Forensic Science and Policing in Tasmania (Confidential Report - not available)
Chief Investigator: Associate Professor Roberta Julian
Funding: National Institute of Forensic Science (NIFS)
In September 2002, a pilot project was conducted in Tasmania for a national study of forensic science and policing in Australia. The study was undertaken by NIFS with advice and expertise being provided by researchers at the University of Tasmania through TILES. The primary aim of the study was to determine the level of awareness of forensic science and what it offered different groups. That is, it focused on police officers' perceptions of needs and 'gaps' in their awareness of forensic science, and on their perceptions of areas where forensic science has the potential to add value to their roles and functions.
This study was followed up in South Australia in 2003 and then in Victoria in 2004.
Chief Investigators: Associate Professor Roberta Julian, Dr Megan Alessandrini, Professor Aynsley Kellow
Funding: Australian Government Attorney-General's Department (AGD) through the National Crime Prevention (NCP) Program and the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council (NMVTRC)
The U-Turn Program, delivered by Mission Australia under contract to Tasmania Police was part of a national pilot of the Young Vehicle Theft Offender Program being funded by the Australian Government Attorney-General’s Department (AGD) in conjunction with the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council (NMVTRC). TILES was contracted by Tasmania Police to conduct the local evaluation of U-Turn in Tasmania.
The program targeted young people aged 15 – 20 years with a history of motor vehicle theft offences as a first priority and those who were ‘at risk’ through circumstances such as family breakdown, anti-social behaviour, unemployment, abuse, truancy, substance abuse, or excluded from mainstream services as a second priority. At the core of the program was a structured ten-week automotive education and training course (general car maintenance and body work) within the environment of a mechanical workshop. At least eight courses were held in the 24 months of the pilot, with a minimum 10 participants in each course. Course participants had an opportunity to partake in road safety education and assistance to acquire a learner’s permit and/or drivers licence. They also had an opportunity to develop their literacy and numeracy skills. The program was located in Station Street, Moonah Tasmania.
Evaluation of the U-Turn Supported Accommodation (No report)
Chief Investigators: Associate Professor Roberta Julian, Dr Megan Alessandrini
Funding: The Tasmanian Community Fund (TCF)
The U-Turn Program acquired a house in Warrane a suburb of Hobart and appointed a supported housing care worker. This added an important and influential component to
U-Turn. The structure of U-Turn allowed for significant comparative analysis between those in a residential program and those who were not. It is known that whether one remains in, or is removed from, one’s usual environment can have a major impact on the success of programs aimed at behavioural change. This addition to the U-Turn Project provided an exciting opportunity to investigate these wider environmental and social factors.
The housing initiative constituted a distinct project in its own right and allowed for the evaluation of the impact of a range of social factors that would not otherwise be possible without the residential component. These included the:
- impact of peer relationships;
- impact of removal from the usual social environment; and
- impact of this relocation on sustained behaviour change when the young person returned to their original environment.
Mass Survey of Blood Donors and Non-Donors for Australian Red Cross Blood Service (No report)
Funding: Australian Research Council (ARC)
TILES conducted a mass survey of blood donors and non-donors for the Australian Red Cross Blood Service. The survey was conducted as part of an ARC Linkage Grant awarded to Dr Megan Alessandrini (School of Government, University of Tasmania) and Professor Ian Buchanan (Charles Darwin University). The survey, which had been distributed to a national sample of approximately 30,000 people, aimed to establish how blood donation was linked to lifestyles and communities, and to find out who donated blood and why. The ARCBS anticipated that the findings from this research would enable them to increase the numbers of blood donors in Australia.
This project demonstrated that TILES has the capacity to undertake large scale survey research on a national level.
Safe at Home - Risk Assessment Screening Tool (RAST) (Confidential Report - not available)
Chief Investigators: Associate Professor Roberta Julian, Professor Aynsley Kellow, Associate Professor Lorraine Mazerolle, Dr Jane Shakespeare-Finch, Dr Barbara Baird; Ms Clair Andersen, Mr Rick Snell
Funding: Department of Police and Emergency Management (DPEM)
Safe at Home involves a range of initiatives and new services that represent a significant change to the way Tasmania responds to family violence: family violence is to be treated as a crime rather than a private matter. The Safe at Home Project is an innovative, whole of Government approach developed to lesson the occurrence and impact of family violence in Tasmania. It involves legislative change and new approaches to assessing risk and enhancing the safety of the victims of family violence, including children.
