2021 to 2022 Departmental Plan

The Honourable William Sterling Blair, P.C., C.O.M., M.P
Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

From the Minister

At the same time the SIUs were implemented, significant changes were introduced to transform correctional health care. We also saw the principles of quality, patient-centred and clinically independent health care delivery embedded in legislation for the first time. These health care changes will continue to be implemented in 2021-22 as CSC focuses on quality and safe health care.

CSC is committed to addressing systemic barriers for offenders in its custody. I will work with CSC to improve the correctional and reintegration outcomes for Indigenous, Black and other ethnocultural offenders. In particular, CSC is contributing to the federal response to the final report of the Commission of Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, and will respond to the corrections-specific recommendations in that report. As well, CSC will work with Indigenous partners to enhance the role and availability of Elders, and develop an Ethnocultural Action Framework to support culturally responsive interventions.

In collaboration with Public Safety Canada, CSC is working to address sexual coercion and violence in federal corrections where a zero-tolerance approach is fundamental to its operations to protect the physical and mental health and the overall safety of those who live and work within federal correctional institutions.

CSC also remains committed to ensuring a positive, healthy and inclusive work environment for its employees. In 2021-22, CSC will be in its first year of the first-ever National Comprehensive Strategy on Workplace Wellness and Employee Well-Being, helping to provide a safe, respectful and supportive environment for all staff. The strategy will support employees with wellness tools and strategies adapted to the correctional realities CSC employees face.

This year's DP shows CSC's strengthened commitment to identifying challenges in the federal correctional system, seeking innovative solutions to ensuring successful offender rehabilitation and maintaining public safety. I look forward to continuing our important work and fulfilling our mandate in service to Canadians.

Sincerely,

The Honourable William Sterling Blair, P.C., C.O.M., M.P.
Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Plans at a glance

The Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) will support the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness as he delivers on key components of his mandate in fiscal year 2021-22. Aligned with CSC's corporate priorities, and supporting the Minister's mandate, this plan focuses on offender population management, structured intervention units, Indigenous offenders, offender health, staff well being and technology.

CSC administers court-imposed sentences of adult offenders sentenced to two years or more. The department is geographically dispersed across the country and is responsible for managing 43 institutions, 14 community correctional centres, and 92 parole and sub-parole offices.

On a typical day in 2019-20, CSC managed 23,309 offenders (13,932 incarcerated and 9,377 supervised in the community), many of whom have extensive histories of violence and violent crimes, previous youth and adult convictions, mental health disorders, experiences of intergenerational trauma, and affiliations with security threat groups (STG).

January 2020 saw the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) begin its rapid spread across the globe. By March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization assessed COVID-19 as a pandemic and the first wave of infections was underway in Canada. As of early November, 2020, the number of COVID-19 infections was again rising in seven provinces and one territory^{Footnote 1} as 'wave two' rolled across the country. CSC's Guidance Documents and Integrated Risk Management Framework, developed and adapted to give support and direction specific to COVID-19, provide infection prevention strategies for staff and offenders to practice every day. CSC reviews the framework regularly and adjusts it as necessary to ensure its infection management strategies are always the most effective and appropriate. It has served CSC well to date, and will be in place until the pandemic risk has been eliminated. While correctional officers and parole officers necessarily go to their workplaces each day, as many CSC employees as possible work remotely while COVID-19 is prevalent and active in Canadian communities. Enabling this required an unprecedented investment in the necessary technologies, and CSC must further invest in infrastructure and lifecycle devices in a timely manner to ensure work can continue to be done safely and to support employee morale.

In institutions, operational adjustments required to reduce COVID-19 transmission risk resulted in significant correctional service disruptions through 2020-21. That impacted negatively on both performance and cost in fiscal 2020-21. More complete details will be available in the 2020-21 Departmental Results Report. There will be continued impact on correctional results if the pandemic continues through this reporting year, as that would result in a need for further operational adjustments, and would likely heighten operational and corporate risk levels.

To safely manage and reintegrate the offender population into the community as law-abiding citizens, CSC develops, implements, monitors, and reviews correctional policies and practices. As well, CSC offers a range of correctional programs, health and spiritual services, education programs, vocational, employability and employment opportunities, while operating with a great degree of adaptability, flexibility, rigour, gender responsiveness and cultural competency to meet the needs of all offenders, including the particular needs of women offenders, Indigenous peoples, and ethnocultural offenders.

