What Corrections does - Change Lives, Shape Futures

The Department of corrections is responsible for the management of New Zealand's corrections system.


Public Safety

We do this by:

Operating prison facilities in accordance with the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners. We manage prisoners safely and humanely, meeting their legitimate needs.

We do this by:

Making sure prisoners and community-based offenders comply with the sentences and orders imposed by the courts and the New Zealand Parole Board.

We do this by:

Providing offenders with rehabilitation programmes, education and job training that will turn their lives around and break the cycle of re-offending.


Underlying these core responsibilities is a commitment to the people of New Zealand – to protect them from those who could harm them.

Whether it is monitoring offenders serving sentences in the community, putting in place support plans for those at risk of re-offending, upgrading our facilities to ensure their security or providing information to the courts and Parole Board to assist with their decision making, everything Corrections does is centred on keeping communities safe.

Public safety is our bottom line, and the best contribution we can make is to ensure that people who come into the Corrections system do not re-offend. That is why reducing re-offending is our ultimate goal, and is at the heart of our strategic plan. We work actively with offenders to provide rehabilitation, education and employment training, which play a positive role in helping offenders to turn their lives around.

Table with six columns, with cells grouped by column and running top to bottom. First column heading: Minister’s priorities, contents: Public Safety is improved – Improve the safety of Corrections staff – Reducing re-offending by 25% – Improve performance through Public Private Partnerships – Better public value. Second column heading: Section in the annual report, contents – Public Safety is Improved, pages 26-43 – Reoffending is Reduced, pages 44-63 – Better Public Value, pages 64-69 – Visible Leadership, pages 70-76. Third column heading: Department’s Appropriations, contents – Prison-based Custodial – Sentences and Orders Served in the Community – Information and Administration Services to the Judiciary and New Zealand Parole Board – Rehabilitation and Reintegration – Policy Advice and Ministerial Services. Fourth column heading: Department’s impacts, contents – The integrity of sentences and orders is maintained and offenders are held to account – The Judiciary and New Zealand Parole Board make informed decisions – Risks of harm to others are minimised – Offenders have the skills and support to lead law-abiding lives – Offenders’ health and wellbeing are maintained – Supporting our people. Fifth column heading: Department’s outcomes, contents – Public safety is improved – Re-offending is reduced. Sixth (final) column heading Justice Sector overall, contents – SAFE AND JUST SOCIETY. End of table.


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