11 September
Following a 32 year ‘sentence’ at Waikeria Prison, Pirongia man Gavin Dalziel is back inside – as the new Prison Manager at Spring Hill Corrections Facility.
“Working for the Prison Service is in my blood. After a year out I missed it. I missed the operational challenges, the staff, and the interaction with prisoners” says Mr Dalziel.
Mr Dalziel began at Waikeria Prison in the mid 1970’s and worked his way up through the ranks.
“Before that, I was a diesel mechanic. My brother-in-law was working in the prison and it was his idea that I should try it.”
“More than 32 years later I still encourage people that a career in Corrections is very rewarding for the right type of person. We provide a key service in the community by protecting the public and giving people in our custody the chance to change their behaviour and become more positive members of society”.
“There is no one size fits all approach to helping prisoners turn their lives around. What works is addressing the specific needs of the individual – did they offend because they have an anger problem? Was it drug related? Are they unskilled and jobless, stealing to fund their lifestyles? While we have a number of rehabilitation programmes and interventions to help prisoners address these issues, it’s the interaction with staff and staff role modelling appropriate behaviour to prisoners that can be the key. A lot of guys that come into prison haven’t seen that before.”
The site has busy times ahead with the introduction of double bunking planned to begin early next year. All staff will benefit from additional training in de-escalation techniques to assist them in dealing with upset or volatile prisoners.
There is also a value for money review underway and an overall focus on increasing staff capability, knowledge and experience at all levels.
There will also be a focus on community relationships, which Mr Dalziel is familiar with having been in the role of Assistant Regional Manager when the site was opened in 2007.
“No one wants a prison in their back yard. The people of Waikato were no different, but now we are here, we had our second birthday last month and some strong relationships have been built in the community and we hope to build on that further.
“Eventually most prisoners leave prison. "Any connections that make the transition from prison-life to outside-life more likely to succeed can’t be underestimated. "We can’t reduce re-offending alone.”
For further information contact the Communications Services Desk:
Phone: (04) 460 3365 / after hours: (021) 761 828 / email: commdesk@corrections.govt.nz