STGs remain a challenge for CSC, particularly for population management. The STG landscape is complex, fluid, and diverse, and that makes the identification of groups, members, associates and the compatibilities of each, difficult to identify. This requires a high level of operational and strategic intelligence, including ongoing liaison with CSC's criminal justice and law enforcement partners.

The proportion of older offenders (50+ years of age) in federal custody increased and accounted for 24.4% of the federal incarcerated population in 2018-19.^{Footnote 2} With the aging population in federal institutions continuing to rise, there will be a need for more health and support services.

Launched in November 2019, structured intervention units (SIUs), part of a new correctional model designed to improve correctional outcomes, offer tailored interventions, programs, services, positive interactions, and health care.

Recognizing women offenders' unique needs, CSC implemented an ancillary service to the SIU model that considers the distinctive infrastructure of women's facilities. The women's model is comprised of an SIU within the Secure Unit and an Enhanced Support House (ESH) in the mainstream population, both of which focus on the provision of interventions to address individualized risk and needs. The ESH is a voluntary short-term supportive mainstream environment for offenders classified as minimum or medium security who require additional staff support and/or greater access to interventions. It can be used as an alternative to a transfer to the SIU for offenders who do not present an increased security risk.

The proportion of Indigenous offenders in federal custody continues to climb, now reaching 30% of incarcerated offenders.^{Footnote 3} As part of a whole-of-government approach, CSC collaborates with multiple partners, organizations, levels of government, Indigenous communities, Elders/Spiritual Advisors, and offenders to address issues that span the continuum of before, during and after a person comes into contact with the correctional system. While CSC does not control the imposition of federal sentences, the over-representation of Indigenous people in federal correctional facilities, it is a reality and a challenge CSC faces every day, and has for over three decades.

In fact, CSC convened an Executive Sub-committee on Indigenous Corrections to address Indigenous over-representation and to provide direction on matters relating to effective, culturally appropriate interventions and reintegration to support First Nations, Métis and Inuit offenders. The Executive Sub-committee will guide and monitor the strategic direction for Indigenous Corrections, track national and regional results, and ensure consideration of priority issues, including the impact of CSC's National Indigenous Plan. CSC works closely with Elders, community partners and stakeholders to develop and deliver culturally responsive correctional programs that recognize the social history and realities of the lives of Indigenous offenders, while addressing factors linked to criminal behaviour. The holistic approach of these programs ensures that Indigenous offenders' cultural, traditional and spiritual needs are met.

CSC's National Indigenous Plan aims to transform Indigenous case management and corrections. Referred to as the "foundation and the collective renewal of CSC actions at all levels," the plan focuses on an "Indigenous First approach" wherein initiatives, interventions and approaches must first consider the specific issues that face Indigenous offenders, and then seek to find solutions. The impact of CSC's security classification process is an area of considerable concern, especially with respect to groups such as indigenous people who are over-represented in the criminal justice system. CSC is committed to continuously reviewing security classification processes in order to ensure that operational policy and practice is evidence-based, while remaining sensitive to Indigenous considerations. CSC is actively supporting an initiative led by academic institutions to incorporate Indigenous social history in the development of a culturally informed risk assessment process. This involves soliciting meaningful input from Indigenous peoples and scholars from the outset.

An Act to Amend the Corrections and Conditional Release Act and another Act, that received royal assent June 21, 2019, introduced in law a number of changes to strengthen the delivery of health services in the federal correctional system. These include, among other changes, greater support for professional autonomy and independence of health care professionals, establishing a network of patient advocates, and recognizing the importance of all health professionals advocating for their patients. Work in this area will be complete in 2024-25 when the final components are implemented.

CSC takes a collaborative and proactive approach to managing offenders with mental health needs. Programs and services are in place to ensure that mental health care services address the needs of the offender population. Specific strategies and interventions are in place to prevent suicide and manage offender self-injury behaviour.

Problematic substance use is a serious and prevalent health care challenge for federal offenders. In keeping with the Canadian Drugs & Substances Strategy, CSC will continue to focus on enhancing treatment and harm reduction services including psychosocial supports, Opiate Agonist Treatment (OAT) and the Prison Needle Exchange Program (PNEP). CSC will also continue to focus on enforcement and interdiction activities in collaboration with its justice partners.

