Inspection report for Mount Eden Corrections Facility released
20 August 2025
The Office of the Inspectorate today released its inspection report for Mount Eden Corrections Facility (MECF).
MECF, in central Auckland, housed around 1,100 prisoners at the time of the inspection (October 2024), 95% of whom were on remand. It was a busy site with, on average, 600 prisoners arriving and leaving each month.
Chief Inspector Janis Adair said the inspection found: “Leadership at the site was generally stable and settled. Staff, including custodial and health staff, mostly had the skills and knowledge to do their jobs.”
Many staff, however, had less than two years’ experience working in a New Zealand prison, and many had English as a second language. Some of these staff struggled to understand cultural differences in New Zealand.
The custodial team was also short-staffed and, partly due to this, most prisoners were subject to restrictive regimes, spending around 22 hours a day locked in their cells.
MECF was providing opportunities for prisoners to engage with their families/whānau, including regular in-person visits.
The inspection team found examples of positive practice, including one unit being run as an alcohol and drug recovery unit, providing a rehabilitation programme and other mental health and addiction focused sessions.
The Property Office had a selection of good-quality clothes and shoes, donated by the charity Common (previously known as Koha Apparel), for people being released from prison who had nothing suitable to wear.
Adair said the prison was “a stark and austere environment with no green spaces, limited natural light and few outdoor areas. This makes it a challenging environment for both staff and prisoners.” Most prisoners and staff said they felt safe, but many prisoners did not feel safe in mainstream units.
Most prisoners did not have jobs, and there were limited educational, cultural (such as tikanga courses or kapa haka) or constructive activities available. Prisoners told us they were bored, stressed and frustrated.
The health team provided good levels of care, generally in a timely manner, although some prisoners waited unreasonable lengths of time to see a nurse or medical officer.
We found some good practice in the management of prisoners with mental health issues, but prisoners in the Intervention and Support Unit (including some with serious mental illnesses), were effectively being denied association (that is, being able to mix with others). For some, this likely amounted to prolonged solitary confinement, as this is defined in the Mandela Rules.
The report makes 31 over-arching findings.
“I expect the site to create an action plan to address the findings of this report ... I look forward to working with the site as I continue to monitor progress,” said Adair.
The Inspectorate is a critical part of the independent oversight of the Corrections system and operates under the Corrections Act 2004 and the Corrections Regulations 2005. The Inspectorate, while part of Corrections, is operationally independent, which is necessary to ensure objectivity and integrity.
The inspection process provides an ongoing insight into prisons and provides assurance that shortcomings are identified and addressed in a timely way, and that examples of good practice are acknowledged and shared across the prison network.