Batemans Bay Community Corrections reclaims the bush

Last published on 27 Jan 2021 

Batemans Bay Community Corrections staff, offenders and community partners have come together on National Corrections Day to give back to their bushfire-ravaged community.

The team is among 10,000 Corrective Services NSW staff celebrated on National Corrections Day on Friday 15 January for their commitment to community safety and reducing reoffending.

Manager Michelle O’Brien says her team wanted to celebrate the day by planting trees and hosting a picnic with community partners.

“Like many in our community, the Batemans Bay Community Corrections family were shaken-up over the devastating impact of the 2020 bushfires on our community,” Ms O’Brien said.

“As a way of celebrating National Corrections Day and giving something back to the community, we thought it would be a good opportunity to use our Community Service Work scheme to support the bushfire recovery.”

The team purchased native plants from the Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Gardens and will be donating them to community-service worksites where they will be planted by people on court-ordered community supervision.

“This will also assist our offenders to engage further within their communities by having a valuable role in assisting the bush-fire recovery,” Ms O’Brien said.

“We also thank the staff at Bunnings in Batemans Bay and Eurobodalla Shire Council environmental for kindly donating plants to the project.”

Batemans Bay Community Corrections is located on Beach Road and employs nine staff who oversee and manage offenders on parole and court-ordered community supervision.

The 2021 National Corrections Day theme is Working together to reduce reoffending, focusing on the ways staff assist offenders through programs, education, promoting a good workplace culture and positive interactions.

Corrective Services NSW includes about 5,000 custodial officers, 1,800 Community Corrections staff, 750 industries workers, 720 psychologists and programs officers and 1,170 Security and Intelligence staff.

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