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Prison Profiles - Metropolitan Remand Centre

Metropolitan Remand Centre is Victoria's major remand facility. It is a 600-bed, purpose built, maximum security facility for un-sentenced male prisoners. The facility makes it possible to separate sentenced and un-sentenced prisoners, so far as practicable. This aligns with the United Nations and international standards for the treatment of prisoners who have not yet been found guilty by the courts.

The Remand Centre is at Ravenhall, approximately 20 kilometres west of the Melbourne CBD. Its focus is on providing an appropriate balance between the needs for:

• a safe and secure environment for everyone who lives in, works at or visits the centre
• the particular status and requirements of unsentenced prisoners.

These needs include maintaining family ties, access to legal resources, and opportunities for meaningful activity in a safe, secure and humane environment.

Operator

Corrections Victoria

Security Level

Maximum security remand

Operational capacity

663 (30 June 2009)

Operational capacity is the total number of places available in which to house prisoners.

Accommodation

The centre is designed on campus-style lines. Accommodation is almost entirely single cells, in variable-sized units. They are built to the state's Building Design Review Project (BDRP) standards.

Accommodation units include:

• four, 75-bed general accommodation units
• one,100-bed Protection Unit
• 200 beds in varied units allocated for special needs such as, vulnerable prisoners, young adult prisoners
• one 13-bed Management Unit.

Each accommodation unit has program/resource facilities, interview rooms and satellite clinics, and each area has its own recreational area, including a walking track and basketball courts.

History

This is one of three new prison facilities built as part of the redevelopment of Victoria's corrections system under the Corrections Long Term Management Strategy. The Remand Centre officially opened in April 2006.

The project was designed and delivered under a Partnerships Victoria project. The Department's Major Project Delivery Services team administers the partnership with the private sector partner(s) responsible for construction and maintenance of the accommodation, security systems, buildings and grounds.