17 December 2021
C142169
Grace Gordon
[FYI request #16984 email]
Tēnā koe Grace
Thank you for your email dated 1 October 2021 to the Department of Corrections –
Ara Poutama Aotearoa (Corrections), requesting information about Corrections’
response to COVID-19 and the Office of the Ombudsman’s recommendations. Your
request has been considered under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA).
Firstly, I would like to apologise for the delay in responding to your request.
Corrections’ top priorities are safety and wellbeing – of the public, our staff, visitors to
our sites and the people we are managing in prisons and the community. As we
have seen in prisons internationally, the impact of COVID-19 can be devastating.
Since March 2020 we have put in place extensive plans to manage risk to our staff
or the people we manage, and we have successfully managed cases of COVID-19
with no transmission between people in prison or staff.
People in prison are some of the most vulnerable to COVID-19, due to the ease of
transmission in residential facilities with large numbers of people living in close
proximity. Many people in prison also have health conditions and vulnerabilities that
make them more susceptible to becoming seriously unwell if an outbreak were to
occur. As highlighted above, internationally there have been many reports of serious
illness and deaths of people in prison and staff.
We have a duty of care to the men and women we manage in prisons, our staff, and
our communities and we have been taking a range of steps to ensure the safety of
everyone, including health screening for every person who enters a prison,
managing newly received people separately from those that have been in custody for
longer than 14 days to avoid potential for COVID-19 to spread, testing newly arrived
people for COVID-19 (and again on days 5 and 12), and extensive use of PPE.
For the sake of clarity, I will address your questions in sections.
I am interested in learning about the Department's response to COVID-19 and
the response to the Ombudsman's recommendations.
1) Has the Department of Corrections conducted any research into the
management of COVID-19 in prisons?
NATIONAL OFFICE, WELLINGTON
Mayfair House, 44 – 52 The Terrace, Wellington, 6011, Private Box 1206, Wellington 6140,
Phone +64 4 460 3000
www.corrections.govt.nz
1a) If yes, please provide me with those research documents.
2) Has the Department consulted research from other jurisdictions about
policies and practices to manage COVID-19?
2a) If so, please provide me with the names of these pieces of research,
where I can find them and when these projects were completed?
3) How has this research informed the Department’s COVID-19 response?
Corrections has not commissioned any official research of policies and practices to
manage COVID-19 in prisons.
However, staff from Corrections have undertaken informal research on other
jurisdictions approaches to managing COVID-19 within prisons. The senior staff
responding to COVID-19 have reviewed a large amount of information, reports, and
published experiences relevant to their operations (in both health and custodial
settings) to inform and test Corrections’ approach. Examples (not an exhaustive
account) of published material reviewed is detailed in the links below:
•
https://covidprisonproject.com/
•
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/her-majestys-prison-and-probation-
service-workforce-quarterly-june-2021/hmpps-covid-19-experimental-
statistics-annex-31-july-2021
•
https://gh.bmj.com/content/5/11/e003201
•
https://journal.nzma.org.nz/journal-articles/estimated-inequities-in-covid-19-
infection-fatality-rates-by-ethnicity-for-aotearoa-new-zealand
•
https://www.prisonstudies.org/sites/default/files/resources/downloads/keeping
_covid_out_of_prisons.pdf
•
https://www.crimeandjustice.org.uk/publications/psj/prison-service-journal-253
•
https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/339830/WHO-EURO-2021-
1405-41155-57257-eng.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
Corrections has also been involved in New Zealand/Australia meetings and
discussion groups on this subject. These were established to learn from each other
and understand how each jurisdiction manages the risks that this virus poses in
prisons.
Corrections follows the guidance issued from the Ministry of Health, and Corrections’
Health Advisers when determining measures for our prisons, and how best to
implement them.
Corrections also identified that our processes are aligned with the World Health
Organisations Interim guidance on COVID-19 in prisons, available here:
https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/339830/WHO-EURO-2021-1405-
41155-57257-eng.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y.
All prison facilities continue to operate in accordance with New Zealand legislation,
and based on other agreements including the United Nations Standard Minimum
Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners. All Corrections’ facilities operate in line with
guidelines contained within the Prisons Operations Manual to ensure the safe,
secure, humane and effective operation of the prisons.
4) What rationale was used for keeping Spring Hill prison in level 3 while the
wider Waikato community was moved to level 2?
