Qualification details
Title
New Zealand Certificate in Offender Management (Level 3)
Version
1
Qualification type
Certificate
Level
3
Credits
60
NZSCED
091199 Society and Culture > Justice and Law Enforcement >
Justice and Law Enforcement not elsewhere classified
Qualification developer
The Skills Organisation
Next review
December 2019
Approval date
April 2015
Strategic purpose statement
The purpose of this qualification is to provide the Offender
Management sector with frontline staff who have the foundation
knowledge, skills and behaviours to deliver security, care, and
prisoner rehabilitation functions in a New Zealand prison
environment.
The qualification is for people who are employed as entry level
Corrections Officers or Corrections Instructors in a New Zealand
prison environment.
Outcome Statement
Graduate profile
Graduates of this qualification will be able to:
-
Manage the safety of themselves, and the safety of others,
including staff, inmates and visitors, in a prison environment.
-
Maintain the security of the prison environment.
-
Carry out prisoner care activities.
-
Participate in a manner that is culturally safe and prisoner
centric.
-
Be accountable and responsible for ensuring that own
practice and conduct meets professional, ethical and legal
requirements and standards.
Education pathway
This qualification is an entry level qualification to the Offender
Management sector and leads to the New Zealand Certificate in
Offender Management (Level 4) [Ref: 2659], for which it is a
prerequisite.
Employment pathway
Graduates of this qualification will be able to work in varying
frontline operational roles in the Offender Management Sector,
private and/or public, such as a Corrections Officer.
Qualification specifications
Qualification Reference 2658
© New Zealand Qualifications Authority 2015
Page 1 of 5
Qualification award
The candidate shall be awarded the qualification by the
accredited Tertiary Education Organisation (TEO) where the
programme has been completed.
The formal document certifying the award of this qualification
includes the full qualification title, the date of award, and the
logos of The Skills Organisation, the accredited TEO, and the
NZQF.
As the qualification developer, The Skills Organisation will
maintain a list of graduates of this qualification. The TEO will
annually report the names of all graduates awarded the
qualification to The Skills Organisation.
Evidence requirements for
assuring consistency
All Tertiary Education Organisations (TEOs) offering this
qualification (either arranging training or delivering programmes)
must engage with all the arrangements for managing consistency
as stated below. The process will be funded by TEOs offering
programmes leading to the qualification, to cover actual and
reasonable evaluation related costs.
TEOs are to seek feedback from the sector regarding their
graduates meeting the qualification graduate profile outcomes.
This will occur through:
-
Regular monitoring of trainee progression within either the
TEO or the workplace including liaising with employers,
teaching staff, training supervisors, and sector managers
about the value of the training, graduates, and qualification,
to the business.
-
Regular cross-sector meetings (Advisory Groups) where the
changing training needs of the sector can be discussed in
light of technology changes, workplace practices, and
graduate capabilities.
-
Independent surveys of graduates and employers to
determine if the graduates are appropriate for the workplace.
-
Providing an alignment matrix of programme outcomes or
unit standards against the qualification outcomes.
All feedback and results will be presented and made available
when a managing consistency event is conducted.
The purpose of this managing consistency event is to:
-
review evidence associated with achievement of qualification
outcomes.
-
identify issues or opportunities associated with outcome
achievement.
Following the event a report to TEOs on their programme
consistency with qualification outcomes and any
recommendations for maintaining currency of sector context with
be provided.
For full details of The Skills Organisation arrangements for
managing consistency, contact The Skills Organisation at:
Qualification Reference 2658
© New Zealand Qualifications Authority 2015
Page 2 of 5
consistency@skills.org.nz.
Minimum standard of
achievement and standards for
grade endorsements
TEOs delivering programmes that lead to the award of this
qualification may transfer credit and recognise prior learning in
accordance with their own credit recognition policies and
procedures.
These policies and procedures, and information about associated
fees, must be available to the applicant prior to enrolment.
To facilitate credit transfer, education organisations must clearly
demonstrate the equivalency or comparability between each of
the outcomes in the graduate profile, and the assessment
components in their programmes.
Credit transfer will be automatic where standards on the
Directory of Assessment Standards are used for assessment
within programmes of study or training leading to this
qualification.
Other requirements for the
qualification (including regulatory
body or legislative requirements)
Programmes leading towards the award of this qualification must
take into consideration the New Zealand prison environment and
the legislation applicable.