This project involved a review of the diagnostic instrument utilised by Tasmania to assess the risk of family violence. It undertook an evaluation of past and present risk assessment tools. An academic panel was established to review the results. Recommendations were made on the current tool to inform future use and training needs.
Chief Investigators: Inspector Matthew Richman, Associate Professor Roberta Julian,
Dr Clarissa Hughes
Funding: National Roads and Motorists' Association (NRMA)
 In recent years there has been an increase throughout Australia in public concern over safety and comfort in public spaces. In Tasmania, public safety and substance abuse issues were also identified as important issues in the community consultations that led to the development of Tasmania Together, the State Government’s statement on strategic priorities for the next 20 years. The development and implementation of Streetsafe occurred in response to these community concerns.
The project involved a comparative analysis of two community safety programs with the aim of developing a best practice model that would be transferable to other sites in Tasmania and in other Australian states and territories. The overall goal of Streetsafe was to positively influence the determinants of community safety in the municipal area. The Program has four key objectives to
- reduce the problems arising from under-age drinking;
- reduce public drunkenness;
- prevent alcohol and drug related offences and violence; and
- improve safe and responsible road usage.
Work Place Diversity Survey (No report)
Chief Investigators: Associate Professor Roberta Julian, Mr Ron Mason
Funding: Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)
TILES has expertise in survey design and implementation, and is collaborating with the DHHS to develop and analyse a proposed General Staff Survey on Workplace Diversity to be implemented in 2005.
A new State Service Act came into effect on 1 May 2001 giving Agencies more flexibility in organising work practices as well as encouraging modern management practices in the workplace. State Service Principles and a Code of Conduct have been incorporated into the State Service Act replacing set and often inflexible rules and regulations.
Workplace Diversity is described in the State Service Principles as:
The State Service provides a workplace that is free from discrimination and recognises and utilises the diversity of the community it serves.
The DHHS has developed a Workplace Diversity Management Plan to implement the principles and values of ‘Workplace Diversity’. The Workplace Diversity Survey is one performance indicator that has been identified as useful for measuring the success of the workplace diversity plan.
State Service Employee Survey (Pilot) (No report)
Funding: Office of the State Service Commissioner (OSSC)
TILES was contracted to provide advice to the Tasmanian OSSC on the development and implementation of a State Service Employee Survey. The aim of the survey was to determine the extent to which State Service employees believe that the work practices and culture that prevail in their workplace reflect a commitment to the State Service Principles. The information derived from the Survey will be used, in conjunction with information obtained from the annual Tasmanian State Service Agency Survey, to inform the work that the Commissioner undertakes to uphold, promote and ensure adherence to the State Service Principles.
Forensic Science and Policing in a Cross-Cultural Context – The Case of Australian Police in Bali (No report)
Chief Investigator: Associate Professor Roberta Julian
Associate Investigators: Dr Pam Allen, Dr Rob Hall
Funding: University of Tasmania through its Institutional Research Grants Scheme (IRGS)
This pilot project aimed to identify key social, cultural and organisational factors that affected the work of Australian forensic police and scientists who were deployed in Bali as part of the Disaster Victim Identification team. While the research focused on members of Tasmania Police it also involved interviews with members of the Australian Federal Police and Indonesian Police, analysis of media reports on Australian-Indonesian police relations, and an organisational analysis of the two police services.
The research analysed an important area of expertise available among Tasmania Police and contributed to the development of benchmarks in cross-cultural training for Australian police being deployed in the Asia-Pacific region. The research has the potential to contribute to the positioning of Tasmania and TILES as a key site for training and research in forensic and community policing for Australian police being deployed in the Asia-Pacific region. This research will add value to previous research by TILES on forensic policing.
Chief Investigators: Dr Keith Jacobs, Professor Terry Burke, Professor Sherry Saggers
Funding: National Drug Law Enforcement Research Fund (NDLERF)
Since social housing estates are the location in which many drug related problems occur there is considerable scope for housing managers and law enforcement agencies to establish effective and sustainable working partnerships in order to address these problems in a more comprehensive way. The Project objectives are to:
- Identify successful partnership arrangements taking place in other countries and assess their relevance for Australia;
- Identify practical ways in which law enforcement agencies can police social housing estates more effectively;
- Facilitate the establishment of and then evaluate three policing/housing partnerships to address drug related problems (Devonport, Tasmania; Richmond/Collingwood, Victoria; and Girrawheen, Western Australia);
- Compare the new working partnerships with more traditional law enforcement methods currently being deployed;
- Produce a best practice guide for housing managers and law enforcement agencies to address drug and alcohol related issues on housing estates; and
- Identify the practical steps necessary to ensure that each projects’ successes can be sustained in the long-term.
