Wooroloo Prison Farm was originally opened in 1914 as a sanatorium. The Department of Corrective Services took over the site in 1972 as a minimum security prison facility. Wooroloo now holds around 350 minimum security adult male prisoners. Since 2009, Wooroloo’s capacity has increased by 33 per cent, from 270 to 360 in 2012. Wooroloo now has up to 40 rooms containing two beds each. Prior to 2009 most rooms at Wooroloo housed only one prisoner.
This was the Office’s fourth inspection of Wooroloo Prison Farm. The first two inspections, conducted in 2002 and 2006, found Wooroloo to be one of the state’s best performing prisons. However, the 2009 inspection concluded that its overall performance and sense of direction had declined. It was against this backdrop that the 2012 inspection was conducted.