The nature of correctional work creates higher than average workplace stress. Because the wellbeing of all employees is important to CSC, the department is committed to ensuring the workplace is a safe, respectful, and supportive environment for all employees, free from bullying, discrimination, harassment, and violence. In 2021-22, CSC will be in its first year of the National Comprehensive Strategy on Workplace Wellness and Employee Well-Being, which will serve as the foundation for prioritizing activities that support the respect, wellbeing, health and mental health of employees at all levels.

Federal work place harassment and violence prevention legislation and regulations that came into force January 1, 2021, will impact how CSC addresses harassment and violence complaints. Bill C-65, An Act to Amend the Canada Labour Code, significantly changes the Canada Labour Code, requiring employers to prevent incidents of harassment and violence, respond effectively to these incidents if and when they do occur, and to provide support for affected employees. The Work Place Harassment and Violence Prevention Regulations outline the essential elements that will be contained in CSC's Work Place Harassment and Violence Prevention Policy, as well as the procedures that must be in place to respond to any incidents of harassment and violence that happen. This includes timeframes for resolution to better support the complainant and respondent, confidentiality of all parties involved, including witnesses, throughout the investigation, and employer obligations to implement corrective measures in response to the investigation report of a competent person, amongst others.

Technology is a multifaceted challenge. On the one hand, it helps CSC supervise and monitor offenders, facilitates communication between offenders and their authorized community supports, makes remote court appearances possible, enables remote provision of health care services, and will allow digital education options for offenders. Without question, the pandemic has strongly emphasized the need for modernizing CSC's operations and services for a new digital world. In order to enable these new and incoming services, significant investments will need to be made to the IT infrastructure to support CSC's expanding digital footprint. On the other hand, technology can create substantial challenges for CSC operations. As technology evolves, many contraband devices become smaller and smaller making detection more difficult. CSC continues to adjust to the rapid technological advances as it searches for new and innovative ways to detect contraband.

CSC's future plans are rooted in the need to understand the significant transformations that have occurred and to address the current challenges in an operating environment that continues to increase pressures and demands, and that requires CSC to maintain its agility, responsiveness and adaptability.

For more information on CSC's plans, priorities and planned results, see the "Core responsibilities: planned results and resources, and key risks" section of this report.

Core responsibilities: planned results and resources, and key risks

This section contains detailed information on the department's planned results and resources for each of its core responsibilities. It also contains information on key risks related to achieving those results.

Core Responsibility 1: Care and Custody

CSC provides for the safety, security and humane care of offenders, including day-to-day needs of offenders such as food, clothing, accommodation, mental health services, and physical health care. It also includes security measures within institutions such as drug interdiction, and appropriate control practices to prevent incidents.

CSC implemented dedicated spaces for older offenders in almost all of its institutions. In institutions where it was not operationally feasible to implement such spaces, individual or small group meetings for older offenders are facilitated, and individualized services are provided and adapted as required according to their needs. In consultation with older offenders, CSC will continue to explore options for age and disability appropriate wellness activities that could be integrated into institutional routines.

Informed by the results of the Comprehensive Needs Assessment for Older Offenders as outlined in CSC's policy framework, Promoting Wellness and Independence - Older Persons in Custody (2018), Health Services will continue to identify opportunities to improve services and supports for this population.

CSC will implement and monitor commitments arising from management action plans in response to recommendations from audits, evaluations and investigations.

To prevent, disrupt and investigate criminal activities, CSC will strengthen key public safety partnerships at the national, regional and local levels. In support of its preventive security and intelligence functions, CSC will implement the preventive security and intelligence strategic plan and revise it as necessary. CSC will also assess and implement technologies to support the preventive security and intelligence functions, enhancing capacity to respond to and prevent threats and risks that exist in operational settings.

In collaboration with Public Safety, CSC is working to deal with sexual coercion and violence (SCV) in federal corrections. A zero-tolerance approach to SCV is consistent with CSC's existing policy, and it is fundamental to its operations to protect the physical and mental health and overall safety of those who live and work within federal correctional institutions. With the objective of maintaining a safe and secure environment for all offenders in our care and custody, CSC will focus on lessons learned from previous Boards of Inquiry to contribute to the development of correctional practices that support the prevention of SCV, and to provide care for those who have been victimized. In addition, CSC will engage with other correctional organizations to seek best practices in this area to further inform its approach. Further, CSC supports and will learn from the research Public Safety is leading to identify the size, scope and impact of this issue, with consideration of vulnerable populations such as inmates with prior trauma, LGBTQ2+, women, and those with mental health issues, in order to identify gaps in knowledge. An interim research report, to be developed in 2021, will help inform future actions required to detect, prevent, and respond to sexual violence in correctional institutions.

