A dedicated remand strategy developed by Serco for the Adelaide Remand Centre (ARC) is helping the South Australian Government achieve its target of reducing reoffending by 10 per cent.
The global support services provider's partnership with 133-year old prison support organisation, OARS Community Transitions, has already facilitated more than 700 interventions at the centre to address homelessness, drug, alcohol and gambling issues prior to bail, with the aim to prevent reoffending in the community.
Serco’s work with AnglicareSA and their The Arches Bail Accommodation Support Program provides prisoners with an accelerated pathway into accommodation prior to their bail hearings, allowing those eligible, to be released sooner.
Since the introduction of the direct pathway, uptake of the program has increased significantly with 30 prisoners referred in the last month.
OARS CEO, Leigh Garrett, comments: "Since working alongside Serco at the centre, OARS have achieved a post-release engagement rate of almost 40 per cent, and this is despite our support being of a voluntary nature.
What this tells us is that our collaborative approach and delivery of services is working to reduce reoffending in the community."
Highlighting Serco's involvement in administering a Medication Assisted Treatment for Opioid Dependence (MATOD) programme, ARC general manager, Mark Walters, says, "prisoners can now receive the treatment they need onsite, which is important for safety and also reduces the strain on community health services."
He adds: "Our program extends activities traditionally undertaken in remand and focuses on providing a broad range of reintegration support services to all prisoners.
We are working with a variety of local community organisations to deliver our strategy, which includes services such as relapse prevention, court advocacy, treatment services and holistic family support.
"Everything we do at ARC is focused on reducing reoffending.
We will continue developing our programs and strong community partnerships to deliver positive outcomes for prisoners and the local community."
Serco’s work with TAFE SA and onsite Literacy and Numeracy teaching volunteers is also supporting education and training outcomes that will enable prisoners to gain employment once released back into the community.
The group assumed operational responsibility for the ARC, including provision of custodial, health, intervention, education, training and asset maintenance services, in August 2019.
