AGY-2482 | Brookfield Afforestation Camp, Mannus (1927-1992) / Mannus Correctional Centre (1992-)

Full description

The Brookfield Afforestation Camp, Mannus was established as a Place of Detention for the purpose of employing prisoners in the work of tree planting under s.35 of the Prisons Act 1899 (Act No.27, 1899). The prison was proclaimed on 14 January 1927 and established on 26 March 1930. The camp was situated on 3,682 acres and in 1935 contained 40 huts. Mr MacKillop was the Officer-in-Charge. The camp was named Mannus after the parish in which it was situated. (1)

The purpose of the Afforestation camps (the first of which was established in 1913) was to provide male prisoners with a modified form of prison life and the opportunity to acquire skills that could be used on release. Prisoners carried out tree-planting and related activities, (2) maintaining of the camp and buildings as well as vegetable growing, dairy farming and pig raising. (3)

The boundaries of the Camp were amended on 13 January 1942. (4) Brookfield Afforestation Camp was declared a prison on 19 October 1977 under the Prisons Act 1952 (Act No.9, 1952). (5)

The certain buildings and enclosures at Brookfield Afforestation Camp, Manus as specified were deproclaimed as a prison from 30 October 1987. Under the following proclamation on the same date, the prison was again proclaimed 'Brookfield Afforestation Camp, Mannus' with an area of 1,394 hectares. (6)

In 1993 Brookfield Afforestation Camp was unofficially renamed to Mannus Correctional Centre. (7)

The Proclamation declaring Brookfield Afforestation Camp, Mannus as a prison was revoked on 14 August 1996. The prison was reinstated as a correctional centre, on the same day, as Mannus Correctional Centre with an area of 11 hectares and excluded the whole area of Mannus Periodic Detention Centre. The two centres were located on the area that was declared as Mannus Correctional Complex. The prison was a minimum security institution for males and the periodic detention centre was for males and females. (8)

Mannus Correctional Centre was revoked as a correctional centre on 28 January 1999 and re-established under the same name and area. (9)

When the Department of Corrective Services was abolished on 1 July 2009 Mannus Correctional Centre became responsible to Corrective Services NSW. (10)

In 2011 up to 95 inmates were employed in industries, these included afforestation work, livestock and agriculture, market gardening, apple orchard, vineyard, building maintenance and motorshop repairs and maintenance. Up to 40 inmates worked in general maintenance, cleaning, gardening and laundry. (11)

Endnotes
1. NSW Government Gazette No.4, 14 January 1927, p.113.
2. Official Yearbook of New South Wales, 1914, p.487.
3. Report of the Comptroller General of Prisons for period 1 July 1933 to 30 June 1935 Parliamentary Papers 1935 p.10.
4. NSW Government Gazette No.11, 23 January 1942, p.214.
5. NSW Government Gazette No.138, 11 November 1977, p.4907.
6. NSW Government Gazette No.167, 30 October 1987, p.6031.
7. An Analysis of NSW Prison Proclamations March 1996 Fitzpatrick Denis Department of Corrective Services, p.29.
8. NSW Government Gazette No.97, 23 August 1996, pp.4941-3.
9. NSW Government Gazette No.15, 5 February 1999, p.535.
10. Public Sector Employment and Management (Departmental Amalgamations) Order 2009 (2009 No.352) cls.20; notified on NSW Legislation website, 27 July 2009.
11. Department of Correctional Services website, Mannus, http://www.dcs.nsw.gov.au/correctional/mannus.asp (accessed 12 April 2011).