Jumping out of helicopters at 61 years old, Corrective Services NSW staffer and Rural Fire Service volunteer, Brett Bannerman, proves the sky's no limit to helping others.
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The Goulburn Community Corrections team leader, who will celebrate 23 years' service next month, reflects on how his current role helps him guide offenders to rehabilitation outside of prisons.
"We engage with the heart but think with our heads and make every effort to adapt to what the offender needs, while recognising our job of keeping the community safe," Brett says.
He is among 10,000 Corrective Services NSW staff to be celebrated on National Corrections Day, Friday January 21, for his commitment to community safety and reducing reoffending
"I feel like I'm doing something useful because you change lives and the ripple effect means you reduce the number of future victims, improve family relationships and help the broader community," Mr Bannerman said.
"When you can get that understanding with the offender - that really we have the same end goal, which is to stop them coming back - I think that's a fantastic outcome."
He is heavily involved in mentoring and training for CSNSW first year officers, overseeing 30 assessments at their six and 10-month reviews.
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"To have the knowledge your finger has touched the future of so many careers is pretty important and you're so proud when you see them rise through the ranks," Mr Bannerman said.
No stranger to harnessing help, Brett is part of NSW RFS helicopters and rapid aerial response crew after joining the volunteer service in 2003.
"Being in the helicopter is fun but disciplined. We assess if a fire is safe enough for us to tackle, then we all need to give the thumbs up to winch down there," he said.
"If we manage to contain a blaze or buy enough time for the trucks to come in, then we've potentially stopped a major fire event.
"Everyone in the RFS has a level of bravery and it's nice being part of the whole team because we're all in it for the same reason - to make the community safer."
The 2022 National Corrections Day theme is 'Giving Back' which focuses on how staff go above and beyond the call of duty to protect the community, mentor staff, fundraise for important charities and contribute to vital community projects and partnerships.
CSNSW includes about 5,000 custodial officers, 1,800 Community Corrections staff, 800 industries workers, 900 psychologists and programs officers and 1,100 security and intelligence staff.
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