F.06.03 Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

1. Self-care Unit

To be eligible for a Self-care Unit, the prisoner must meet the following criteria:

As a mother and baby placement:

• Placement is considered to be in the best interests of the child and has been approved by the Prison Manager.
• Is not in the “functional support” sentence management category.
• Has no previous convictions or serving current sentence for sexual or violent offences involving children.
• The baby is less than nine months of age.
• Be a sentenced prisoner.

2. Feeding and Bonding Facility

• A prisoner sentenced by the court to a term of imprisonment.
• A prisoner remanded by the court into custody (including prisoners held pursuant to the Immigration Act).
• Any application for the use of Feeding and Bonding Units from an accused prisoner will be assessed on its own merits. In approving the application the Prison Manager will need to consider the operational constraints involved, in particular the approval to mix accused and sentenced prisoners, approval must be obtained from the Manager, National Support in National Office.
• The baby must be less than nine months of age.

Entry Criteria

• Applicants must meet the following requirements:
  • Have a child under nine months of age.
  • Express a willingness to be placed in the Self-care unit.
  • Is not an Identified Drug User (IDU), if previously / currently IDU, has provided two clean samples in the three months prior to placement (if available).
  • Has no serious misconducts recorded in the last six months.
  • Has been classified AA and housed in an AA security unit for at least three months (prisoners with babies may be of a higher security classification, but must receive prior approval from the Prison Manager).
  • Sign a parenting Agreement, agreeing to comply with the conditions and requirements of the Unit.

2. Feeding and Bonding Facility

• Female applicants must meet the following requirements:
  • Has a child under the age of nine months on reception or
  • have given birth to a baby while in custody and
  • the manager has approved the request.
• The manager may approve the request if:
  • It is in the best interest of the baby, and
  • is not inconsistent with any court order relating to the baby, and
  • is consistent with maintaining the security and good order of the prison, and
  • the prisoner has signed a Parenting Agreement with the prison and nominated caregiver outlining the timing, frequency, rules and regulations associated with the visits.
• The agreement should not impose any additional entry or retention criteria to those contained in this system.
  • Be any PS Sentence Management category.
  • Have any security classification.

Retention Assessment Criteria

To retain access to the Feeding and Bonding facilities prisoners are required to:

• Adhere to the "Parenting Agreement", including the stipulation to be drug and alcohol free
• Obtain and maintain continued commitment from the caregiver to provide access to the baby.

Exit Criteria

The service ceases when:

• The prisoner is released.
• The prisoner is paroled.
• The baby reaches 9 months of age.