As CSC continues to respond to the national opioid crisis, it will review and enhance policy and procedures to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of drug enforcement efforts, including its national drug strategy, to reflect the four pillars in the Canadian Drugs and Substances Strategy.^{Footnote 4} CSC will continue to maximize the use of Detector Dog Teams through optimal deployments and performance measures, increase the use of Health Canada's Drug Analysis Service, including the Critical Drug Analysis Program when drugs are seized in institutions, modernize its drug detection and identification tools to better assist staff in their drug interdiction activities, and will review and update the Urinalysis Panel in response to changes in the kinds of drugs being consumed by offenders.

In delivering health services to incarcerated offenders, CSC will prioritize infectious disease prevention, harm reduction, and treatment. As well, CSC will augment mental health services for primary and tertiary care through increased staffing levels and an emphasis on early assessment, diagnosis and direction to appropriate pathways of care as a result of funding received through An Act to amend the Corrections and Conditional Release Act and another Act that came into force June 21, 2019. In addition, CSC will strengthen health professionals' clinical independence and patient advocacy in accordance with the same legislation.

CSC will meet offenders' dietary needs in accordance with the updated Canada Food Guide while respecting diets of conscience, therapeutic diets and religious diets, and will ensure consistent use of the Food Services Information Management System (FSIMS) at Food Production Centres and Finishing Kitchens. A new national menu was introduced in January 2021 at all men's institutions across the countries based on recommendations and feedback from inmate committees.

CSC will implement its 2020-25 Accommodation Plan including consistent use of the Computerized Maintenance Management System for all regions and expanding on the use of Regional Service Contract agreements for facilities management.

As well, CSC will continue implementing its Sustainable Development Strategy (SDS) in line with Treasury Board Secretariat-Greening Government Strategy goals while carrying out other environmental initiatives. CSC's updated SDS will maintain emphasis on energy-saving initiatives, energy performance contracts, clean energy technologies, waste reduction (including plastic waste) and modernizing CSC's vehicle fleet in an effort to lower greenhouse gas emissions.

Financial, human resources and performance information for the CSC's program inventory is available on CSC's website and in the GC InfoBase.

Financial, human resources and performance information for the CSC's program inventory is available on CSC's website and in the GC InfoBase.

Financial, human resources and performance information for the CSC's program inventory is available on CSC's website and in the GC InfoBase.

Core Responsibility 2: Correctional Interventions

CSC conducts assessment activities and program interventions to support federal offenders' rehabilitation and facilitate their reintegration into the community as law-abiding citizens. CSC also engages Canadian citizens as partners in its correctional mandate, and provides services to victims of crime.

CSC delivers a range of correctional interventions to support offenders' successful reintegration into the community, and encourage them to participate fully in their rehabilitation and be accountable for their actions. CSC will continue to conduct quality research to inform ongoing evidence-based best practices in correctional interventions and services.

The Commission of Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) released its final report on June 3, 2019. Among the report's 231 Calls for Justice, those related to corrections included establishing agreements under sections 81 and 84 of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act; evaluation of security classification tools that are sensitive to the nuances of Indigenous realities including risk assessment instruments and their role in case management and decision making; as well as the development of culturally- and trauma-informed programming and services. CSC is contributing to a federal response to the final report, as lead by Crown Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs (CIRNA). The Service is committed to addressing the disproportionate incarceration of Indigenous persons, and ensuring that Indigenous stakeholders are meaningfully engaged in the effective rehabilitation and reintegration of Indigenous offenders.

CSC will implement and monitor technological upgrades and/or innovations to help coordinate and manage release planning for Indigenous offenders, including the Path Home reminder system, and the Section 84 module in CSC's Offender Management System (OMS). It will continue exploring the establishment of additional Section 81 Healing Lodges and review existing Section 81 agreements in order to identify and eliminate any barriers to increase the participation of Indigenous communities in the process.

CSC has developed a Resource Toolkit for all staff working with ethnocultural offenders, including Black offenders, in order to maximize offenders' participation in Correctional Programs, and the gains acquired across a variety of interventions.

