The Hakea Safer Custody Taskforce has helped address the Inspector’s Show Cause Notice
The Hakea Safer Custody Taskforce (HSCTF) was established in August 2024 to address serious concerns about prisoner safety at Hakea Prison, following a Show Cause Notice from the Inspector. While the taskforce has implemented several operational improvements – such as staffing agreements, hygiene measures, and suicide prevention training – these efforts have not led to meaningful improvements in prison conditions. Issues like overcrowding, limited access to basic hygiene, mental health services, and recreation persist, with ongoing human rights concerns. Without urgent, systemic reform – including potentially unconventional solutions – the situation at Hakea remains dangerously unstable.
Out-of-cell-hours remain low impacting prisoner wellbeing
Despite a slight improvement in average out-of-cell hours at Hakea Prison – from 5.3 hours in August 2024 to 6.7 hours by February 2025 – prisoners remain confined for unacceptably long periods, often in overcrowded conditions, with limited access to fresh air and meaningful recreation. Lockdowns, largely driven by staffing shortages, remain frequent, with restrictive regimes still widely used. These conditions have contributed to persistently high rates of self-harm and strained mental health support systems, including overburdened crisis care units and understaffed clinical services. While peer support programs and Aboriginal visitor services offer some relief, the overall environment remains detrimental to prisoner wellbeing and fails to meet international human rights standards.
Population pressures have resulted in overcrowding and triple-bunking
Hakea Prison continues to face severe overcrowding, with its population regularly exceeding official capacity. This has led to widespread triple-bunking, where up to 80 men sleep on mattresses on cell floors near toilets, creating cramped, unhygienic, and undignified conditions. Lockdowns remain frequent due to staffing shortages, further limiting access to basic needs like showers, hygiene products, and fresh air. Access to clean clothing, bedding, and hygiene essentials at Hakea Prison remains critically inadequate. These conditions have caused frustration among staff and management. A more strategic, system-wide approach is urgently needed to manage population pressures and restore humane living conditions.
Contact with family is extremely challenging
Prisoners at Hakea continue to face significant barriers in maintaining contact with the outside world, with limited access to phones and frequent cancellations of social visits due to ongoing staffing shortages. Short unlock periods force prisoners to choose between essential activities like showering, recreation, or calling family, while limited phone availability and delays in approving contact numbers further restrict communication. Social visits have declined sharply, with only 42% of booked sessions going ahead as at February 2025. These failures undermine prisoners’ emotional wellbeing and breach their fundamental rights to family and community connection.
New initiatives were attempting to address Hakea’s staffing challenges
Hakea Prison continues to face critical staffing challenges, with high numbers of staff on leave or workers compensation and only a modest net gain in full-time positions over the past year. Despite new incentives like special allowances and double-time pay, and the introduction of casual staff pools, staffing remains insufficient to meet the demands of the growing prison population. Tensions between management and the union have also persisted, with disagreements over safety, staffing levels, and operational strategies contributing to a conservative approach that relies heavily on lockdowns. Although some innovative measures have been introduced, sustained collaboration and systemic reform are needed to improve conditions for both staff and prisoners.