Capability

To achieve successful delivery of outputs and make the appropriate contribution to departmental and shared outcomes, the Department must ensure proper development of its people and infrastructure. Investment in improved capability must be appropriately prioritised and underpinned by clear linkages to results.

Contribution to State Sector Goals

As both part of the justice sector and an individual government department, the Department contributes to the overarching goal and six supporting development goals designed by the State Services Commission to improve the overall performance of the State Services to ensure the system can meet the needs of New Zealanders, whilst serving the government of the day.

The overall goal for the State Services is: A system of world class professional State Services serving the government of the day and meeting the needs of New Zealanders.

TABLE 9: State Sector Goals

The six State Sector development goals are:

Goal 1: Employer of Choice

Ensure the State Services is an employer of choice attractive to high achievers with a commitment to service

Goal 2: Excellent State Servants

Develop a strong culture of constant learning in the pursuit of excellence

Goal 3: Networked State Services

Use technology to transform the provision of services for New Zealanders

Goal 4: Co-ordinated State Agencies

Ensure the total contribution of government agencies is greater than the sum of its parts

Goal 5: Accessible State Services

Enhance access, responsiveness and effectiveness, and improve New Zealanders' experience of State Services

Goal 6: Trusted State Services

Strengthen trust in the State Services, and reinforce the spirit of service

Departmental Structure

In order to deliver its outputs and achieve its outcomes effectively, the Department is organised into service delivery functions (Services) and support functions (Groups). There is a particular focus for the Groups and Services to work together in a cohesive manner across the organisation to improve overall performance. For service delivery, this focus is enhanced by the General Manager Integration (a new role established in February 2006) and the Regional Management Committees, which are responsible for ensuring that operational management and service delivery are fully integrated.

Consistent with the emphasis on integration and in order to ensure the Department is well placed to meet the challenges ahead, the Chief Executive announced a review of the Department's Head Office functions and structure in April 2006. The review is due to be completed by the end of 2006.

Further details of the structure of the Department, the responsibilities of each of the Groups and Services are available on the Department's website, www.corrections.govt.nz.

Investment in Capability

Funding 2005/06

The following funding was made available as part of the 2005 Budget decisions:

• operating costs associated with the Auckland Region Women's Corrections Facility
• capital funding for the completion of construction, commissioning fit-out and ongoing operating costs for the Spring Hill Corrections Facility and the construction costs associated with the Otago Region Corrections Facility
• funding for an increased number of reports to the New Zealand Parole Board
• funding to maintain the increased number of New Zealand Parole Board hearings
• expansion of services to assist prisoners to successfully reintegrate back into the community
• funding for demand-driven costs associated with unexpected prisoner levels
• funding for monitoring of prisoners' telephone calls and to increase crime prevention information capability (CPIC).

Cost-benefit Analysis of the Department's Interventions

In addition to monitoring outputs from the above initiatives, and the rehabilitative intervention outcome evaluations via the Rehabilitation Quotient (RQ), the Department - in accordance with the Public Finance Act - is committed also to demonstrating 'whole baseline' organisational effectiveness. A framework by which to demonstrate this is currently under discussion. Work will commence soon to define a hierarchy of organisational outcomes which are logically linked to the high-level outcomes for the wider justice sector. Once specified, valid indicators of outcomes will be identified for ongoing measurement. This development will be undertaken in consultation with central agencies, in order to ensure an optimal framework design.

It is intended also that all outcome evaluations of the Department's interventions, some of which are undertaken as part of the Department's research and evaluation programme, will eventually include cost-benefit assessments of those interventions. Mainly on the basis of RQ data, the cost-benefit model will provide greater visibility of actual (and projected) costs and benefits associated with individual rehabilitative programmes, providing data to inform decisions about which programmes should be maintained or further expanded, and which may need to be modified or curtailed.

Capital Expenditure

Capital expenditure is incurred by the Department in accordance with financial delegations from Cabinet to the Chief Executive through the Responsible Minister. Also, the requirements of the Public Finance Act 1989, State Sector Act 1988, Treasury Instructions and any other legislation governing the operations of the Department are also complied with when incurring any capital expenditure. Capital expenditure actuals and forecasts are shown in the table below.