CSC is currently developing an Ethnocultural Action Framework to further guide and enhance culturally responsive interventions for ethnocultural offenders. CSC will continue to involve the public through ethnocultural advisory committees in order to benefit from their advice and expertise regrading the needs of ethnocultural offenders.

CSC is conducting research to better understand the experience of ethnocultural offenders under its care, including Black offenders. This multi-year project has already highlighted the profile and diversity of this population and Emerging Research Results were produced in 2019. CSC is presently looking at aspects of the in-custody experience, such as participation in correctional programs, education and employment, and experiences on community supervision including employment, correctional programs, release types, and revocations of conditional release.

2020 marked the 5-year anniversary of the Canadian Victims Bill of Rights and in 2021-22, CSC will continue to focus on improvements to the victim services program and supporting technology. CSC will continue to foster engagement with stakeholders on the CSC Stakeholder Collaboration Hub, as well as modernizing the volunteer program and revitalizing the CSC Speakers Bureau and Educational Resources to better leverage virtual platforms to support our program of public education. Further, CSC will advance the involvement of the public through Citizen Advisory Committees and implement its strategic plan for Citizen Advisory Committees for 2020-25.

In addition to its delivery of victim-offender mediation services, CSC will begin to explore expanding the application of restorative justice to address population management within correctional environments.

To provide for faith needs of offenders, CSC will develop and implement a strategy related to interfaith competency standards for chaplaincy. This will include leveraging partnerships to communicate and facilitate training and ongoing support for the initiative. CSC will deliver and monitor institutional spiritual services and faith-based community reintegration support. As well, CSC will implement and monitor progress against the action plan in response to recommendations from the Evaluation of Institutional Chaplaincy Services.

To ensure effective delivery of the full range of culturally appropriate services for Indigenous offenders, CSC will engage Indigenous partners and stakeholders to enhance the availability of Elders and to reinforce their role in the provision of interventions and services that prepare Indigenous offenders for release.

CSC will streamline the contracting process to increase the availability of Elder services, thereby ensuring Elder assessments/reviews are available for consideration in decisions on the transfer and/or discretionary release of Indigenous offenders, and Elder services are provided as part of the continuum of care for Indigenous offenders during their transition from institution to the community. CSC remains committed to ongoing effective consultation on the role of Elders and Elder vulnerability with the National Indigenous Advisory Committee (NIAC) and the National Elder Working Group (NEWG), and will continue to work on improvements for CSC Elders, including the identification and implementation of measures to increase Elder supports.

To support effective reintegration of offenders, CSC will continue to plan, deliver and monitor a full range of correctional programs for offenders, including the Integrated Correctional Program Model, the Indigenous Integrated Correctional Program Model, and the Inuit Integrated Correctional Program for Inuit men offenders; as well as the Women Offender Correctional Programs and the Indigenous Women Offender Correctional Programs. CSC will implement the recommendations from the Evaluation of Correctional Reintegration Programs.

CSC plans to launch a Virtual Program Delivery project in 2021-22 that will ensure CSC maintains its commitments to facilitating offender rehabilitation through the challenges of COVID-19 and maintain our preparedness for similar future crisis.

To provide offenders with the basic literacy, academic and personal development skills needed for safe reintegration into the community, CSC will continue to develop and monitor the plans and results of education programs. In addition, CSC will continue to identify, assess and assist offenders who may have learning disabilities and are struggling with educational growth, and provide secure and controlled access to digital media to offenders via library services.

CSC will continually review the impact of the Employment and Employability Strategy on women, Indigenous and ethnocultural offenders, and offenders with mental health needs, and revise it as necessary. CSC will continue to implement the CORCAN Indigenous Offender Employment Initiative.

CSC will continue to develop the penitentiary farms program and will seek agreements with educational facilities and organizations that support the provision of industry-recognized vocational training for offenders, and that can effectively prepare offenders for job opportunities.

CSC provides structured and unstructured social programs and activities, such as recreation, self-help, and life skills training to assist offenders in gaining social skills that can contribute to community reintegration. During this planning period, CSC will continue to provide opportunities that promote stability and continuity for the mother-child relationship as well as opportunities for contact with family and support persons through the use of secure and controlled technology. CSC will also endeavour to strengthen the Community Integration Program by providing updated national training on revised program content, in addition to enhancing referral criteria, program reporting, and policy requirements.