Enhancing the Implementation and Management of Drug Diversion Strategies in Australian Law Enforcement Agencies (Confidential Report - not available)
Chief Investigators: Professor Aynsley Kellow, Dr Rob Hall, Inspector Matthew Richman, Dr Megan Alessandrini, Ms Marnie Bower, Associate Professor Roberta Julian, Professor Rob White
Funding: National Drug Law Enforcement Research Fund (NDLERF)
This Project systematically assesses the implementation and management of drug diversion strategies in law enforcement agencies in Victoria , Tasmania and South Australia. It will identify evidence-based good practice. Fundamental to the Project is the development of an implementation and management matrix and a performance-strengthening evaluation model that can be applied to, and by, all police organisations in Australia.
It is an innovative project that draws on the expertise of researchers in the fields of policy studies, administrative law, criminology, police studies and public sector management. It also draws on the expertise of police practitioners.
Fundamental to the Project is its portability and applicability across law enforcement agencies and over diversion frameworks. It is envisaged that the Project outcomes will be applied to all law enforcement agencies in Australia. It is also anticipated that there will be significant benefits for stakeholders in the judicial and health sectors.
The Project methodology will involve three identical mass surveys administered to all police officers in Tasmania, Victoria and South Australia seeking information about their perceptions of, and orientations toward, their State's drug diversion strategies. Extensive face to face interviews will also be conducted with other key judicial and health stakeholders.
Local Implementation of Ramsar Convention Obligations – Grassroots Governance in China and Australia (No report)
Chief Investigators: Associate Professor Baogang He, Dr Robert Hall , Dr Lorne Kriworken
Funding: University of Tasmania through its Institutional Research Grants Scheme (IRGS)
This project will examine local implementation of Ramsar Convention obligations in China and Australia. It aims to identify patterns of local governance and the impact these have on the implementation of, and compliance with, convention obligations. Factors facilitating and impeding compliance will be identified. The Project will help fill a significant gap in understanding grassroots implementation of international environmental agreements.
Evaluation of Project Currawong (Confidential Report - not available)
Chief Investigators: Associate Professor Roberta Julian, Paulette Musket, Inspector Matthew Richman
Funding: Department of Police and Emergency Management (DPEM)
Project Currawong is an early intervention and diversionary program aimed at addressing risk while building and enhancing protective factors for young people deemed to be 'at risk' and/or for young offenders. Project Currawong is an extension of two previous pilot projects that resulted in significant downward trends in levels of offending, positive attitudinal changes and a reduction in aggressive behaviour toward authority figures among the participants. Building on the original Project Hahn model, a three-tiered program has been developed concentrating on client groups with specific needs and risk factors. After completion of the course the aim is to successfully reintegrate participants into their community or to assist them to work towards their goals.
The focus of the project is on:
- Breaking the cycle of offending;
- Reducing recidivism;
- Facilitating employment and educational opportunities;
- Improving coordination of services when managing/mentoring young people;
- Assisting personal change and building self-resilience rather than dependence;
- Reconnecting young people 'at risk' with their community; and
- Building the community's capacity to resolve youth issues.
The research is evidence-based and aims to identify best-practice in wilderness-based youth diversionary programs.
Operational Performance Reviews: Issues for Police Effectiveness
Chief Investigators: Peter Southgate, Associate Professor Roberta Julian and Inspector Matthew Richman
The paper traces the development of Operational Performance Review (OPR) and similar management systems in the police service, particularly in New York, Queensland and Tasmania. It examines a recent evaluation of OPR in Queensland and, following an account of the Tasmanian Corporate Performance Review system, discusses the results of a replication of the Queensland study using Tasmanian data. In the light of these results, and with reference back to the US experience, the paper concludes with suggestions for how to achieve a better understanding of the ways OPR systems actually work.
Trialling Social Norms Strategies for Minimising Alcohol-Related Harm Among Rural Youth (Confidential Report - will be available later in the year)
Chief Investigators: Dr Clarissa Hughes, Associate Professor Roberta Julian, Inspector Matthew Richman
Funding: Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation (AERF)
TILES and the University Department of Rural Health (UDRH) are excited about conducting the first Australian trial of the Social Norms approach to substance abuse prevention in Tasmania.
TILES and UDRH have been awarded nearly $500,000, from the Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation (AERF), to conduct trials in Huonville and on the West Coast of Tasmania.
Detailed Social Norms web pages have been set up to encourage collaboration and knowledge sharing around this program.
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