TABLE 10: Capital Expendature Actuals and Forecasts

	2006/07 Forecast $000	2005/06 Actual $000	2004/05 Actual $000	2003/04 Actual $000	2002/03 Actual $000	2001/02 Actual $000
Land and buildings
New regional prisons	233,440	310,650	153,440	60,371	33,790	13,660
Prison expansion - additional beds	74,600	70,880	28,200	-	24,060	32,950
Design options associated with the consideration of the future of Mt Eden Prison	4,490	980	520	-	-	-
Security projects, including fences	-	-	1,780	10,930	3,730	3,700
Health and safety work	3,290	8,880	15,920	1,993	5,410	4,110
Deferred maintenance work	29,960	17,100	18,930	12,457	3,230	2,690
Probation and Offender Services accommodation;	17,300	2,320	3,680	1,703	2,570	4,510
Sub-total	363,080	410,810	222,470	87,454	72,790	61,620
Prisoner employment projects	10,000	2,600	3,490	5,118	5,450	3,540
Plant and machinery, equipment, motor vehicles, and furniture and fittings	10,950	5,390	6,450	6,560	4,470	6,790
Information technology	17,440	14,040	12,130	6,690	10,170	13,220
Total	401,970	432,840	244,540	105,822	92,880	85,170

The Department's approach to Capability Development

The Department's approach to capability development is set out in the Strategic Business Plan 2003-2008. Theme 4 of the plan covers enhancing capability and capacity. Supporting the strategic business plan are four operational strategies, which guide development in the key capability areas of facilities and infrastructure, information technology, communications, and human resources. These four areas are covered in more detail below.

Facilities and Infrastructure

The Department's physical infrastructure, and the management systems required to operate it, has been subject to change and expansion since 1995. The growth in the prison population in recent years, in excess of forecast trends, has necessitated an expansion in new prison facilities and infrastructure, as well as addressing the capacity of some existing prisons and developing options to meet prison demand post-2010.

The most important infrastructure issue for the Department is catering for the expected increase in the number of prisoners in a way that is consistent with the regional prisons policy. Planning for this not only involves the commissioning of new facilities, but maintenance and improvement of existing facilities to ensure that they meet the operational requirements of existing prisons whilst keeping pace with the increase in prisoner numbers. Maintenance issues include reliability of the infrastructure including physical and electronic security. Initiatives to drive improvements include energy efficiency and compliance with occupational safety and health requirements.

The Facilities and Infrastructure Operational Strategy 2003-2008 guides the Department's approach to facility and infrastructure management, with a particular focus on the following key areas:

• implementation of the Regional Prisons Development Project
• economical management of the maintenance of existing facilities and other assets
• ensuring facilities and infrastructure support the effective management of offenders and facilitate rehabilitation
• developing positive relationships with communities
• retiring obsolete and worn-out facilities.

The first of four new corrections facilities, the 350-bed Northland Region Corrections Facility at Ngawha, near Kaikohe, opened in March 2005, and was operating at normal capacity by October 2005. Construction of the Auckland Region Women's Corrections Facility, a comprehensive 286-bed prison in Manukau City, was completed on 31 May 2006 and the first prisoners were received on 2 August 2006. The site will be operating at normal capacity by December 2006. Construction of the 335-bed Otago Region Corrections Facility, at Milburn, south of Dunedin, is scheduled to be completed in early 2007, with the first prisoners to be received in mid-2007. The 650-bed Spring Hill Corrections Facility is under construction at a site between Meremere and Te Kauwhata. Construction is scheduled for completion in mid-2007, with the first prisoners to be received in late-2007 and the facility operating at normal capacity in 2008.

The Department has been active in the construction of additional beds at existing prison sites. The expansion in accommodation at existing sites has included extensive redevelopment of supporting facilities. The support buildings and services work has been completed in the context of optimised development at each site. The ability, should it be required, to continue to extend existing sites is maintained through careful planning.

The major strategic issues concerning future development of corrections facilities include consideration of future operating regimes, confirming intentions for older sites such as Mt Eden Prison, addressing the requirements for further building, completing deferred maintenance work and developing longer-term asset management plans for all sites.

The Department has made a concerted effort over the last seven years to improve the overall state of its property portfolio. Accordingly, capital was received to refurbish buildings to meet health and safety standards and provide greater sustainability in the working environment. At the same time, the prison portfolio has been expanding by an average of 220 beds per year and work is in hand to provide for predicted custodial requirements to 2010. The Department has addressed critical building work, principally compliance with health and safety legislation. Rimutaka prison has been expanding particularly rapidly requiring a major upgrade to support facilities. This upgrade started in 2005/06 and will continue in 2006/07.

