114: Inspection of Bandyup Women’s Prison

In 2014 women’s imprisonment in Western Australia was in crisis, and Bandyup Women’s Prison bore the brunt of that crisis. It had been experiencing high levels of overcrowding for years. Those women who did not get a bed had to sleep on mattresses on the floor, often with their heads adjacent to a toilet. Actions …

The 2017 inspection of Bandyup found a very different prison to that of 2014. The opening of Melaleuca Remand and Reintegration Facility changed the landscape for women’s prisons in WA. And not before time – without the new prison Bandyup would have held more than 460 prisoners at the time of our inspection. The loss …

Resources and Systems The withdrawal of the remand population had a profound effect on Bandyup. The prison was calmer and less volatile than in previous years. Bandyup was experiencing a window of opportunity to address long overdue maintenance and infrastructure deficits. The Department instigated a change management project to determine what would be necessary for …

Recommendation 1    The Government should ensure funding for necessary infrastructure upgrades at Bandyup. Priorities include Unit 1, the Health Centre, Visits, and Reception Recommendation 2    Stabilise Bandyup’s management team and progress the change management review Recommendation 3    Improve performance appraisal processes and staff training on their use Recommendation 4    Ensure that all VSO positions are …