Financial, human resources and performance information for the CSC's program inventory is available on CSC's website and in the GC InfoBase.

Financial, human resources and performance information for the CSC's program inventory is available on CSC's website and in the GC InfoBase.

Financial, human resources and performance information for the CSC's program inventory is available on CSC's website and in the GC InfoBase.

Core Responsibility 3: Community Supervision

CSC supervises offenders in the community and provides structure and services to support their safe and successful reintegration into the community. Services include accommodation options, community health services, and the establishment of community partnerships. CSC manages offenders on parole, statutory release, and long-term supervision orders.

CSC will ensure appropriate community accommodations are available and, using the newly implemented Offender Accommodation Management system with associated Release Planning data, will better match offenders with accommodation that meets their needs post release. CSC will review regional requests for community-based residential facility (CBRF) expansion in the context of offenders' needs, including women offenders, and will work with contracted partners to ensure appropriate community accommodations are available. As well, CSC will incorporate health-related discharge plans in release planning to address any identified gaps in provincial health service delivery.

CSC will implement and monitor commitments arising from management action plan(s) in response to recommendations from audits, evaluations and/or investigations.

Financial, human resources and performance information for the CSC's program inventory is available on CSC's website and in the GC InfoBase.

Financial, human resources and performance information for the CSC's program inventory is available on CSC's website and in the GC InfoBase.

Financial, human resources and performance information for the CSC's program inventory is available on CSC's website and in the GC InfoBase.

Internal Services: planned results

Internal Services are those groups of related activities and resources that the federal government considers to be services in support of Programs and/or required to meet corporate obligations of an organization. Internal Services refers to the activities and resources of the 10 distinct services that support Program delivery in the organization, regardless of the Internal Services delivery model in a department. These services are:

• Management and Oversight Services
• Communications Services
• Legal Services
• Human Resources Management Services
• Financial Management Services
• Information Management Services
• Information Technology Services
• Real Property Management Services
• Materiel Management Services
• Acquisition Management Services

CSC has invested considerable effort to eliminate harassment, discrimination, and bullying from the workplace, and to promote mental health and wellbeing. That work will continue. Changing an organizational culture requires strong leadership, and ongoing effort, and can only succeed when employees at all levels share the responsibility, and are educated and equipped with the knowledge, tools, and competencies needed to create and maintain a healthy, positive and productive work environment.

In October 2020, CSC launched the National Comprehensive Strategy on Workplace Wellness and Employee Wellbeing which will serve as the foundation for prioritizing activities relates to the respect, wellbeing, health and mental health of employees and managers at all levels. The strategy was developed in consultation with staff in all regions and is aligned with the Public Service Employee Survey, as well as with the Guarding Minds at Work 13 psychosocial factors. This strategy reinforces senior management's commitment to implementing recommendations from the Office of the Auditor General's Respect in the Workplace report.

Recognizing that the nature of correctional work creates higher than average workplace stress, particularly for front-line workers, CSC's Steering Committee for Workplace Mental Health Injuries continues to support the implementation of the three pillars - prevention, resolution and restoration - that sets the foundation of CSC's National Comprehensive Strategy on Workplace Wellness and Employee Wellbeing. The committee works in partnership with employees and unions to strengthen and sustain mental readiness through increased capacity, training, support and resiliency.

In 2021-22 CSC will complete the final year of its Strategic Plan for Human Resource Management which sets the tone and direction for people management at CSC. This plan is the cornerstone to creating a strong, diverse, and inclusive workplace by integrating all HR disciplines and their respective priorities. Furthermore, CSC will address existing challenges in its Offender Complaints and Grievance Process.

Having significantly enlarged CSC's virtual workplace capacity during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, CSC will continue to improve its network and institutional infrastructure as resources permit and, as needed, support staff working remotely. CSC will also finish upgrading and on-boarding new users to its human resources system through the Interim Enterprise Resource Planning Project.

CSC will support the Government of Canada's move away from Phoenix and the development and analysis of Human Resources and Pay alternatives, providing all possible Information Management/Information Technology (IM/IT) services to support this initiative at all stages of development, testing and implementation.

