Eight women have celebrated a new year and a new beginning at their graduation from the Wandoo Prison rehabilitation program ahead of their release from custody.
The program offers women the chance to change their lives by breaking the cycle of addiction related offending.
"We know the new and innovative approach taken at Wandoo works because the facility has one of the lowest rate of reoffending in the country," said Acting Commissioner Mike Reynolds.
"The women who are accepted into this program are dedicated to their recovery and we see many leave our care and successfully complete their parole with the support of specialist service providers in the community."
The graduates join 141 others who have successfully completed the program since its inception in August 2018, when the prison was returned to public sector management.
Wandoo boasts a drug free status, with no positive tests for alcohol or other drugs returned since its transformation and no related contraband found on site.
"This facility is our ‘most searched’. Drug Detection Unit dogs and staff scour the premises on a daily basis and conduct regular additional searches," said Commissioner Reynolds.
Women in custody can elect to take part in the therapeutic program delivered by service provider Cyrenian House and are assessed for eligibility based on a number of criteria.
Being at Wandoo is challenging for the women who have to confront not only their alcohol and other drug issues but also the underlying problems that led to their addiction.
More than 800 applications for the program have been received to date.
