News in brief

Dog stars
Corrections has signed a contract with Cream Media to develop a television series on working dogs in New Zealand. The series will feature drug dog handlers as well as handlers from Police, Customs, MAF and other government agencies. The series will be similar to Border Patrol, and twelve episodes will be produced. Filming will start later in the year at various prisons around the country.

Five new trades
Since June 2008 Corrections Inmate Employment (CIE) has introduced five new Trade and Technical Training courses to prisons. In addition to all the other NZQA courses and work-based training available
to them, prisoners can also learn:

• Small engine maintenance, painting and decorating, and carpentry (with WELTEC at Rimutaka Prison)
• Carpentry (with UCOL at Manawatu Prison)
• Small engine maintenance (with UCOL at Wanganui Prison).

Corrections’ front-line maintained
Frontline Corrections jobs have been exempted from the cap on public sector staff recently announced by the Government. Instead, given that offender numbers are forecast to grow, there is likely to be an increase in the number of front-line staff in both Community Probation and Psychological Services and Prison Services.

Credits up
Prisoners training through Corrections Inmate Employment (CIE) have already earned more NZQA credits in the eight months from July 2008 to February 2009 than they did in the previous 12 months. In the July 2008 to February 2009 eight-month period they earned 37,959 credits. In the whole 2007/2008 financial year, they got 37,563 credits.