General conditions for the programme leading to the qualification
General conditions for
programme
It is expected that assessment for all outcome statements will be
inclusive of best practice documentation for the industry, the use
of relevant technology and current best practice policies and
procedures.
It is expected that at the award of the qualification, the candidate
will have a current and valid First Aid Certificate.
Conditions relating to the Graduate profile
Qualification outcomes
Conditions
1
Programme content should include the following topics in the
context of the role of a Corrections Officer:
Manage own safety and the
safety of others, including staff,
inmates and visitors, in a
prison environment.
(15 credits)
Qualification Reference 2658
© New Zealand Qualifications Authority 2015
-
First aid in a prison environment.
-
Fire control within the immediate responsibilities of a
Corrections Officer.
-
Personal wellness including dealing with stress, change and
anger.
-
Situational awareness to ensure the safety of self, staff,
prisoners and visitors in a prison environment.
-
Hazard management within a prison environment.
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2
3
Maintain the security of the
prison environment.
Programme content should include the following topics in the
context of the role of a Corrections Officer:
(20 credits)
-
Lock and unlock practices.
-
Musters and prisoner location checks.
-
Searches of prisoners and facilities.
-
First Responding Officer training.
-
Control and restraint training.
-
Tactical exit strategies.
-
Gangs in a prison environment.
Carry out daily prisoner care
activities.
Programme content should include the following topics in the
context of the role of a Corrections Officer:
-
The daily management, monitoring and documenting of
prisoner activities. The policies and procedures for prisoner
needs and requests such as medical, education and
referrals.
-
The induction of new prisoners into the prison environment
-
The policies and procedures on how to respond to
complaints and grievances of prisoners.
-
Recognising at risk behaviours in prisoners and the policies
and procedures to escalate or monitor or take appropriate
and correct actions.
(10 credits)
4
5
6
Participate in the rehabilitation
of prisoners.
Programme content should include the following topics in the
context of the role of a Corrections Officer:
-
The principles of Active Management.
-
Supporting prisoners to address their needs in accordance
with their offender plans.
-
Prisoner referrals in terms of active management.
-
The stages of change in a prisoner including denial,
contemplation, preparation, relapse, action and maintenance.
Practice in a manner that is
culturally sensitive and
offender centric.
-
signs and tactics to encourage change in a prisoners thinking
and behaviour.
-
challenging negative behaviours in prisoners and methods to
support rectifying the behaviours.
(5 credits)
-
pro-social behaviours and modelling.
-
support networks, resources and referrals in terms of their
role in the rehabilitation and reintegration of prisoners.
(5 credits)
Be accountable and
responsible for ensuring that
own practice and conduct
Qualification Reference 2658
© New Zealand Qualifications Authority 2015
Programme content should include the following topics in the
context of the role of a Corrections Officer:
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meets professional, ethical and
legal requirements and
standards.
(5 credits)
-
Ethics.
-
Legislative requirements and standards of a Corrections
Officer.
-
prison policies and procedures The Privacy Act.
-
Responsibilities and limitations of the role of a Corrections
Officer.
The topics for this outcome statement should flow through all
other outcome statements.
Transition information
Replacement information
This qualification replaces the National Certificate in Offender
Management (Level 3) [Ref: 0678].
As this qualification is different in design and content to the replaced National qualification, it is the
industry and Standard Setting Body’s preference and recommendation for trainees to enter into
programmes leading to the new qualification.
Trainees currently enrolled in programmes leading to the replaced qualification may either complete the
requirements by 31 December 2019 or transfer to the new qualification.
The last date for entry into programmes leading to the replaced qualification is 31 December 2017. The
last date to meet the requirements of the replaced qualification is 31 December 2019 at which time it will
be designated as discontinued.
Any person enrolled in expiring unit standard 4258 of the replaced qualification Ref: 0678 must complete
and report the assessment before 31 December 2019.
It is anticipated that no existing candidates will be disadvantaged by these transition arrangements.
However, anyone who feels that they have been disadvantaged may appeal to The Skills Organisation at
the address below:
The Skills Organisation
FREEPOST 5164
PO Box 24469
Royal Oak
Auckland 1345
Telephone
09 525 2590
Email reviewcomments@skills.org.nz
Qualification Reference 2658
© New Zealand Qualifications Authority 2015
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