Page 2679 - Week 07 - Tuesday, 28 June 2011
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and will assist in identifying the ongoing training and development needs. Structural changes are also being made to ensure operational teams are properly supported.
A schedule of mandatory staff training is being implemented for all staff at Bimberi. A training officer has been appointed and based at Bimberi to assist with the delivery of training and to ensure that staff training needs are properly identified and met in a timely manner. Also in line with Mr Keating’s recommendation, a project is underway to review policies, procedures and practices to ensure their clarity and usability. New and enhanced documentation is expected to be provided to staff by the end of August.
Similarly, a project has also commenced to review the information, data and electronic case management systems and this project has a high priority as part of a change management and implementation strategy. Compliance mechanisms and processes are also being reviewed.
Decisive action has also been taken on the Tomas review recommendations. Given the technical nature of the Tomas review and the security aspects of many of the recommendations, I am not able to go into great detail here. However, a number of physical infrastructure works recommended by Mr Tomas have been addressed by funding announced in this year’s budget. They include measures to limit the ability for residents to gain access to the roof and to undertake some vermin-proofing of the external fence. I think that is for rabbits. New contractual arrangements for the maintenance of electronic security at Bimberi are expected to be in place early in the new financial year, to enhance both preventive and responsive maintenance elements of security.
In considering the reviews and responses to the serious incident that occurred at Bimberi on 5 February, it is important to remember that juvenile custodial facilities are complex environments to manage. The managers and staff at Bimberi have complex risks to manage, and I would like to put on record, again, my thanks to Bimberi staff and managers who do such an exceptionally good job and continue to show their dedication to the centre and to the rehabilitation of the young people in detention.
In addition to the actions being undertaken as a response to the Keating and Tomas reviews, other work is being done to ensure that Bimberi continues to provide a safe and secure environment that maximises rehabilitation approaches. The Bimberi change management and implementation strategy is the key driver in this substantive and positive change. In my statement in March, I provided an overview of significant actions under the change management plan, and I would now like to provide an update on the progress of some of these.
The change management and implementation strategy aims to improve communications mechanisms. Mr Daniel O’Neil, director of youth services at Richmond Fellowship, has continued his work at Bimberi to allow staff an opportunity to provide their views on improving the workplace environment. Mr O’Neil’s work at Bimberi will continue to inform the change management initiative.
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