CSC will continue to advance initiatives in support of Government's IT Modernization priorities, including continued implementation of GCDOCS and the launch of the CSC Cloud Strategy. IMS Enterprise Architecture has realigned existing governance bodies to focus more closely on standardization across the IT landscape. Major accomplishments include the establishment of the CSC Enterprise Architecture Review Board (EARB), refocusing the existing Architecture Working Group to become the Enterprise Architecture Advisory Council, and publication of an overarching IT Solution Target Architecture (ITSTA) for CSC. IMS continues to evolve the ITSTA and to develop and promulgate companion standards and guidelines to further address the need for consistency across CSC.

Enterprise Architecture (EA) continues to explore opportunities to leverage Application Portfolio Management in order to address investment risk to the organization associated with Aging IT, as well as to identify specific areas of business and technical risk associated with CSC's portfolio of IT-enabled business systems.

EA is playing a leading role in developing and advancing cloud strategy and cloud adoption for CSC, including the CSC Cloud Adoption Strategy, supporting the establishment of CSC's Cloud Infrastructure, and leading the planning and execution of the roll-out of Microsoft 365, including Microsoft Teams, across the department. The latter is especially timely and has been a key aspect of enabling business continuity and remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic.

EA is promoting adherence to the GC Digital Standards and evolving GC direction on Accessibility of IT systems across IMS.

CSC will continue to stabilize functionalities of the newly implemented Offender Accommodation Management System that replaces manual processes for offender accommodation and management. This solution will streamline data collection used to support the day-to-day operational needs and overall capacity planning in 2021-22.

CSC will continue to develop and implement its Offender Management System Modernization (OMSM) resulting in a modern, integrated solution that dynamically responds to the evolving needs of staff and the organization, while also supporting the legislative framework, commitments and priorities now and in the future. When complete, OMSM will support more effective management of offenders based on modern and flexible processes that consider both cost and risk. It will also provide improved flexibility, thereby enhancing CSC's capacity to respond to changing legislation and policy, shifting stakeholder demands, and to share data with external partners.

The OMSM program is enabled by some of the key capabilities being developed by the Data Foundation project. The Data Foundation (DF) project is providing the Application Programming Interface (API) services and standards that will be leveraged to share data between the modernized OMS business capabilities and the legacy environment. The DF project is also standing up the Protected B Cloud environment to host OMSM and other cloud-based applications and data. In addition, through its data quality initiative, Data Foundation will also help to provide the modern solutions with improved offender data consistency, integrity and completeness.

CSC will implement an electronic Medication Administration Record and Regional Pharmacy Management system to enable improved consistency and effectiveness in CSC's health care centres and regional pharmacies.

CSC has begun to examine the feasibility of providing access to offender basic computer-skills training and provide secure and controlled access to digital media via library/educational services.

CSC will continue to engage in bilateral and multilateral initiatives and agreements with Federal/Provincial/Territorial (F/P/T) and international corrections partners and stakeholders. CSC will demonstrate leadership within the corrections field through regular and open consultations to ensure that information and best practices are shared among the various jurisdictions. The policy and guidelines related to F/P/T interjurisdictional exchange of services will be updated to strengthen accountabilities, including data management requirements.

CSC will continue to implement its Accommodation Plan. The size and diversity of CSC's infrastructure portfolio presents a range of challenges that demand effective planning, development, sustainable management and stewardship. As well, the need for all interventions to be environmentally sustainable is critical.

In this context, compliance with accommodation requirements detailed in recent legislation, policies, and commitments to meet the specific needs of offender groups with specialized needs^{Footnote 12} is both complex and difficult. Instead of a ‘one size fits all' type of facility plan for all of these diverse offender groups, as institutional redevelopment and construction occur, CSC will move toward designing accommodations that respond to the distinct needs of different groups.

CSC will continue to strengthen materiel management and contracting activities across the organization as it advances CSC's action plans to implement the upcoming Treasury Board Directives on the Management of Materiel and on the Management of Procurement.

CSC's Research Branch uses quasi-experimental designs allowing for ethical and rigorous analysis through statistical control and other methods that can be as compelling as traditional experimental design and may be the only way to ethically address complex social situations and vulnerable populations. Specific examples include work on the Indigenous Intervention Centres (IICs) and Healing Lodges on offender reintegration and community outcomes, both of which will inform policy and operational practices of the various actions that have the greatest impact on success. Critical work contributing to evidence-informed decision making will continue in areas such as offender risk assessment, including research on Indigenous-informed assessments tools for case management, exploring the impact of community supervision on higher risk offenders and development of an integrated risk assessment tool. Research efforts contribute to a clearer understanding of CSC's operational environment and supports proactive responses to change in the achievement of corporate priorities and in the strategies and approaches taken to mitigate risk.

