Recommendation 97

This recommendation is assigned to CSNSW.

Recommendation

That in devising and implementing courses referred to in Recommendation 96 the responsible authorities should ensure that consultation takes place with appropriate Aboriginal organisations, including, but not limited to, Aboriginal Legal Services.

Context

The Royal Commission considered Aboriginal perceptions of the judicial system included a lack of awareness, or sensitivity to Aboriginal culture. Recommendation 97 is directed at ensuring that Aboriginal cultural awareness training and development courses for justice system services including community corrections, are informed by consultation with appropriate Aboriginal organisations.

Detail of implementation

Cultural Competency training and cultural capacity building

Community Corrections Officers complete cultural competency training during primary training, through the Corrective Services NSW (CSNSW) Academy and facilitated by the Aboriginal Strategy Directorate (ASD) learning and development facilitator. This initial training, Aboriginal Cultural Competence Training (ACAT) is also made available to Community Corrections locations requiring re-fresher training or when it is identified that longer serving staff have not completed it previously. 

The ASD also facilitates a Knowing, Being and Doing – Aboriginal Cultural Competency (KBD-ACE) training package. This represents a significant step forward in the Aboriginal Cultural journey for Community Corrections staff.  Building on the foundations of the Aboriginal Cultural Awareness Training (ACAT) and focusing on key areas such as cultural safety, Closing the Gap (CTG) and Improving Aboriginal Outcomes (IAO) targets, service delivery gaps and community protocols, the training helps staff develop the skills, knowledge, and confidence necessary to improve outcomes for Aboriginal People on Supervision. KBD-ACE is a two-day program, including a “classroom” learning day and an “on country day”.  Aboriginal Community Engagement and Culture Officers (ACECOs) are heavily involved in this process, which entails localised Aboriginal Community Engagement and Connecting to Country and Community throughout the process. This also includes involvement from local services, Elders, and community to meet and greet with local Community Corrections Offices. It is noted that ACAT training must be completed prior to engagement in KBD – ACE. 

Additionally, the Community Corrections Assistant Commissioner consults with the internal Aboriginal Advisory Group (AAG) about minimum requirements for cultural engagement/ competency training for Community Corrections staff for an Aboriginal perspective. 

The ASD expanded in 2023, including the establishment of the Aboriginal Community Connections Unit (ACCU) which was fully staffed by May 2024. The team consists of a Principal Manager, a Senior Aboriginal Cultural Advisor and four Aboriginal Cultural Advisors. Their focus is on providing strategic operational direction and cultural leadership for staff and improving service delivery in Community Corrections for Aboriginal people and communities in NSW.  The ACCU provides Aboriginal insights to influence policy and procedure and an Aboriginal voice and expertise to executive leaders to support cultural and trauma informed decision-making. Their ongoing creation and co-designed partnerships with local Aboriginal communities and organisations will significantly improve and change outcomes for the Aboriginal People on supervised orders.  

As part of the Improving performance in Community Corrections for Aboriginal people and Communities in NSW project plan, numerous locations have committed to setting up local Aboriginal Community Consultation Committees led by ACECOs for specific purposes, such as informing our engagement with Aboriginal people on supervised orders (including contact with family, acknowledging Kinship and Elders involvement as a priority).

Numerous districts have also implemented or committed to implementing an Aboriginal Reference Group (ARG), which include ACECOs, Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal allies to represent each office within that district. These groups aim to create better networks, connections between staff and communities, knowledge building and shared decision making around all business that impacts our Aboriginal staff members and people on supervised orders. 

The Aboriginal Legal Service engages with CSNSW regularly including with ACECOs and come to correctional centres during NAIDOC week to speak with both inmates and staff.    

In November 2020 Community Corrections formed an Aboriginal Advisory Group (AAG). The AAG is made up of Aboriginal staff from across the state and in various roles, selected via an expression of interest process. The AAG meet monthly and provide advice to the Community Corrections Assistant Commissioner and Community Corrections Executive on various subjects such as Aboriginal workforce recruitment, retention, development; policy development; engagement of Aboriginal people on supervised orders; and partnerships across Government and non-government sectors. 

IAO Project – applying cultural responsiveness to case management practices

Additionally, Community Corrections is currently delivering an Improving Aboriginal Outcomes (IAO) project co-led by the Major Projects Team (MPT) within Community Corrections and ACCU within Strategy and Governance. Commencing in May 2023, the IAO project involves five Community Corrections sites trialling 11 innovative activities focused on cultural responsivity and person-centred practice to better engage Aboriginal people on supervised orders. 

Activities include undertaking supervision with a ‘yarn first business second’ approach and completing ‘walk and talk’ interviews with the supervised Aboriginal person. The heart of the trial activities centre around the CTG targets related to Community Corrections core business and the overarching premise; new ways of working, designed and shaped by Aboriginal People for Aboriginal People.

In September 2023, Community Corrections commissioned Kowa Collaboration (Kowa) – an Aboriginal small to medium business offering relevant expertise and services – to deliver a culturally-appropriate and independent evaluation of the IAO trial.  

The purpose of the IAO evaluation is to:

• build on the existing evidence base for supervision of Aboriginal people
• understand which trial activities are effective and why
• explore the scalability of the trial activities, and 
• identify strategies for embedding best practice across Corrective Services NSW.

Conferences for Aboriginal staff, led by Aboriginal staff

In 2022, Community Corrections arranged the first two conferences, specific to and for all Community Corrections Aboriginal staff.  The focus of the first conference in May 2022 was to consult with Aboriginal staff to improve Community Corrections’ ways of working with Aboriginal people and identify strategies to support frontline staff to apply an appropriate cultural lens to their case management practice. The second conference held in November 2022, built on the success of the first conference by continuing connection opportunities and further exploring how we can achieve cultural safety and inclusion within CSNSW. It included overviews on the CTG targets, IAO priorities and the Jumbunna research paper recommendations. 

Funding was not granted for a CSNSW wide or Community Corrections specific Aboriginal staff network conference in 2023. 

In September 2024, the ASD arranged and facilitated a CSNSW wide Aboriginal Staff Network Conference. Providing opportunities for all Aboriginal staff across the organisation to hear more about key reforms, share skills, knowledge, and experiences. Key topics during this conference included cultural safety and self-care, an update and progression of the newly formed Aboriginal Strategy Directorate (ASD), executive level updates around our many ongoing areas of work related to Aboriginal business, information from our DCJ Racism Task Unit and how we intend to continue our CTG priorities with a lens on codesign approaches into the future.

An ASD working group has been formed to progress planning for the 2025 CSNSW Aboriginal Staff Network Conference.