Community Corrections officers graduate from the Practitioner Development Program

Nineteen community corrections officers were recognised last week (23 May), graduating from the Practitioner Development Program at a ceremony held at the Queensland Corrective Services Academy.

Community Corrections officers act as agents of change and play a vital role in keeping communities safe by helping to prevent people completing community-based orders from re-offending.

They are dedicated to managing more than 20,000 offenders in the community, including supervising parolees, probationers and offenders subject to community service orders.

The Practitioner Development Program undertaken by the graduates builds on the fundamental skills required to perform in their role, enhancing their interviewing skills, time and personal management skills and most importantly, offender management skills.

Throughout the intensive training, graduates covered topics to expand their skills, including pro-social modelling, cultural awareness, effective decision making and stakeholder engagement.

The final phase of training is the completion of work-based assessment activities across a six-month period. As a result, graduates receive a nationally accredited Certificate IV in Correctional Practice.

Graduating officers are based across Queensland, protecting the community in Townsville, Bundaberg, Cairns, Toowoomba, Thursday Island, Caboolture, Wynnum, Ipswich and Brisbane.

Queensland Corrective Services Commissioner Peter Martin APM said community corrections officers dealt with the most challenging people in society and worked to achieve positive public safety outcomes.

“Our community corrections officers are a core component of the correctional system, working tirelessly to reconnect offenders with their community to help break the cycle of re-offending,” Commissioner Martin said.