When Mandy*, a young Aboriginal woman in custody and mother of two, joined Belonging to Family , she knew she needed to make changes in her life, but wasn’t sure where to start.
She’d been in custody for several years, but it wasn’t until she started the program that she began to form solid goals and take steps to reach them.
Mandy knew she was one of the lucky ones as she already had regular contact with her two sons (10 years old and in their early 20s) and a supportive and loving family network.
But despite this, she also knew she needed help to reflect on her choices and rebuild her life so she could be there for her sons, and not fall back into drug addiction and influences that had led to her being in custody in the first place.
“When she started the program, she was very involved from the beginning,” our team said.
“She told me she loved Belonging to Family (a throughcare program for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander parents in custody and their children) because it directly addressed her issues and what she needed to do, like counselling and getting involved in work and courses inside the centre.”
Mandy’s naturally caring personality shone through during the sessions.
She would frequently step in to help other participants understand parts of the course they were struggling with, and she always listened with respect and empathy to everyone in the group.
By the end of the program, our team was impressed at how far she had come saying “she’s changed in a big way.”
“She’s confident now, she’ll talk up and is a delegate for the other women in custody. She also encourages other mums to take the course and helps them fill out the forms to enrol, makes sure they are on time. She’s really stepped up.”
While she still has a way to go, Mandy is now laser-focused on her goals for when she’s released.
She wants to set herself up with housing and work, and be able to take care of her youngest son.
She hopes to pursue a career in social work or youth work and is taking steps to do this, including reaching out to our team to offer to speak to community groups and volunteer her time when she is released.
“She’s told me she knows what she needs to do to make better choices,” said our team.
“We take other services into the centre and she’s connected with them now, including women’s groups and drug and alcohol counselling. She’s also said she wants to help stop young people from following her path by talking to groups about how prison is not somewhere you want to end up.”
With her eldest son having spent time in youth justice himself, she’s especially passionate about setting an example for him and other young people and showing them that they can turn their lives around.
“She’s the lovliest person, and so are both her sons,” said our team, “She just wants to make sure the younger generation doesn’t touch drugs and make a change for them.”
We wish Mandy all the best as she continues to prepare for her release, and our team will be there walking by her side when the day comes.
The National Indigenous Australians Agency supports this program.
*Names and images changed to protect participant privacy.
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