Skip to start of content

Home → Publications → Fact sheets → Crime facts info → Indigenous offenders in community corrections

Indigenous offenders in community corrections

Community corrections agencies are responsible for a range of non-custodial sanctions and deliver post-custodial interventions for released prisoners (Productivity Commission 2008). The nature and extent of supervision involved, whether orders involve work or other conditions and the degree to which an offender's movement within the community is restricted, vary between types of orders and jurisdictions. The figure below shows the rates of Indigenous and non-Indigenous offenders serving community corrections orders. Rates have remained reasonably stable, although Indigenous offenders have been significantly overrepresented throughout the period. The decrease in 2001-02 may be due largely to a reduction in the number of offenders serving fine option orders in Queensland (Productivity Commission 2003: 41). The national community corrections rate for Indigenous offenders in 2006-07 was 3,179.6 per 100,000 Indigenous adults compared with 265.9 for non-Indigenous offenders.

Indigenous and non-Indigenous community corrections rates per 100,000 adults, Australia, 1998-99 to 2006-07

Notes: Non-age standardised rates based on the daily average offender population numbers supplied by state and territory governments, calculated against adult Indigenous and non-Indigenous population estimates (population data supplied by the ABS National Centre for Crime and Justice Statistics). Excludes offenders whose Indigenous status was reported as unknown. See individual reports for further explanatory notes.

Source: Adapted from Productivity Commission Report on government services, 1997-2008

Reference

Related links