded. We hope these brighten your day.
Nothing warms my heart more than the selflessness of good people doing good deeds for our sisters and brothers in prison.
Every year in early December, a group of volunteers come together to pack a hamper for every woman in prison in Victoria.
The NSW Government has moved to make it easier to find incarcerated people guilty of a “prison offence”, against the advice of independent experts.
Help keep the momentum going. All donations will be vital in providing an essential resource for people in prison and their loved ones.
All donations of $2 or more are tax deductible. If you would like to pay directly into our bank account to avoid the processing fee, please contact donate@abouttime.org.au. ABN 67 667 331 106.
Help us get About Time off the ground. All donations are tax deductible and will be vital in providing an essential resource for people in prison and their loved ones.
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