Banksia Hill response

There is still plenty of work to be done before staff and detainees will return to the Banksia Hill Detention Centre according to the Community and Public Sector Union/Civil Service Association.

Western Australia’s only juvenile detention centre has been a major construction site after it was heavily damaged in a riot on January 20 and work will not be completed by the August 26 deadline.

Ever since the juveniles were transferred to the nearby Hakea Prison for adults the CPSU/CSA has been adamant that members will not return until the detention centre is safe for staff and detainees.

“Our members are keen to return to Banksia Hill as soon as possible and want to be part of implementing positive rehabilitation programs that make a difference,” CPSU/CSA branch secretary Toni Walkington said.

“We have always maintained that this will not occur until construction is complete.

“The construction and repair schedule is out of our control but we can’t stress how important it is to get everything tested and signed off before our members and the detainees return.”

Outstanding jobs include the installation of more doors and grills, fences (including cowling), remedial work to the medical centre, a comprehensive clean up (using metal detectors) and air-conditioning in all accommodation areas to ensure ceiling fans are no longer used.

The union has challenged figures released last week that indicate the cost per day per prisoner in the privately-run Acacia prison are cheaper than those run by the Department of Corrective Services.

“We know that these back-of-the-envelope cost comparisons are not an accurate reflection of the costs of different services provided nor the nature of facilities including security ratings and management of remand.”

Ms Walkington said the analysis did not take into consideration the whole-of-system services provided by the department to all prisons, both private and public, such as prisoner sentence management, assessment processes and transport.

In 2011, the Senior Lecturer Discipline of Accounting at the University of Sydney, Jane Andrew, released a report ‘Accounting and the construction of the cost-effective prison’ where claims concerning the costs attributed to private and public prisons in Western Australia were examined and concluded that these cost claims were highly contested.

Download pdf  Banksia Hill response August 19 (308.24 kB)

For Comment	For More Information
Toni Walkington CPSU/CSA Branch Secretary Tel: 08 9323 3800	Darren ODea CPSU/CSA Media Liasion Officer Tel: 08 9323 3800 Mob: 0421 934 794 Email: [email protected]

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