4a) What policy guidance and research informed this decision?
As New Zealand moves to a minimisation and protection approach under the new
Traffic Light System, Corrections will continue to maintain a zero-tolerance approach
to COVID-19 in our prisons. As we have done since the start of the pandemic, we
will continue to focus on reducing the risk of the virus entering our prisons. We will
also continue to work to ensure that COVID-19 is not transmitted within prisons
across quarantine and separation units and the main prison population. The
measures we take under the Traffic Light System will therefore be very similar to
what we have done so far, but work is underway on some changes to reflect the
protection offered by vaccination, including the addition of a risk assessment process
to ensure activities such as release to work can operate safely. As we will maintain
our measures to keep COVID-19 out of prisons, including separating and testing
people coming into custody, we have no plans to separate vaccinated and
unvaccinated prisoners at this time.
At the time your request was received, New Zealand prisons were operating at Alert
Level 2 or 3 settings, in line with the Alert Level in the area where the prison is
located, except for Spring Hill Corrections Facility, which was located within an Alert
Level 2 region but was operating at Alert Level 3 settings.
Corrections did not use any specific policy or conduct any formal research to inform
this decision. The decision was made to provide further protection to staff who live in
the Auckland Region, given the prison’s proximity to Auckland, and the significant
number of staff who travel from Auckland to the prison every day. As such, the
prison continued to operate at Alert Level 3 settings when parts of New Zealand
moved to Alert Level 2 at 11.59pm on Tuesday 7 September 2021.
The Alert Level 3 settings enabled us to ensure we could continue to keep the prison
operationally safe. Corrections is not prepared to take any risks with COVID-19 in
our environment. Everything we have put in place to manage the threat of COVID-19
has been based on prioritising safety and wellbeing.
5) In the Office of the Ombudsman’s report into the management of COVID-
19 in prisons, it is stated that the Department has accepted all the Chief
Ombudsman’s recommendations. Please advise me on the steps that the
Department has made to ensure the recommendations have been fulfilled.
5a) Please outline the steps taken in response to each specific
recommendation.
As you may be aware, the Office of the Ombudsman published the
OPCAT –
Prisons Thematic report in June 2020. This report outlined key findings and
recommendations in relation to nine prisons inspected during the period of 29 April
2020 to 8 May 2020. The nine prisons inspected were:
• Auckland Region Women’s Corrections Facility (ARWCF)
• Auckland Prison
• Arohata Prison
• Mt Eden Corrections Facility (MECF)
• Rimutaka Prison
• Rolleston Prison
• Matawhaiti Residence
• Christchurch Men’s Prison
• Auckland South Corrections Facility
• Christchurch Women’s Prison
Appendix One provides the Ombudsman’s recommendation at each prison listed
above, Corrections’ response to the recommendation and the action taken to ensure
the recommendation has been fulfilled. As at November 2021, all actions have been
updated and each recommendation is complete. Rolleston Prison, Matawhaiti
Residence and Christchurch Men’s Prison did not receive any recommendations and
are therefore excluded from the appendices.
This response may be published on Corrections’ website. Typically, responses are
published quarterly, or as otherwise determined. Your personal information including
name and contact details will be removed for publication.
I encourage you to raise any concerns about this response with Corrections.
Alternatively, you are advised of your right to also raise any concerns with the Office
of the Ombudsman. Contact details are: Office of the Ombudsman, PO Box 10152,
Wellington 6143.
I trust the information provided is of assistance.
Ngā mihi
Rachel Leota
National Commissioner
Appendix One
Title of OPCAT
Status
Recommendation
Corrections’ response to Recommendation as at November 2021
COVID-19 Report
Under current COVID-19 Alert Levels, split unlock regimes are organised which allows women to
spend one hour outside of their cells (not including time to make legal calls etc.). There are now also
yards attached to the end of the wings in the Programmes and Assessment unit, which allows the
All wāhine are able to spend at
women easier access to the yards. In the other High-Security units, where practicable, the women
Completed least one hour each day in the
are given time out in the yards.
fresh air.
ARWCF - 8 June
If the individual refuses/declines their time outside, it is documented in the offender notes. The
2020
Operational Assurance team also conduct regular reporting on minimum entitlements within the
prison space.
Wāhine subject to quarantine and Prior to the inspection, work had commenced to install televisions in the cells for women who were
Completed isolation have access to a
subject to quarantine and separation. These units now have a television in each cell.
television in their cells.
