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Kingaroy Probation and Parole helps
offenders plan for relapse prevention
Kingaroy Probation and Parole conducted the area’s
first Relapse Prevention Plan Education Session, in
conjunction with the Alcohol and Drug Foundation
Queensland (ADFQ) on 17 December.
Staff at the Cairns Probation and Parole
District Office threw their support behind the
Movember cause this year, raising more than
$1100 to assist men’s health initiatives.
The session was organised in response to an identified
need among some offenders who had reported
abstinence from alcohol and drugs, but still required
assistance to stay clean.
Funds from the month-long charity drive are
committed to the Prostate Cancer Foundation of
Australia, the Beyond Blue national depression
initiative and the Movember Foundation to
support a broad range of research, education
and awareness programs.
Limited specialist intervention resources in the South
Burnett region and the fact that these offenders were
considered low need meant they were not able to be
offered one-on-one counselling or support by service
providers.
Kingaroy District Manager Hannah Page said meetings
between Probation and Parole, ADFQ and South Burnett
ATODS determined that an education program was the
best option for these offenders.
Reporting Officer Lauren Mangan takes notes while ADFQ worker Janette Hams offers
suggestions from the workbook at the Relapse Prevention Plan Education Session held at
Kingaroy Probation and Parole District Office
‘The first session was hosted at Kingaroy District Office and cofacilitated by Reporting Officer Lauren Mangan,’ Hannah said.
‘Janette Hams from ADFQ was largely responsible for developing the
facilitator and participant workbooks.
‘Participants responded well to the session and were sent away with
homework to complete prior to their next appointment.’
Another milestone for Lotus Glen redevelopment
Lotus Glen Correctional Centre (LGCC) staff held a barbecue
on 15 December to celebrate the successful transfer of the
security management system to the centre’s new perimeter
fence, and the commissioning of the new medical centre,
gatehouse and visitor processing facility.
This operation included constant Perimeter
Response Vehicle patrols around the centre, two
armed shotgun officers on 24-hour patrol at two
posts and 24-hour manager attendance at the
incident command centre.
LGCC Acting General Manager Ben Hoare said: ‘The
cutover went very smoothly – if it wasn’t for the 100
per cent effort staff contributed, we would not have
achieved what has been completed to date.’
Before and after: Mo Bros Peter Michaels (left) and Maurice Plant were part of the Collective Follicles team
from Cairns Probation and Parole District Office that raised more than $1100 for men’s health initiatives
during the Movember charity fundraising drive
Under the banner of the Corrective Follicles,
Cairns District Office staff led by Reporting and Compliance Officer
Peter Michaels nurtured moustaches of all styles and varieties
throughout November, attracting donations from as far afield as
Brisbane and Aurukun.
‘They could be taught about basic relapse prevention
principles and then assisted to develop their own relapse
prevention plan in subsequent Probation and Parole appointments.
The transfer, or cutover, of the system to the new
fence was vital for the centre’s security and required
the implementation of a major operational plan over
a two-week period to ensure things went smoothly.
Movember makes
its mark at Cairns
District Office
Three hundred new cells and a new kitchen are the next areas to
be commissioned under the LGCC redevelopment project, with
work on visits and dog squad facilities well under way.
Stage Two of the redevelopment, which includes the refurbishment
of the centre’s existing cell blocks, will begin in April 2011.
Case Manager Maurice Plant provided further motivation to
supporters by agreeing to shave off the mo he has maintained for
the past 23 years if $1000 was raised.
When the target was reached, Maurice stayed true to his word
and turned up for work on 30 November without his trademark
moustache.
Later that day Cairns District Office staff came together for lunch to
mark the end of Movember and celebrate the contribution made to
the cause over the past month.
Green projects in focus on Sunshine Coast
The value of environmentally beneficial community service
projects were in focus when the Maroochydore and Noosa
Probation and Parole District Offices held their Green
Workplaces Strategy launch on 22 November.
The launch was attended by North Coast Probation and Parole
Regional Manager Fiona Brown, Maroochydore and Noosa District
Managers Vanessa Aland and Michael O’Neill, staff from both
offices and several community service supervisors from across the
Sunshine Coast.
Petrie Creek Land Rejuvenation Project Supervisor Gary Lawler
(pictured left) spoke about the achievements of the project over
the past 12 years, which include the planting of more than 26 000
trees along the banks of Petrie Creek and in other sub-catchment
areas in Nambour.
eradication program carried out by offenders on community service
orders.
The launch was followed by an afternoon tea and discussions
focused primarily on greening initiatives that other community
service projects have implemented or are looking to implement in
the near future.
Maroochydore and Noosa staff were also congratulated by the
Probation and Parole Directorate for their endorsement of the
Green Workplaces Strategy and the initiatives taken to reduce the
carbon footprint of their offices.
The project has helped transform a once polluted waterway into
one that now provides a home for wildlife and a meeting place for
the Nambour community.
Project Supervisor Gregory Wilschefski also spoke at the launch,
providing an overview of the Sunshine Coast Regional Council
project that has been operating at Noosa since 1991.
Gregory (pictured right) highlighted the work done at the Noosa
Botanical Gardens and the Coolum Beach noxious weed
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