Legal visits
Last updated: 22 Aug 2024
Face-to-face legal visits to people in prison are available at all prisons.
Arranging a legal visit
In the first instance, counsel should email the prison directly to arrange a face-to-face visit or AVL booking, using the contact list below.
If counsel encounters difficulties in making a booking, counsel should contact the centralised Sector Services team (formerly the Prisoner Contact team) directly by emailing sectorservices@corrections.govt.nz or by phone on 0800 665 789.
Please note that while we will do our very best to accommodate preferences for dates and times, we may not always be able to do this.
Information required
Please provide the prison or the Sector Services team with as much information as possible. Please include all of the following:
- Contact details/Lawyer contacts
- Emails of contact with prison sites of unsuccessful bookings
- The prisoner’s name, PRN, and prison site
- The proposed three dates/times for visits and the length of time the lawyer believes they will require for the visit.
- Prison sites require 2 weeks’ notice if possible. The more notice given, the better we may be able to accommodate your time and date preferences. If urgent, please note this.
Operations Support Team
The Operations Support team acts as an escalation point for lawyers and other professionals to contact a prison site if you encounter difficulty in arranging a visit or AVL booking.
The team will then contact the relevant prison visitor booking area and arrange for the booking to occur. Best efforts will be made to accommodate time and date preferences; however, this may not always be possible. Once the booking is made, this will be provided in writing, via email, to counsel from the Operations Support team.
The Sector Services team can be contacted by:
Email: sectorservices@corrections.govt.nz
Phone: 0800 665 789
Cancellations
Should counsel no longer require the booking, they should advise the site or the Operations Support team as soon as practicable. There may be instances when the prison is no longer able to accommodate the original booking. This may relate to safety requirements, short staffing, technical difficulties, or overall prison operational requirements.
In these instances, the prison or the Operations Support team will contact counsel to advise and assist to make a further booking for remote access if required, or in-person at a later date.
Special Requests
Should you require a special request i.e., laptop or disclosure documents, please contact Sector Services on sectorservices@corrections.govt.nz or 0800 665 789. Please provide as much detail as possible to ensure that we are able to assist you effectively.
The prisons listed below should be contacted directly to arrange face to face or AVL legal visits:
Site | Email |
|---|---|
Northland Region Corrections Facility | |
Auckland Prison | |
Auckland South Corrections Facility | |
Auckland Region Women’s Corrections Facility | ARWCF Visitor Bookings: AVL Coordinator ARWCF: |
| Mount Eden Corrections Facility | For In Person requests: For AVL interview requests: |
Spring Hill Corrections Facility | For AVL interview requests: |
Waikeria Prison | For counsel visit requests: For AVL interview requests:
|
Tongariro Prison | |
Hawke's Bay Regional Prison | |
Whanganui Prison | |
Manawatū Prison | For counsel visit requests: manawatuinterviewbookings@corrections.govt.nz |
Rimutaka Prison | |
Arohata Prison | For both counsel visit and AVL requests: |
Christchurch Men's Prison | ChristchurchMensVisitsBookingsallocations@corrections.govt.nz |
Christchurch Women's Prison | |
Rolleston Prison | |
Otago Corrections Facility | |
Invercargill Prison |
If declined, the Operations Support team (see above) will assist counsel in making a remote booking where possible.