Complaints statistics

Updated 12 July 2023

PC.01 Prison Complaints

PC.01 complaints about prisons can be made in confidence to unit staff or directly to prison management. Where possible, we try to resolve complaints at the lowest appropriate level. Generally, this means corrections officers are the first to receive a complaint and will attempt to resolve it informally.

If a resolution cannot be achieved at this level, a person in prison can submit a formal complaint through the PC.01 process. Find out more about the PC.01 process.

Number of PC.01 complaints received and closed by financial year

Number of  PC.01 Complaints Received and Closed by Financial Year
 2022-2023
2021-2022
2020-2021
2019-2020
2018-2019
2017-2018

PC.01 – Number of Complaints Received (1)

19,907

11,900

13,289

12,567

11,480

10,754

% acknowledged within 24 hours of receipt

99.9%

99.8%

100%

100%

100%

100%

% Closed on same day

27.9% (4)

5.6%

5.4%

5.9%

5.0%

4.6%

% Open for 1-7 Days

43.9%

50.4%

50.1%

47.9%

45.5%

46.3%

% Open for 8-14 Days

12.5%

18.4%

18.8%

19.6%

20.2%

18.5%

% Open for 15-21 Days

5.9%

8.6%

9.3%

9.3%

10.0%

9.9%

% Open for more than 21 Days

8.1%

14.0%

16.5%

17.3%

19.3%

20.6%

% Currently Open

1.8%

3.1%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

PC.01 – Number of Complaints Closed (2)

19,925

11,853

13,348

12,611

11,608

10,801

Note

(1)   Financial Year based on complaint creation date

(2)   Financial Year based on complaint closed date. Complaints can cover multiple financial years (e.g., be received in one financial year but be closed in another).

(3)   2022-2023 data extracted on 4 July 2023

(4)  The increase in PC.01 complaints in 2022/23 appears to be a result of complaints being added to the prisoner kiosks, and the increase in complaints ‘Closed on same day’ appears to be due to staff adjusting to the new processes.

View number of PC.01 complaints by prison and by category PDF, 100.3 KB

Community Probation complaints received by Category

Complaints about Community Corrections can be made in confidence to a Community Corrections staff member. Where possible, we try to resolve complaints at the lowest appropriate level. Generally, this means probation officers are the first to receive a complaint and will attempt to resolve it informally. If a complaint cannot be resolved at this level, a formal complaint can be made. A formal complaint will be passed to a community district manager. They will investigate a complaint and may involve other staff or more senior management if necessary

Number of Community Probation Complaints received, by category
2022/2023
2021/22
2020/21
2019/20
2018/19
2017/18

Centre / agency classification

2

0

1

2

3

0

Court Liaison

0

0

0

0

0

2

Food (Community Work)

0

2

7

0

0

1

Other

62

65

64

52

74

78

Pre Sentence Report

0

0

0

0

0

1

Privacy Act / general request for information

13

4

15

11

18

13

Reports / information transfer

7

10

17

17

19

16

Sentence order enforcement

20

11

18

16

19

14

Sentence order management

69

54

111

101

70

110

Sentence Specific

0

0

0

0

0

1

Staff conduct / attitude

51

41

70

68

69

89

Transfers

3

7

1

1

0

1

Worksite conditions

0

0

1

2

4

2

Total

227

194

305

270

276

328

Note:

(1)    Corrections' ability to provide centrally collated statistics on Community Probation complaints is currently limited, but statistics are provided to the best of our ability.

(2)    Statistics are extracted on 4 July 2023

Prison Escort and Court Custodial Services (PECCS) Complaints

First Security is contracted by Corrections to provide Prison Escort and Court Custodial Services. The number of complaints received about the PECCS are outlined below. The statistics are also reported in our Annual Reports.

Number of PECCS complaints received
2022/232021/222020/212019/202018/192017/18
Total PECCS complaints received403222
Sub category one - Complaints by members of the public about security officer’s driving
2
0
2000
Sub category two - Complaint by a prisoner in relation to security officers employed by the contractor.
2
0
1222

(1) Statistics are as at 12 July 2023

Victim Notification Register (VNR) Complaints

Victim notification gives victims of serious crime, who are registered on the victim notification register, a way to stay informed about the person who offended against them. If a person on the register feels that they have not been provided with information they should have or their safety has been compromised in any way, they have the right to make a complaint.  The number of complaints about the VNR are outlined below. The statistics are also reported in our Annual Reports.

Number of VNR complaints received
 2022/232022/212020/212019/202018/192017/18
Total VNR complaints received1034684
VNR Complaint - Number of Complaints Received, by Category
Failure to Notify411511
Late Notification411020
NZPB Administration000000
Other212153
VNR Complaint - Number of Complaints Received, by Outcome
Justified402263
To Be Decided000000
Unjustified632421

Unwanted Prison Mail Complaints

Corrections provides people in prison with writing paper and envelopes, and pays for standard postage for up to three letters per week. If a person in prison wants to send a fast post letter or a parcel, they must pay for this themselves. Prisons send and receive vast quantities of mail every year. All letters (with some exceptions) are checked by staff for contraband. Mail may also be checked by our detector dogs so there can sometimes be a delay in prisoners receiving them.

We take all complaints and enquiries about unwanted prison mail very seriously. You can call 0800 345 006 or email mailcomplaints@corrections.govt.nz if you have an enquiry or complaint about unwanted prison mail. You can also complete the online complaint form, that will be delivered to the same email. Completing the online form will ensure you record all information we need to process your enquiry quickly. The email and 0800 line are staffed weekdays only. Voice messages can be left after hours and staff will respond.

Number of Unwanted Prison Mail Complaints, by Financial Year and Category

2022/23

2021/22

2020/21

2019/20

2018/19

2017/18

General Mail Complaint

345

301

371

163

-

-

Stamp Complaint

1

0

10

2

-

-

Wrong Address Complaint

58

133

234

119

-

-

Total

404

434

615

284

-

-

Notes

  1. Data extracted from the database on 6 July 2023 for the period July 2022 - June 2023.
  2. The process for centrally collating unwanted prison mail complaints was initiated in 2019/20, and data from earlier years is not available.
     

Office of the Inspectorate complaints

The Office of the Inspectorate investigates complaints from people in prison and on community-based sentences and orders. Generally, complaints should be resolved at the lowest level. If a person is in prison, this means using the PC.01 system first. If a person is in the community they should speak to a Community Corrections staff member to try to resolve their concern first. If, after that, a person still believes they have been treated unfairly or unreasonably, they can make a complaint to the Inspectorate.  In cases of urgency or safety, a complaint can be made directly to the Inspectorate.  Statistics on the number of complaints received by the Office of the Inspectorate are available on their website.