WHILE working with drug-addicted people experiencing homelessness, Ben Mulley discovered many of them had spent time in prison.
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“I thought to myself there has got to be a way to address their needs,” Mr Mulley says.
“We’re not here to judge. Our job is to manage the inmate and their underlying issues.”
The 39-year-old joined Corrective Services NSW first working as a case manager at the Community Offender Support Program in Tomago and the Lake Macquarie parole office before moving into custodial corrections.
He now works at St Heliers Correctional Centre at Muswellbrook.
Mr Mulley says he grew up in a low socioeconomic area and has come across people he knows that have ended up in custody.
“To see them change as people and become part of the prison system is a sad thing,” he says.
“You don’t treat any offenders differently.
“And some will be angry and aggressive but you deal with them effectively and professionally.”
He says being a frontline officer in a smaller, regional correctional centre has given him the opportunity to learn various aspects of the job, very quickly.
“Staff are outnumbered by the inmates,” Mr Mulley says.
“You have to be patient and vigilant.
“You learn a lot more things in your first year in a regional centre than probably working at a major centre here you get thrown into the deep end straight away.
“I’m already learning the processes of gathering intelligence, leading searches and locating contraband.
“Being part of a good team is another reason I love the job.”
Outside of work, Mr Mulley participates in mud run competitions and goes quad biking and fishing with his son.
Friday marks the inaugural Corrections Day, which takes the community beyond the prison walls to hear the stories of the men and women of the NSW correctional system who rehabilitate inmates, keep offenders accountable and aim to reduce reoffending.
