Page 4206 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 23 October 2019
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MS STEPHEN-SMITH: I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his question. It is certainly the case that the major incident that occurred at Bimberi on 26 August has taken a toll on staff and there have been some staffing issues as a result of that. We have also seen an increase in the average number of young people in Bimberi over this period of time. So I will take on notice Mr Coe’s question in terms of staffing.
I would note, however, that there are often differences of view in relation to appropriate staffing of Bimberi and appropriate management of the centre. I want to assure all members that all measures are taken to ensure at all times the safety of young people in the centre and the safety and welfare of staff as well. The centre is managed accordingly to ensure that young people can access programs as much as possible and to ensure that they can access visits from family and friends as much as possible while also maintaining the safety and security of the centre.
MR COE: Minister, what factors have led to these instances of staff shortages over the past eight weeks, and what support have the kids forgone as a result of additional staff not being present?
MS STEPHEN-SMITH: Again, I will come back to the chamber and to the leader of the opposition if I have further information in relation to those specifics. I am sorry: I have forgotten the details of the question, Mr Coe.
Mr Coe: That is okay. It is along the lines of what factors led to the shortages and also what the kids have forgone.
MS STEPHEN-SMITH: Thank you. I refer the leader of the opposition to my first answer in relation to some of the issues around staffing. I can also assure members that recruitment is underway and that, indeed, the Community Services Directorate has established a new recruitment strategy for Bimberi. I am not able to say at this moment but I will come back to the chamber as to whether there is a recruitment process currently underway. There is certainly ongoing recruitment for Bimberi, recognising some of the challenges that we face in the fluctuations of the number of young people in the centre at different periods of time. Yesterday, I think, I spoke about the fact that last financial year the average number of young people in Bimberi was 11 on any particular day. On recent days the number of young people has been 18, as it is today. That difference makes a significant difference to the staffing levels required, and sometimes that does make a difference to the safe management of the centre.
MRS KIKKERT: Minister, what contingency plans did you have in place to guarantee that Bimberi would not experience understaffing in the wake of an incident like the one that occurred on 26 August?
MS STEPHEN-SMITH: I thank Mrs Kikkert for her question. As I have talked about in this place before, new recruitment is ongoing at Bimberi. We have established a new rolling recruitment strategy in the past few months, so there are processes in place to recruit new youth workers and new staff. I would emphasise that it is really important that when we are recruiting staff to Bimberi, we get people with
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