We marked a significant milestone as we hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony to officially open
Block 'B' at the Rio Cobre Juvenile Correctional Centre (RCJCC) in St. Catherine on April 4, 2023.

State Minister in the Ministry of National Security - the Honourable Zavia Mayne, Chief
Technical Director, MNS - Ms. Shauna Trowers, Commissioner of Corrections -
Lt. Col. (Ret'd) Gary Rowe, Deputy Commissioner - Ms. Joyce Stone and Superintendent in
Charge of RCJCC - Ms. Maulette White, cut the ribbon.

The block was renovated at a cost of $34 million dollars and included reroofing,
installation of grilles, security checkpoints, new beds, and extensive plumbing work to
name a few.

#upgradedfacilities #careforwards

DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONAL SERVICES

VISION AND MISSION

Our Vision:
To be the Caribbean Centre of excellence in correctional
management.

Our Mission:
We contribute to national security by securing, supervising,
rehabilitating and reintegrating offenders as productive
and law-abiding citizens.

DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONAL SERVICES

REHABILITATION AND REDEMPTION

A part of the criminal justice system, the Department of
Correctional Services (DCS) contributes to public safety
through safe custody and rehabilitation of offenders in
its care and under supervision.

The Direct Results of Inmates' Value and Empowerment (DRIVE) programme, launched February 14, 2017, is an initiative which seeks, through inmates, to positively affect the communities in which the institutions are situated.

The University of the Commonwealth Caribbean will provide six scholarships for inmates and Correctional Officers to pursue the Associate Degree in Business Administration valued at more than two million dollars annually, to the Department of Correctional Services for a period of two years.

This follows the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of National Security through the Department of Correctional Services, The University of the Commonwealth Caribbean and ‘Stand Up Jamaica’ on Wednesday, February 23, 2022.

Seven inmates of the Tamarind Farm Adult Correctional Centre graduated from the Step Out and Strive S.O.A.S Programme at the institution on Wednesday, February 23, 2022. S.O.A.S is a cognitive behavioural programme that provides offenders with opportunities to examine the concepts of:

Beliefs, values and attitudes
Anger management
Empowerment

The goal of the programme is to assist the inmates in the practice of self-control enabling them to function as holistic individuals in the institution and later in the wider society.