While there was general agreement that training has seen some significant improvements, both in terms of the increased professionalism of the training Academy but also with the introduction of satellite trainers, Banksia Hill has not been making full use of these new opportunities. This Inquiry was informed that this is largely due to staff shortages which have prevented people being able to attend training. One person told the Inquiry that they had not been on a training course in seven years and that their requests to attend were being continually rejected due to staff shortages.
The training facilities are also inadequate, particularly for practical training. In this regard, the building works for the newly amalgamated centre made no provision for accommodation for any training facilities. As the Emergency Management Review Paper notes, this led to the unsatisfactory situation of staff doing practical simulation training in the presence of the detainees, resulting in detainees being aware of the tactical response options available to staff.
At this point in time, there are no established pathways of training to assist in promotion. For instance, there is no requirement for supervisory or management training for anyone holding a people leadership position. Undoubtedly this has impacted on the competency levels of key roles such as Unit Managers.