10by20 – Reducing reoffending

We know that reoffending has substantial costs for our community. A reduction in reoffending means a safer community with fewer victims and less crime.

In 2016, the State Government announced the Reducing Reoffending: 10% by 2020 strategy to address high rates of reoffending and to support safer communities. The reoffending rate of 46.1% was used as a baseline measure, which had a target of a 10% reduction in reoffending to 41.4%.

An independent 10by20 Strategic Policy Panel was appointed by the Government. Through research and consultation with key stakeholders, the Panel developed the Strategic Policy Panel Report, which outlined six strategies and 36 recommendations to provide a whole-of-system change in approach to the management of offenders.

The Department for Correctional Services remained committed to the target, leading the delivery of the 10by20 Government Response and Action Plan and monitoring the progress on the strategy.

Between 2018 – 2021, the State Government released four progress reports, which provide an overview of progress and upcoming actions for the following year. The final 10by20 Report was released in late 2022, all the reports can all be found in the documents section below.

The Department for Correctional Services is proud to have not just achieved but to have exceeded the 10by20 target. At the time of measurement, South Australia’s reoffending rate was 39.3% (Report on Government Services 2022), which represents a 15% reduction in recidivism against the baseline of 46.1%. At the time, this was the lowest recidivism rate in the country and well below the national average of 53.1%.

The success of meeting the 10by20 target has contributed to a safer community, fewer victims and the opportunity for more people leaving prison to turn their life around and contribute in positive ways to their families and communities. The Department is building on the momentum of the success of 10by20 initiatives, by committing to a new target to reduce reoffending 20% by 2026. You can read more about this here.

    Documents

  • Download: 10by20 Strategic Policy Panel Report (4.7 MB PDF)
  • Download: 10by20 State Government Response and Action Plan (1.6 MB PDF)
  • Download: 10by20 Brochure (421.3 KB PDF)
  • Download: 10by20 Media Release (311.9 KB PDF)
  • Download: 10by20 Progress Report 2018 Update (1.1 MB PDF)
  • Download: 10by20 Progress Report 2019 Update (1.4 MB PDF)
  • Download: 10by20 Progress Report 2020 Update (2.2 MB PDF)
  • Download: 10by20 Progress Report 2021 Update (2.6 MB PDF)
  • Download: 10by20 2022 Final Report (5.2 MB PDF)