The new offending behaviour programs service delivery


The new Offending Behaviour Programs service delivery model, was introduced on 1 April 2015. The new model
provides a state-wide approach to the delivery of offending behaviour programs and services, which ensures
consistency, credibility and confidence in service delivery.
At the end of 2014–15, 22 of the 23 measures recommended had been fully implemented. The one outstanding
measure, the case workflow system at the Adult Parole Board, will be implemented by December 2015.
Increasing number of offenders under Community Correctional Services supervision
In the latter part of 2014–15, the number of offenders on supervised court orders significantly increased. After
increasing by more than 1000 in 2014, the number of offenders on supervised court orders increased by more than
1500 in the six months to 30 June 2015. Since March, the number of offenders on supervised court orders increased
by approximately 70 per week.
The key drivers of this growth in offender numbers are the abolition of suspended sentences, increased use of a
combined sentence of imprisonment and a Community Correction Order (CCO), and the Guideline Judgement on
the CCO handed down by the Court of Appeal on 22 December 2014. The
Guideline Judgement
confirmed that the
CCO is capable of being highly punitive and, as such, may be suitable for relatively serious offences that might
previously have received a medium term of imprisonment (
Boulton v The Queen
;
Clements v The Queen
;
Fitzgerald v The Queen [2014] VSCA 342).
To support Corrections Victoria’s capacity to manage this increasing demand, the 2015–16 State Budget provided $65
million in output funding and $26 million in capital funding to expand the capacity of CCS to supervise offenders in the
community. This included $2 million over two years for family violence programs to address perpetrator behaviour.
The funding provides for 143 additional CCS staff, a number of new CCS locations and a suite of programs and
services aimed at reducing recidivism and increasing opportunities for offenders to make reparation to the
community. The Budget also provides pilot funding for four mental health clinicians across the Melbourne and
Sunshine Magistrates’ courts. These staff will provide advice to inform the appropriateness of including a mental
health treatment and rehabilitation condition for inclusion on a CCO. The pilot aims to improve the quality of mental
health screening and recommendations provided to the court when magistrates are considering including a mental
health condition on a CCO.
38

Report on output performance
Performance measures
Unit of
measure 2014–15 actual 2014–15 target
Performance
variation (%) Result
Quantity
Average daily offenders under community-based
supervision
number 8362 7798 7.2 
The actual is above the target due to significant growth in the number of supervised offenders.