• WA’s prison population has expanded rapidly
  • ‘Design capacity’ is the most accurate measure of prison capacity
  • Our prisons are above or at ‘capacity’ depending on the measure used
    • on 30 June 2016 the WA prison system was at 148 per cent of ‘design capacity’
    • on 30 June 2016 the WA prison system was at 97 per cent of ‘modified capacity’, a measure similar to the Department of Corrective Services (DCS)reporting practices
    • in practice, many of the ‘spare’ beds are not usable
    • the lack of ‘buffer capacity’ makes it harder to manage prisons
  • Only 32 per cent of WA prisoners can be held in compliance with the 1990 Australasian Standard Guidelines for cell sizes
    • most WA prisoners are held in cells that do not meet Australasian Standard Guidelines
    • many older cells fail to meet International Committee for the Red Cross standards for even single occupancy, despite being routinely double-bunked
    • much newer custodial accommodation also fails to meet Australasian Standard Guidelines 1990 for cell sizes
    • continued installation of double-bunks exacerbates non-compliance with Australasian Standard Guidelines 1990
  • Double-bunking is contrary to UN standards, and its risks are not being sufficiently addressed
    • the Mandela Rules strongly affirm the use of single prisoner cells
    • cell sharing results in a loss of human dignity
    • cell sharing impacts on the ability to prepare for court and on rehabilitation
    • sharing cells increases risks for prisoners
    • DCS is not sufficiently mitigating the risks of cell sharing
  • Prison services become compromised by crowding, and crowding increases the risk of losing control
  • DCS’ method of reporting has hidden the extent of the problem
Page last updated: December 19, 2016