16 August 2010
Ten prisoners at Northland Region Corrections Facility recently celebrated their graduation with level two National Certificates in the Painting and Decorating course.
The qualification covers the foundational requirements to work in the commercial painting industry, with the prisoners gaining twelve unit standards and forty three credits towards NZQA qualifications.
“The course is taught by NorthTec and equips prisoners with a range of skills that have proven industry value,” says Northland Corrections Inmate Employment instructor, Gary O’Neill.
“The course is taught in six specifically designed and built booths – mock-ups of residential rooms which are each repainted a number of times using different techniques, materials and skills. This gives prisoners painting and decorating experience which can help them gain employment upon release.
“The prisoners really enjoyed the creative aspect of the course. They really got involved in learning about how colour and form can have a major visual impact – how the design and colour of a space can either enclose it or open it up.
“The details of the science behind painting really helped them learn: understanding the integration of the spectrum of primary-colours and the way certain colours resonate with the eye because of their frequency; details like that really helped the prisoners get interested in the subject.
“The prisoners gained a whole new sense of learning that they hadn’t experienced before. The course showed them how to stick with a project and take time and care to get a result that they and their tutors were happy with. They couldn’t rush, they were encouraged to learn and apply themselves, and it really paid off for these guys as most of them have never experienced anything like this before,” says Mr O’Neill.
“The commercial and residential applications for work outside of prison once released make this course very useful for these guys. They really valued what they got from the course through learning these skills.”
“We can leave prisoners in their cells all day or we can give them some experience working and gaining skills that will assist them in getting meaningful work upon release. Research shows that this will reduce the likelihood that they will re-offend, which ultimately makes our communities safer,” says Mr O’Neill.
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