The next phase of Victoria's prison expansion program

The Victoria government will add more than 250 beds to three prisons, despite a drop in the number of people incarcerated in the state.

The Victorian government is ploughing ahead with its billion-dollar prison expansion program despite a drop in the number of people incarcerated in the state.

The next phase of the prison expansion project will see more than 250 new beds installed in three prisons across the state, including more than 200 beds for Victoria’s largest remand prison.

The state government this month appointed an independent certifier for three prisons as part of the $1.8 billion prison infill expansion program, which was launched in the 2019-20 budget to cater for the skyrocketing number of people in prisons at the time, driven by strict new bail laws.

But in the time since there has been less demand for prison cells, with a drop in the number of people incarcerated in Victoria due to the Covid-19 pandemic. While the prison population has started to increase again, there was a 7 per cent drop in Victoria in the December quarter.

This hasn’t stopped the Andrews government’s plan to expand the state’s prisons, with the Metropolitan Remand Centre, Marnogoneet and Hopkins next on the list.

Increased capacity projects have already kicked off at the Barwon and Middleton prisons, with multiple contracts signed in recent years.

WT Partnership was this month awarded a contract for independent certifier services for the prison expansion scheme, worth just over $450,000 and running to December 2023, following a limited tender process.

The contract covers the expansion plans for Ravenhall prison, Marngoneet Correctional Centre and Hopkins Correctional Centre, and will see more than 250 new cells created.

At Barwon, new cell accommodation blocks will be added, along with a visitor centre, light industries building and men’s shed.

At Marngoneet, 36 new beds will be installed along with a 12-bed “specialist intervention unit”.

The Metropolitan Remand Centre will receive the most significant expansion, with two new 102-bed accommodation blocks and supporting amenity areas.

The number of unsentenced people in Victoria prisons is increasing significantly. In 2020-21 the number of sentenced people in prison in Victoria dropped but the number of unsentenced people incarcerated increased by nearly 30 per cent.

The prison expansion scheme kicked off in October 2020 with the construction of 460 modular cells in Campbellfield. These cells will then be added to five prisons around the state.

A number of other contracts have been awarded recently by the Victorian government for the prison expansion scheme.

AEGIS Correctional Partnership, which was bought by AMP last year, will be paid $2.7 million from August last year to March 2023 to provide project consortium services for the work at Hopkins prison.

The organisation has acquired a full equity interest in the Hopkins prison, which is run on a public-private partnership with the Victorian government. The company described this as an “attractive opportunity” for its investors.

NBRS & Partners won a $2.1 million, two year contract to provide technical advice on the project, while AECOM will be paid more than $400,000 to provide advice on security.

Head contractors have been appointed for the Middleton prison project, with Fairbrother paid $38 million for this work.

The Victorian government is also expanding the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre, with WATPAC Constructions paid $105 million to serve as the head contractor.