132: Inspection of Eastern Goldfields Regional Prison

This was the seventh Announced Inspection of the Eastern Goldfields Regional Prison (‘Eastern Goldfields’), but the second since the commissioning of the new facility. First Inspected in 2000, the old Eastern Goldfields prison, which was built in 1980, was continually found to be unfit for purpose until its closure in 2016. The new Eastern Goldfields …

At the time of the inspection, Unit 3 (the earned privileges accommodation for men) was closed and Unit 5 (the transitional unit) had never been commissioned. This undermined the independent living service delivery model and reduced independent living opportunities for men. Recruitment and retention of custodial and non-custodial staff remains a major issue. At the …

At the time of this inspection the prison had been operating for over three years. However, the prison remained under-used and not at capacity. Enhanced accommodation options, Unit 3 and Unit 5, were both empty and there was no foreseeable date for them to reopen. Although some infrastructure required maintenance, the buildings themselves had held …

The report of an Announced Inspection of Eastern Goldfields Regional Prison contained the following recommendations: 1. Make better use of existing infrastructure by reopening Unit 3 and by finding a viable purpose for Unit 5. 2. Undertake a review of recruitment and retention strategies at EGRP and implement identified improvement opportunities. 3. Take steps to …