Probation and parole officers
New changes in place
The Sentencing and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2022 has now passed.
It includes changes to sentencing for certain offences.
Read more on the Department of Attorney-General and Justice website.
Probation and parole officers supervise offenders on court and parole orders to contribute to the safety of the community.
Officers work with offenders to ensure they comply with their order conditions and help them address their behaviour that gets them into trouble.
Who officers work with
They work with offenders and other agencies to develop a plan to meet the needs of an offender's circumstances, which may be problems with alcohol or drugs, anger, homelessness or no job.
To support the offender to comply with their order, the probation and parole officers may speak with their partner, family, elders, friends and employer to help them understand the conditions of the order so they can help them stay on track.
The officer will also meet the local police officers to make sure the offender is following their order and not causing trouble in the community.
A probation and parole officer is also required by law to make sure the offenders comply with any order conditions and must tell police, court or the Parole Board if the offender tells them something which is against the law.
How the officer works with an offender and their family
The court may ask a probation and parole officer to talk to offenders at court to help them decide if an offender should be given an order to be supervised by Community Corrections.
This order might have strict conditions, which are things the offender must do and also things they can't do.
They will help offenders and their family to understand what happens at court and explain the conditions of the order.
Reporting to the officer
An offender will be assigned a probation and parole officer who they will need to report to regularly to discuss their behaviour, progress and plans to help them stay out of trouble.
Prisoners applying for parole
A probation and parole officer will work with prisoners who are applying for parole to help them develop a plan for living back in the community.
The officer will provide a report to the Parole Board about the prisoner which will take lots of things into consideration, including who the prisoner might live with and their support networks, if they can get a job, and what the community including police and the victims think of the prisoner coming back.
Counselling or programs
To help the offender change their behaviour, a probation and parole officer may organise for the offender to attend counselling or programs for alcohol and drug rehabilitation or domestic violence.
Surveillance checks
A probation and parole officer may organise for surveillance checks to be done at home or work to make sure the offender is doing the right thing.
Checks may be to see if the offender has been drinking or may just involve speaking with family and friends to make sure there are no problems.
Reporting back to court
A probation and parole officer must report to courts or the Parole Board if an offender does the wrong thing. The officer doesn't decide on the punishment and must give fair and truthful information.
Contact
You can contact your probation and parole officer by calling the Community Corrections office near you.
Other languages
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Become a probation or parole officer
For probation and parole officer jobs, go to the Corrections Careers website.
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