New Corrections, Probation & Parole Graduates Join Ontario’s Front Line

Additional officers will help improve community safety across the province

The Voice of Canada News:

45 new correctional officers and 14 probation and parole officers are joining the frontlines, helping to ensure communities across Ontario are supported and protected.

“Correctional officers and probation and parole officers are essential partners in Ontario’s justice system. The comprehensive training these new professionals have received will ensure they can make critical contributions to the communities they serve,” said Solicitor General Sylvia Jones. “I would like to recognize the graduates for their hard work, dedication to public service and commitment to keeping Ontario safe each and every day.”

Correctional officer graduates will be assigned to 12 different institutions across Ontario near their home regions:

• 17 graduates will support the Eastern Region at the Central East Correctional Centre, Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre and Quinte Detention Centre.
• 15 will support the Western Region at the Central North Correctional Centre, Elgin-Middlesex Detention Centre and Sarnia Jail.
• Seven graduates will work in the Northern Region at Sudbury Jail, Thunder Bay Correctional Centre and Thunder Bay Jail.
• Five will work in the Toronto Region at Toronto East Detention Centre and Toronto South Detention Centre.
• One will support the Central Region at the Maplehurst Complex.

The probation and parole officers are currently assigned across the province in areas near their home community to offer a local perspective. Six are in the Central Region, three in the Northern Region, three in Western Region and two in the Eastern Region.

Probation and parole officer graduates completed five weeks of extensive training both virtually and in-person at Ontario’s Correctional Services Recruitment and Training Centre. The training included learning about assessment and case plans, motivational interviewing, report writing, enforcement and managing specialized cases.

The correctional officer training program also took place virtually and in-person with a focus on anti-Black racism, Indigenous cultural training and inmate management techniques. The training included enhanced communication and de-escalation skills.

The new correctional officers are part of the government’s commitment to invest more than $500 million over five years to transform adult correctional services and improve safety by hiring over 500 new correctional workers and modernizing outdated infrastructure.