Overcrowding 'crisis' at women's jail
WA's female prison system is in crisis, according to a blistering report that accuses the State Government of failing to keep pace with demand for more beds despite repeated warnings.
The State's independent prisons watchdog has tabled a report in Parliament today in which he said Bandyup Women's Prison was the most overcrowded in WA with the highest level of assaults on guards.
Neil Morgan, the Inspector of Custodial Services, said the situation had become so "dire" the Department of Corrective Services was now being forced to consider housing female prisoners inside Hakea Prison – a maximum security male facility.
Professor Morgan was also scathing of the Government's failure to fix the problem earlier, saying signs of the need for investment in female prisons had become "clear" by 2008 and "absolutely critical" by 2009.
"Women's imprisonment is in crisis, and I do not use the word lightly," Professor Morgan said.
"What makes it worse is that the crisis was predictable and avoidable.
"The number of women in prison has been rising faster than the number of men for many years and by the mid-2000s it was obvious that investment was needed.
"It is inexplicable and inexcusable that when over $640 million was allocated to additional prison accommodation in 2009, virtually nothing was given to women.
"Bandyup Women's Prison in Perth has borne the brunt – it is the most complex, overcrowded and stressed prison in the State.
"It also has by far the highest rate of assaults by prisoners on staff of any prison and is performing poorly in terms of protecting the community by reducing recidivism."
According to Professor Morgan, moves to accommodate women at an expanded Greenough Regional Prison from 2012 had improved services there but done almost nothing to address the overall issue.
He likened it to a "band-aid" solution that was too small to meet demand, too far from home for many prisoners and "still a female island in a male domain".
Professor Morgan said male and female prisoners were still able to communicate with each other at Greenough and the results were often "demeaning, unhealthy and inappropriate".
With the female prison system stretched to breaking point, Professor Morgan said the Government would have to find alternative places to house prisoners quickly.
Although he sympathised with Corrective Services Commissioner James McMahon, who was only appointed to the post last September, Professor Morgan said accommodating them at Hakea could be an "unmitigated disaster".
"It is a severe indictment of past priority setting and planning that the preferred option appears to be to accommodate women, many of whom have suffered violence or abuse at the hands of men, in a maximum security male prison," he said.
"Indeed, when responding to our report just three months ago, the department appeared to have ruled out the Hakea option.
"It should never have reached the stage where the Hakea option was even being considered but something must be done to alleviate the pressure of numbers and the unacceptable situation at Bandyup.
"I have major concerns about any move to Hakea.
"If it is not done properly, it will be an unmitigated failure."
Corrective Services Minister Joe Francis said he accepted the women’s prison system was under pressure but denied it was in crisis.
Despite acknowledging the warning that putting female prisoners in Hakea could be a disaster if handled badly, Mr Francis insisted that “rationalising” the State’s prison space was the smartest way to go.
“At the end of the day taxpayers have a limited amount of money,” Mr Francis said.
“In a perfect world we could spend hundreds of millions of dollars building a new prison for women.
“I just don’t think it’s warranted.
“I just don’t think it’s a smart use of taxpayers’ money when we’ve got so many other beds in other prisons that are now available.
“So what we’re trying to do is rationalise the assets we already own.”
Labor’s acting corrective services spokesman Ben Wyatt said the Inspector of Custodial Services had issued similar warnings in the past.
“And yet here we are facing this apparent crisis with respect to our women’s prisons,” he said.
Mr Wyatt said he was not convinced a new women’s prison was warranted but said the Government need to spend its money more wisely.
