OFFICE OF THE INSPECTORATE Te Tari Tirohia

On 13 June 2023, the Office of the Inspectorate | Te Tari Tirohia released a report into the management of prisoners who have been separated from the prison population and are unable to mix with other prisoners.

The report, Separation and Isolation: Prisoners who have been kept apart from the prison population, found that many prisoners are managed in isolation, with potential profound and long-lasting physical and psychological effects.

The report makes seven overarching recommendations, which Corrections has accepted. These include that: ‘Corrections must report back on progress on the recommendations and areas of consideration in six months and thereafter at six monthly intervals. The Office of the Inspectorate will report on progress publicly at periodic intervals.’

As part of this recommendation to report back, Corrections has provided a formal update (pdf below).

All 18 New Zealand prisons were visited as part of the Separation and Isolation thematic inspection.