Recommendation 1
Ensure that more Aboriginal women have access to Boronia’s re-entry services. Initiatives should include:
(i) identifying ways to enhance the centre’s appeal to Aboriginal women incarcerated elsewhere in the prison estate; and
(ii) ensuring that more of the Aboriginal women who are classified minimum-security can progress to placement at Boronia.
Recommendation 2
Change the current practice of excluding prisoners from Boronia on the grounds of mental health needs by sourcing and establishing a comprehensive network of community-based mental health and counselling services under section 95 of the Prisons Act.
Recommendation 3
Improve levels of engagement with Aboriginal institutions and agencies, to implement in-reach and out-reach programs and activities, and to raise the profile and recognition of Aboriginal culture at Boronia.
Recommendation 4
Increase management capacity and experience through leadership development, experience at their prisons and the rotation of staff into and out of other prisons, in order to bring about more questioning and innovative approaches to current operational practices.
Recommendation 5
Ensure that the centre is sufficiently staffed at all times.
Recommendation 6
Conduct an analysis of gender patterns on staffing rosters at Boronia to ensure that there are sufficient female staff on each roster, and recruit and administer the rosters accordingly.
Recommendation 7
Develop and implement compliance standards across the Department which better reflect the specific offender profiles, roles and activities of the various prisons.
Recommendation 8
Work to ensure that prisoners continue to be able to access the level of services from State Training Providers that they had previously received, and that the total number of allocated hours is increased in line with the increasing prison population.
Recommendation 9
Expand the use of the Prisoner Employment Program (PEP) at Boronia by ensuring:
(i) that the relevant Policy Directives are sufficiently flexible; and
(ii) that all staff and managers actively promote and support the program amongst residents.
Recommendation 10
Increase the use of section 95 of the Prisons Act to incorporate more meaningful activities for the women in relation to five areas:
(i) work;
(ii) recreation;
(iii) activities between mothers and children;
(iv) health services (including mental health); and
(v) education.
Recommendation 11
Produce an up to date version of the orientation DVD.
Recommendation 12
Reinvigorate the transition process from Bandyup to Boronia to ensure that all minimum-security prisoners at Bandyup are provided with opportunities to understand the potential benefits of Boronia, and in understanding its philosophy and requirements.
Recommendation 13
Introduce facilities to enable the use of Skype at Boronia in order to enhance family and social contacts and in line with the centre’s philosophy of family engagement.
Recommendation 14
Ensure that resident children’s needs are met in a timely manner, by the introduction of monitored deadlines for responses to requests from mothers relating to their children’s needs.
Recommendation 15
In line with the centre’s philosophy of personal responsibility, allow Aboriginal Visitor Scheme visitors and religious representatives to have access to residents’ houses at the discretion of the residents.
Recommendation 16
Ensure, across the whole Department, that the standards for interpreting and translating services set out in the Western Australian Language Services Policy 2008 are fully met.
Recommendation 17
Boronia must re-evaluate any current operating procedures which counteract its philosophy of personal responsibility and accountability.
Recommendation 18
Commission and publish a methodologically robust independent evaluation of Boronia’s post-release outcomes, including a comparison with other male and female prisons.