Probation and Offender Services have experienced considerable growth in recent years, and will continue to do so in the foreseeable future. This growth has led to a number of new community-based office facilities being required. More detailed planning is underway to ensure that physical capacity is available to support increased demand.

Further details of initiatives relating to facilities and infrastructure management undertaken in 2005/06 are listed on pages 36 under Strategic Business Plan Theme 4: Strategy: Provide facilities to meet projected demand.

Information Technology

Since the Department's establishment in 1995, Information Technology (IT) strategies have been developed to provide and maintain key business systems, including a national system for offender management.

The Department's Information Technology systems have continued to be developed to meet the business needs of a large and complex organisation such as the Department. Over the last two years there has been 44 percent growth in the size of the network, along with ongoing upgrades to existing systems to ensure they continue to support the Department's requirements. These growth and upgrades have been carried out in accordance with the strategic direction set by the Information Technology Operational Strategy 2003-2008 .

The key aims of the Information Technology Strategy 2003-2008 are to:

• consolidate the existing infrastructure, operational and basic managerial systems
• continue, and strengthen, the management and cost-effective delivery of systems
• continue the evolution of the offender management system to support developing offender management business processes
• design better managerial processes and business decision making, based on quality information from the base business information systems and the data they contain, to support the growth of a knowledge-based management organisation
• maintain and improve current operational systems and ensure they continue to add value
• increase user satisfaction with the delivery of IT services
• continue the proven practices that exist and underpin the delivery of all IT support

The Integrated Offender Management System (IOMS) was implemented in 1999 and today it is used by most operational staff on a daily basis. Major rollouts have progressively delivered functionality, initially for day-to-day offender management and then followed by sentence planning and management, and management of rehabilitative programmes. Development was affected by the introduction of the Sentencing Act 2002 and Parole Act 2002, which required extensive changes to IOMS.

The Integrated Offender Management System (IOMS) has also been enhanced based on the IOMS review that was carried out in 2003/04. The review confirmed the effectiveness of the system and identified the ongoing life of the system through to 2012.

Development of a data warehouse began in 2003/04 and has continued to meet demand for management information. This has now become a key resource for managerial reporting, and further development is underway to meet the changing information needs of the Department. Also, to support information management throughout the Department, there has been a continual focus on implementing the Electronic Document and Records Management System (EDRMS).

The Department restructured its IT unit in 2005/06, resulting in improved resources and governance arrangements. The IT direction is now being infiuenced more by the justice sector and E-Government developments as a whole, especially following technology upgrades in the Ministry of Justice and work by other agencies on issues such as common networks and authentication technology.

Other major IT initiatives undertaken during 2005/06 included:

• completion of the upgrade of the Department's network plus implementation of a VoIP phone system
• upgrades to back-end infrastructure to support continual growth in device numbers
• continual implementation of the Electronic Document and Records Management System and enhancements to the data warehouse.

Further details of IT initiatives undertaken in 2005/06 are provided on page 36 under Strategic Business Plan Theme 4, Strategy: Continue to develop information management processes that support the Department's business.

Communications

The Communications Operational Strategy 2003-2008 guides the Department's approach to the management of communications through initiatives grouped under the following goals:

• foster internal appreciation of, and commitment to, the Department's strategic direction
• increase external awareness, understanding of, and support for, the role of the Department and the issues and challenges in managing offenders
• build communications activities for specific initiatives that give focus to, and reinforce, the four themes underpinning the Department's strategic direction.

Current communications challenges rest in supporting the overall strategic direction for the Department and in particular the increased focus on further integrating service delivery, increasing community involvement with the Department's work and ensuring that the Department's perspective is included in media coverage and public debate.

Staff understanding and support for the strategic direction is a vital component of enhancing the Department's capability and capacity. With much already done to establish an overall identity, there is now an emphasis on internal relationships and improving staff understanding of the organisation as a whole.

In recent years, the Department has increasingly emphasised the importance of working with communities and stakeholders. As a result, the Department has been more proactive about the way in which it communicates with the public and community groups. In particular, the increased focus given by the Department to initiatives involving Maori and Pacific peoples has required the development of specific communications activities to support these.