Under the normal operating model there are several regimes in place within units 12 and 13 due to
the Maximum-Security nature of those units. The requirement to safely manage social distancing
with Maximum-Security prisoners, as well as the 14-day separation of newly received prisoners, to
manage the COVID-19 risk, means an increased number of regimes are required under this context.
This has meant that the one-hour exercise daily has been alternated daily between the yard and day
room.
Staff safety is a paramount consideration, particularly in the Maximum-Security environment.
All prisoners are able to spend at
Ensuring that the health and safety of both staff and prisoners in the context of COVID-19 is also a
Auckland Prison -
Completed least one hour each day in the
significant consideration. We are committed to enabling a regime that provides for at least one hour
1 June 2020
fresh air.
per day in the fresh air for all prisoners in these units as soon this can be implemented safely. This
will be in place by, or at Alert Level One, when pre-COVID unit regimes will resume.
In every unit there is also an unlock log being completed. The Senior Corrections Officers completes
the unlock log which is counter signed by the Principal Corrections Officer. The Operational
Assurance team also regularly report on minimum entitlements within the prison estates.
Maximum-Security prisoners are entitled to an hour of yard time or to use the yard attached to their
cell. Other units utilise their yards wherever practicable.
C142169
NATIONAL OFFICE, WELLINGTON
Mayfair House, 44 – 52 The Terrace, Wellington, 6011, Private Box 1206, Wellington 6140,
Phone +64 4 460 3000
www.corrections.govt.nz
Title of OPCAT
COVID-19
Status
Recommendation
Corrections’ response to Recommendation
Report
Prisoners are given their initial
Auckland Prison -
phone call on admission to the
Corrections accepted this recommendation and can confirm all prisoners receive their initial phone
1 June 2020
Completed Prison.
call on admission to Auckland Prison.
Women subject to separation are
Arohata Prison -
able to spend at least one hour
Following the inspection, Corrections has confirmed that all women are now receiving one hour of
1 June 2020
Completed
each day in the fresh air.
fresh air each day.
Prisoners have access to hand
washing facilities and products
Hand sanitisers were installed in mid-2020. Residential managers monitor these, and refill as
Completed
when in recreation areas.
required. Taps for prisoners to wash their hands are available in some yards.
Spray bottles are available upon request and several mops and buckets are available. Prisoners
are offered the opportunity by staff every second day to use the mop and bucket to clean their cell.
MECF - 30 June
Prisoners have access to cleaning
There are wing allocated wing cleaners for most units. Prisoners are also provided with paper
2020
Completed
materials
towels.
Following the inspection, a working group has developed a new unit diary for all High/Medium units.
Ensure that unit staff maintain
This diary was implemented on 16 May 2020. It includes a record of the time the men enter and
Rimutaka Prison
complete and accurate records of
exit their cell/wing and requires the unit Principal Corrections Officer to review it and sign it daily to
- 31 May 2020
Completed
time out-of-cell
ensure records are complete and accurate.
Prisoners accommodated in the
Common area toilets and individual prisoner cells contain hand cleaner. In addition, wing support
House Blocks have access to hand
Completed
workers are provided with additional cleaning supplies including disinfectant. They generally remain
cleaning facilities and products
unlocked during midday lock and later in the afternoon to conduct cleaning of common areas.
when in recreation areas.
Weekly and monthly packs are distributed to all prisoners in the house blocks. These packs include
soap, shampoo, wipes, scourer pads and cutlery.
ASCF - 28 May
In addition, prisoners are offered the opportunity to access spray bottle, mop, and a bucket to clean
2020
their cel s. In House block’s 1 & 3 (voluntary segregation block and Low-Security block) there is a
Prisoners' have access to cleaning
Completed
prisoner employed to distribute cleaning products and equipment, as requested by prisoners. This
materials.
is overseen by staff.
In house block 2 (High Security block) at the fortnightly prisoner forum meeting, the wing
representative is allocated cleaning supplies for each wing and they distribute as required. This is
also overseen by staff.
Christchurch
Women in separation are able to
Following the inspection, Christchurch Women's Prison took immediate steps to amend the regime
Women's Prison
Completed
spend at least one hour each day in of women in prison. All women now have access to fresh air for at least one hour daily.
- April 2020
the fresh air.
C142169
