ReVive Prison Program Helps Women Break the Cycle of Addiction and Crime

At a large recycling facility in Sydney’s west, Cindy Dumbrell, wearing a helmet, mask and high visibility, leads a team through a waste sorting machine.

The 40-year-old has made a big impression in her first job, rising quickly from collecting waste to operating machinery at the landfill.

It can be hard and demanding work, but for Mrs Dumbrell it has been a lifesaver.

Twelve months ago, Mrs. Dumbrell was in prison. He spent the last decade in and out of the system.

The mother of six, from Wreck Bay, an Aboriginal village on the NSW south coast, struggled with addiction and homelessness.

It all came to a head when he had a near fatal overdose.

“I was in a different state with no one around and I just got a text from one of my kids saying, ‘Mom, is it true? I heard you’re dead,'” she said.

“I was like what am I doing, and my kids, who I hadn’t seen in years, were still texting to see if I was OK.”

He fought to stay clean

This was the moment that changed everything for Mrs Dumbrell. The next week she was back in jail and fought to stay there until she was clean.

He admits the next few steps were a struggle, but once he got there and found the right services it was “amazing”.

Ms Dumbrell moved to the Bolwara Transition Centre, which provides support for offenders, particularly First Nations women, who are approaching release from prison.

It was here that he heard about a prison release program.

Mrs Dumbrell was determined to get an interview and within a week sat down with her directors.

“But after sitting with the guys for about five minutes, I felt comfortable. … I told them my story and they said they’d get me back.”

Within two weeks he was on site at one of the largest mixed waste recycling facilities in the country and has never looked back.

The program aims to break the cycle

Ms Dumbrell is part of the ReVive prison release program.

It is run by Djurwa, a joint venture between Yalagan Group Training, an indigenous training and recruitment company, and Bingo Industries.

It aims to break the cycle of reoffending by providing employment to Indigenous offenders during their final months of incarceration and after their release.

“Starting work from prison was a bit of a ‘how do you go’ with an ankle bracelet,” Ms Dumbrell said.

“I didn’t know whether to speak or not, and when I found out that some people knew, I started to feel more comfortable.

“I love it here at Bingo.”

The program provides candidates with certification and ongoing support during the 12 to 18 month internship.

“Leaving Your Old Life Behind”

Natalie Davies works directly with candidates as Bingo’s Indigenous Employment Manager, a role she describes as “like a big sister, a little sister”.

“I help them at work to settle in, but also during the week and weekends,” she said.

“They’re leaving their old lives behind, so the challenge is solitude on the weekends, trying to develop new hobbies and activities … discovering what they like again and navigating a healthy lifestyle.”

As of March, there were 349 Aboriginal women in NSW prisons.

It is an increase of 11.5 percent compared to two years ago and represents more than a third of all dams in the State.

“It’s a very hard transition”

Eddy Hazem is Yalagan’s national group training manager and said providing offenders with long-term employment and end-to-end support was critical to prevent them from “getting back into bad habits again”.

He said Yalagan assumes the risk of hiring new employees.

“We go to host employers and say all we need from you is to give them a chance,” he said.

The program had its first intake of candidates last year. Of the seven that started, three remain.

Djurwa director and Yalagan founder Nathan Martin said that while it is successful, it needs more employers to accept more candidates.

“I want all the other levels in this space to look at what we’re doing and replicate it because there are so many people who could benefit from this opportunity,” he said.

He said knowing about Ms Dumbrell’s success makes her work worthwhile.

“That’s what it’s all about, you know,” he said.

“I look forward now, to the future”

Today, Mrs Dumbrell rents her own premises, has a driver’s license and is rebuilding a relationship with her six children.

“To be able to say I love you every day is great after ten years of next to nothing, broken promises from me…yeah, it’s killer,” she said.

Next February he will finish his Certificate III in Waste Management.

“I look forward now, to the future,” he said.

“Everybody is so proud of me … it’s like I never went (to prison).

“If I can do it, any of them girls can do it too.”