With high public interest in the Department's work, there will frequently be reactive management of media interest in specific events. At the same time, a proactive approach is required to allow the public to have reasonable trust and confidence in the Department's ability.

Key communications initiatives in 2005/06 focused on:

• Launching the Department's Pacific Strategy 2005-2008 and Prisoner Employment Strategy 2006-2009.
• Reviews of the Department's graphic identity, publications management and official correspondence management.
• Opening of the Auckland Region Women's Corrections Facility.
• Promoting public understanding of some of the Department's key initiatives such as release-towork and prisoner employment, contraband interception, drug detection and treatment, new reintegration initiatives and the trials of new monitoring technologies.
• Launching the Department's cultural practices policy.
• Supporting the transition of Auckland Central Remand Prison from private management to the Department.
• Integrating the Department's Maori name into existing branding.
• Influenza pandemic planning.
• Improving understanding of the Department's management of child-sex offenders.

Human Resources Management

The Human Resources Operational Strategy 2003-2008 guides the Department's approach to human resources management and builds on the existing culture and capability through key initiatives grouped under the following themes:

• alignment of organisational culture
• responsiveness to Maori and diversity
• enhancement of people capability and capacity
• an effective human resources framework.

Negotiation of the 2006 Collective Employment Agreements was a primary focus for 2005/06. The Department has sought to achieve a settled industrial climate in order to focus on the challenges associated with the level of growth and establishment of new facilities. The successful conclusion of collection bargaining on most Collective Employment Agreements establishes a stable foundation for focussing on our organisational culture and values.

Central to the development of desired organisational culture has been the Department's focus on its values statement: PRIDE, which stands for Professionalism, Responsiveness, Integrity, Diversity, Effectiveness and Efficiency. The PRIDE values are reinforced throughout the Department, in performance competencies, and through the award scheme, PRIDE in Corrections - a Chief Executive Award, which recognises and rewards staff who demonstrate the Department's PRIDE values. This scheme, along with other initiatives, is aimed at embedding values and shaping desired culture throughout the Department. The Department has also initiated a department-wide process to examine what the PRIDE values mean for staff at a practical, day-to-day level. This process is expected to generate some practical strategies to embed these values further.

In 2003, the Department achieved primary status in the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) Partnership Programme and has maintained this status through successive annual audits. The Department has successfully implemented a system of employee representation and provides ongoing training for its elected representatives and staff serving on health and safety committees. Significantly, the frequency and severity of injuries continue to fall.

The Management at Corrections programme has seen the development of training modules on health and safety, responsiveness to Maori, performance management, and finance and business information. These modules are being delivered to departmental managers. The suite of programmes is being added to with induction, selection training and management coaching. The development of further 'core' products and increased linkages to the opportunities provided by existing public service senior development programmes is also a key focus for the Department. The Management at Corrections programmes are complemented by further human resources development programmes specific to the Department's Services.

Further work will also continue to:

• integrate the management development component into a single department-wide framework, linked with wider public service initiatives
• address recruitment and retention issues, especially those associated with the commissioning of new prison facilities
• consolidate and reinforce the health and safety systems and process implemented to date.

Equal Employment Opportunities (EEO)

The Department of Corrections recognises that it must take a leading role in promoting the Government's EEO policy by accepting responsibility for the implementation of a departmental policy that addresses the key principles of the EEO Policy to 2010: Future Directions of EEO in the New Zealand Public Sector. New Zealand society is underpinned by the principle of fairness, and the Department seeks, in the delivery of both policy and services, to develop an organisation which recognises that people have a right to be free of unfair discrimination.

In order to have credibility and to withstand criticism, the Department reflects in its organisation a commitment to tolerance, cultural consciousness and fair-mindedness. The Department's EEO policy contributes to effective management by attracting and drawing on a wider pool of talented people, by appointing the best people and by encouraging the full participation of all staff.

The Department is committed to equal opportunities in all its employment policies and procedures. Equal employment opportunities apply to all aspects of the Department's human resource policies, including recruitment, selection and appointment practices, training, performance management, career development, conditions of employment and the work environment. All departmental employees, regardless of gender, race, marital status, age, disability, sexual orientation, family status, religious or ethical beliefs, political opinion or union affiliation, have similar access to employment opportunities.

The Department's managers have primary responsibility to promote equal employment opportunities for all employees and to eliminate policies and practices that work against equity in the workplace. The Department takes a strategic approach to equal employment opportunities and policies to support its business outcomes.

