Let's Talk

Building CSC's Strategic Plan for Fiscal Year 2006-07

BY Cheryl Fraser, Assistant Commissioner, Performance Assurance Sector

The Correctional Service of Canada’s management team from coast to coast met at the annual Executive Development Symposium at the end of November, where Commissioner Keith Coulter led discussions on developing the plans and priorities that will guide delivery of the Service’s correctional results in the coming fiscal year and beyond.

Priorities were developed in accordance with our Mission and aligned with our public safety agenda: we exercise safe and secure custody in institutions and effective supervision in the community, and treat offenders in a reasonable and humane manner, actively encouraging and assisting them to become law-abiding citizens.

We know the future will be different from the past because the profile of our offender population is changing and becoming more complex. CSC must continuously realign resources and efforts to respond to the challenges ahead.

In the next issue of Let’s Talk, there will be more information about CSC’s strategies to deliver good correctional results in four key areas:

Preparing offenders for a safe and timely transition to the community

With close to two-thirds of new admissions receiving sentences of three years or less, CSC is developing and implementing integrated intervention strategies that focus on modifying the intake assessment process, improving offender preparation for release, and on providing better community support.

Enhancing the safety and security of staff and offenders in our institutions

Enhanced new strategies to address safety and security issues are required in order to protect the safety of staff and offenders and to increase offenders’ potential for safe reintegration. Increased emphasis needs to be placed on reducing violence among inmates and curtailing the supply, use and negative impacts of drugs in our institutions.

Enhancing capacities to provide a continuum of culturally appropriate interventions that address the specific needs of First Nations, Métis and Inuit offenders in a way that contributes to safe and healthy communities.

Presently, almost 19 percent of inmates are of Aboriginal ancestry. Consistent with government-wide initiatives to reduce the gap in life chances for Aboriginal peoples, CSC is proceeding to develop and implement a strategic plan for Aboriginal corrections that is more responsive to the needs of Aboriginal offenders and, in turn, contributes to safe and healthy communities.

Enhancing our capacity to address the mental health needs of offenders

Given that more than one out of ten men offenders and one out of four women offenders have been identified at admission with mental health problems, CSC must provide a full-spectrum response to the broad and multi-dimensional mental health needs of offenders.

Operational priorities cannot be translated into results without a well managed organization to carry out the delivery, so in addition to these four operational priorities, CSC will also work to strengthen management practices. ♦