The Star: January 26, 2017

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Thursday January 26 2017 25
News
Second chance for offenders
AT THE end of its first year,
19 people on community
sentences with the Department
of Corrections have become
the first to graduate from a
new agricultural skills training
programme.
They leave with qualifications
– and the chance to change their
lives. The ongoing project is a
partnership between Lincoln
University, Port Levy’s Koukourarata
Marae and Community
Corrections. It is intended to deliver
practical horticultural skills
with a focus on tikanga (Maori
way of doing things).
Corrections Canterbury lead
service manager Katey Gibling
said the intention was for offenders
to reconnect with the land
while gaining skills for employment
and a taste for achievement
and further training.
“Many of those we work with
are drifting, their lives have
become chaotic and without
purpose. Through this partnership,
and projects like this, we
help them to reconnect with their
culture and find a way forward,”
she said.
“Lincoln provide the qualification
and having them involved
has helped the offenders see
that this is a real qualification
and they are very capable of
MAKING A DIFFERENCE: Lincoln University’s biological husbandry unit manager Bill Martin (left),
Brent, and Corrections senior community work supervisors Tom Piahana and Reuben Gent. ​
doing something they had never
thought possible for them.”
The 12 graduates were presented
with certificates recognising
proficiency in chainsaw operation,
quad-bike driving, tractor
driving and the use of farming
implements.
For Brent, the first graduate of
the course, the programme has
been truly life changing.
“This programme was critical
to me getting the confidence to
have a go and get back in charge
of my life,” he said.
Last year, Brent was studying
horticulture, then when things
‘got stressful,’ he started to drink
heavily and found himself on a
community work sentence with a
drink driving conviction.
“When I committed my offences,
I wasn’t thinking ahead. I
was dealing with alcohol and anxiety
issues. I was losing my friends,
failing my studies. I was in a dark
place and ended up on a community
work sentence,” he said.
“This programme was the first
big mental shift for me. I started
to plan forward again.
“I did the chainsaw course
thinking that it could make me
more employable and I thought
the quad bike training could also
lead to something. It gave me the
confidence to try again. I had
gained these skills and thought, ‘I
can do this’.”
Brent said that in addition to
starting to learn again, it was
the mentoring support of the
community work supervisor who
helped him see opportunity.
The project’s community
work supervisor Reuben Gent
said the partnership offered
new opportunities for people on
community work sentences to
access skills and qualifications
for employment. The tikanga
element helped offenders
reconnect with Maori principals
and culture.
“In addition to practical skills
and work aptitudes, the offenders
on the programme are gaining
confidence and the personal
skills and motivation to move on
with their lives,” Mr Gent said.
•Turn to page 26
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