NT Correctional Services is moving Forward Together
NT Correctional Services (NTCS) is moving forward with its 3 year change project to expand the workforce, improve offender outcomes and build a stronger, more capable organisation.
In support of the Department of Attorney-General and Justice’s vision for a safe, fair and just Territory the change project, Forward Together is addressing operational challenges such as rising prisoner numbers and a growing case load of offenders under community supervision.
Under the Forward Together agenda, NTCS is focusing on three key business areas:
Operations – Investing in workforce capability and capacity to uphold statutory and safety standards by upgrading infrastructure, modernising systems and process, and improving recruitment and retention practices.
Service delivery – Designing and delivering programs and services that support offender rehabilitation, improve community outcomes and reflect mandatory sentencing reforms, which commence in late 2023.
Planning and performance – Ensuring operational decisions comply with legislation to withstand scrutiny, are governed by best practice and address recommendations from the Paget Report and NTCS Organisational Review.
Since the establishment of Forward Together over 12 months ago, NTCS has undertaken an extensive body of work, which includes:
Operations
- recruiting an additional 134 correctional officers to the custodial workforce through an ongoing employment campaign with a key focus on the Alice Springs Correctional Centre
- settling the correctional officer Enterprise Agreement
- upgrading infrastructure at the Darwin Correctional Centre, including security, accommodation blocks, lighting and CCTV
- planning for increased capacity in Alice Springs through a specialised procurement of medium-security modular cell blocks
- design work currently underway for an NTCS infrastructure master plan
- introducing new riot equipment into Darwin and Alice Springs correctional centres
- launching the Supported Bail Accommodation in Darwin and Alice Springs.
Service delivery
- investing $2.4M in to design and deliver new treatment programs for short-term and remand prisoners and specialised trauma counselling for female prisoners
- expanded Aboriginal language resources for Community Corrections clients and staff
- establishing a project with NT Health to review the overall health service delivery model for prisoners.
Planning and performance
- delivered the new NT Correctional Services Strategic Plan 2023–26
- designed the Forward Together roadmap to provide an overview of the program, including milestones, deliverables, resources and timeframes
- developed a new governance committee framework
- created new KPIs for implementation from 1 July 2023.
With extra government funding of over $63 million from next financial year, NT Correctional Services will continue to recruit people across the organisation, upgrade systems and practices, and progress infrastructure expansion projects for a sustainable organisation and improved offender outcomes.
“We have already made significant achievements as an organisation through the hard work and commitment of our people.
We have some way to go, however with funding investment from the government, support from our people and a clear direction with Forward Together, we can strengthen our capability and capacity over the long term to deliver for the Territory community,” NTCS Commissioner Matthew Varley said.
The Forward Together change project has been partially informed by the recommendations from the Paget Report and NTCS Organisational Review, which have been publicly released on 2 June 2023.
You can learn more about these reports from the resource links below.
Resources
Executive Summary (redacted) - Dr Paget Report, 17 July 2020 PDF (1006.3 KB)
Forward Together and Paget Report recommendations guide PDF (374.9 KB)
NTCS organisational review 2021 - Executive Summary and recommendations PDF (554.3 KB)
Forward Together and organisational review recommendations guide PDF (521.3 KB)
Forward Together - Work to date information map (June 2023) PDF (309.3 KB)
Forward Together poster - focus areas PDF (298.3 KB)