The 2005/06 EEO programme complements other human resource initiatives that are working towards a positive workplace culture and cooperative relationships between staff and management.

EEO training for managers included the development and initiation of the Responsiveness to Maori workshop. The Responsiveness to Maori workshop provides a wider historic context and background for why Maori are highly represented in the Corrections system and the range of perspectives a manager may come across when working with our Maori stakeholders. The workshop facilitates staff understanding of how a number of core M¯aori concepts can be applied in the workplace to enhance workplace responsiveness.

Further EEO training included the Probation and Offender Services Kia Mau cultural awareness training programme. Kia Mau enhances Community Probation Service staff knowledge, understanding and skills and enables them to work more effectively with Maori offenders. The programme enhances working relationships with Maori offenders, their whanau and local communities.

The evident progression throughout 2005/06 highlights the current positive direction of the Department, through the promotion and integration of equal opportunities for all persons associated with the Department.

Employees by Gender and Ethnicity

As at 30 June 2006, the Department employed 5,798 Full Time Equivalent employees (FTEs), compared with 5,110 as at 30 June 2005. Of this total, females represented 37.5 percent of all the Department's employees, compared with 36 percent as at 30 June 2005. Maori and Pacific peoples represented 20.9 percent and 7.9 percent respectively of the Department's employees as at 30 June 2006, compared with 22.8 percent and 7.4 percent at the same date in 2005.

FIGURE 19: Employees by Ethnicity

Note: Prior to 2004, NZ European were included in Other.

FIGURE 20: Employees by Gender

Pay and Employment Equity Plan

The Department of Corrections is committed to the outcomes of the Government Pay and Employment Equity Plan of Action. As part of the review of remuneration systems, the Department has provided input into the Department of Labour-led initiative to develop a gender neutral job evaluation system. The State Services Commission and the Pay and Employment Equity Unit of the Department of Labour have kept the Department informed of the development of pay and employment equity processes.

The Department is commencing preparation for the Pay and Employment Equity Audit that will occur in the 2007 calendar year.

Disability Strategy

The Department of Corrections is committed to equal opportunity in all its employment policies and procedures. The Disability Progress Report 2005/06 identified the Department's disability policies and procedures whilst also acknowledging key disability areas that were progressed throughout 2005/06.

Significant actions for the 2005/06 period included:

• the construction of a large range of new facilities nationwide that have incorporated national industry access requirements
• the updating of the Department's website to enhance accessibility for all users
• the provision of a Department representative to the New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) Interpreters Working Group to comment on standards regarding NZSL Interpreters in legal proceedings.

Progress was also achieved with the ongoing review of criminogenic treatment and assessment operational policies and interventions. Assessment of how programmes could be made more accessible and effective for offenders with different types of disabilities (physical, sensory, neurological, psychiatric, intellectual or developmental) has been investigated. Furthermore, information processes that record information on disabilities in the prison population and amongst those serving non-custodial sentences were developed progressively throughout 2005/06.

Work will also continue during the 2006/07 financial year in accordance with the Department's Disability Implementation Work Plan. Under this plan, the Department will progressively review all employment and staff support processes to ensure they are responsive to the needs of staff that have disabilities, and in accordance with the Department's health and safety in employment strategy.

Reducing Inequalities

The Department of Corrections is one of 13 identified government departments required to report on reducing inequalities. The Treasury has outlined the Department's reporting requirements for contributing to reducing inequalities. The reporting requirements apply to annual reports from 2004/05 onwards and reflect the revised changes to the reducing inequalities policy agreed by the Cabinet in June 2004.

Reducing inequalities reaches across many sectors and requires coordinated action. Within the Department, reducing inequalities means focusing on the following Government outcomes (Reducing Inequalities: Next Steps Report to Cabinet 2004):

• better health and reduced inequalities in health
• high levels of participation in education, and improved educational achievement
• improved labour market participation, greater access to sustainable employment opportunities and reduced unemployment
• reduced criminal victimisation and violence
• cultural and ethnic identities are valued.

The incorporated approach to managing the reducing inequalities policy assumes that departments will consider and reflect the goals, principles, and priorities of the Government's reducing inequalities policy in their planning, policy development and service delivery.

The Department's full annual report for 2005/06 on Reducing Inequalities is at Appendix 3 to this Annual Report.