Page 1131 - Week 04 - Tuesday, 10 April 2018
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education and other social connections. Wellways can also provide living and self-management skills training. The services that DECO provides are an effective way to manage the risks of recidivism and poor mental health outcomes for detainees. DECO is an example of a program that can provide significant cost savings to the territory and also produce better health outcomes for former detainees.
DECO was originally funded in the 2013-14 ACT budget to provide support to up to 10 individuals for up to three months after their release from custody. In 2016-17 the program was expanded to allow for more places and to extend the support time to up to 18 months. I am pleased to be able to report to the Assembly today on the preliminary results that have come out of the extended program.
According to a 2017 analysis, out of the 81 people who have participated in DECO, as of June 2017 only six people, or seven per cent, had re-offended. While DECO is a relatively young program, and we will continue to monitor its outcomes, these results show a promising reduction compared to the overall recidivism rate. We have also received positive feedback on the extension of the support period, from three months to 18 months, with this extended time frame allowing case managers to engage more extensively with participants across a wider number of domains, including employment, living skills, self-esteem and socialisation.
The increased program time also provides a greater opportunity to build higher rapport and trust among the participants and create more effective engagement. DECO exists as part of a package of measures that seek to prevent reoffending and to achieve the government’s goal of reducing recidivism by 25 per cent by 2025, a key Labor-Greens parliamentary agreement item.
Work is underway to develop a recidivism plan to help achieve this ambitious target, which will work to effectively change the life trajectories of some of Canberra’s most complex and vulnerable citizens. Reducing recidivism in the ACT is a shared responsibility across the justice and human services system. The government is continuing to work with a range of stakeholders to map out a path to achieve this goal.
Another example of the government’s investment in justice reinvestment programs is the extended through-care program which, as members know, has been running since June 2013. Through-care is a model that works to support detainees beyond the end of the offender’s custodial sentence to improve their transition into the community. It aims to reduce the risk of reoffending and thereby improve community safety.
An independent evaluation of the program found that the program had been effective in terms of outcomes for clients, with a significant reduction in return to custody episodes as a result. While there are many similarities between the support models offered in through-care and DECO, DECO is distinct as it is only available to people with a formally diagnosed mental illness. While DECO is not available for all people exiting the AMC, ACT Health and Wellways work closely with through-care clients, particularly those who have some level of mental illness.
Madam Speaker, in the absence of these kinds of programs, research shows that post-release difficulties, such as poor connections with health services and supports,
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