Financial, human resources and performance information for the CSC's program inventory is available on CSC's website and in the GC InfoBase.

Financial, human resources and performance information for the CSC's program inventory is available on CSC's website and in the GC InfoBase.

Spending and human resources

This section provides an overview of the department's planned spending and human resources for the next three consecutive fiscal years and compares planned spending for the upcoming year with the current and previous years' actual spending.

Planned spending

The following graph presents planned (voted and statutory) spending over time.

The table shows details of CSC's planned spending in $ millions for fiscal years 2018–19, 2019−20, 2020−21, 2021−22, 2022−23 and 2023–24.

In 2018−19 there was 223 million of spending on statutory and 2,366 million on voted for a total of 2,589 million.

In 2019−20 there was 229 million of spending on statutory and 2,424 million on voted for a total of 2,653 million.

In 2020−21 there was 267 million of spending on statutory and 2,878 million on voted for a total of 3,145 million.

In 2021−22 there was 261 million of spending on statutory and 2,547 million on voted for a total of 2,808 million.

In 2022−23 there was 257 million of spending on statutory and 2,574 million on voted for a total of 2,831 million.

In 2023–24, there was 257 million of spending on statutory and 2,586 million on voted for a total of 2,843 million.

The following table shows actual, forecast and planned spending for each of CSC's core responsibilities and to Internal Services for the years relevant to the current planning year. The forecast and planned spending reported throughout this publication is based on information available as at December 9, 2020, and may differ from the Main and Supplementary Estimate amounts which will be approved at a later time.

The contrast between the 2020-21 forecast spending of $3,145.4M and 2019-20 expenditures of $2,652.8M demonstrates that CSC anticipates operational increases between these years. For both years, CSC received additional funding to support its operations for amounts that were not initially included in its Main Estimates, respectively $145.4M in 2020-21 and $95.0M in 2019-20. For the 2021-22 fiscal year, $166.4M of funding for the support of CSC's operations was approved through Budget 2020 and is included in CSC's Main Estimates.

The $337.6M variance between the 2020-21 forecast spending of $3,145.4M and the 2021-22 Main Estimates of $2,807.8M is mainly due to additional funding received during the 2020-21 financial year and therefore not included in the 2020-21 Main Estimates, and funding to be received or sunsetting in the 2021-22 Main Estimates.

The first part of this variance is for funding received in both the 2021-22 Main Estimates and the 2020-21 Main Estimates, but for different amounts, resulting in a variance of $162.4M. This increase is mainly due to funding to support pressures related to COVID-19 $130.4M, Collective Agreement increases $53.2M, and a reduction of Budget 2020 funding for Support for the Correctional Service Canada ($21.0M), and a smaller return of funding to the Parole Board of Canada ($0.2M).

The second part of this variance is related to additional funding received in addition to the 2020-21 Main Estimates, representing a difference of $197.7M.

The final part of this variance is related to additional funding received or sunsetting in the 2021-22 Main Estimates, representing a difference of ($22.5M). This decrease is mainly due to funding for Budget 2017 programs addressing the needs of Vulnerable Offenders $2.5M, a decrease in the employee benefit plan $2.1M, funding for the Program and Administrative Services (PA) modernization initiative $0.3M, funding for the Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan $0.2M, funding for Transforming Federal Corrections (Bill C-83) ($26.6M), Budget 2018 programs to support the mental health needs of inmates and to support the reopening of the penitentiary farms ($0.7M), and a statutory increase resulting from a drawdown on the CORCAN revolving fund authority ($0.3M).

Planned human resources

The following table shows actual, forecast and planned full-time equivalents (FTEs) for each core responsibility in CSC's departmental results framework and to Internal Services for the years relevant to the current planning year.

The variance of 221 full-time equivalents (FTEs) between 2020-21 and 2019-20 is mostly due to Transforming Federal Corrections (Bill C-83) and Budget 2020's Support for the Correctional Service of Canada. Staffing requirements for 'Addressing the Needs of Vulnerable Offenders' (Budget 2017) and ‘Mental Health / Penitentiary Farms' (Budget 2018) also contribute to this increase. The 449 FTE increase between 2021-22 and 2020-21 is largely due to increased planned staffing for correctional officers in order to bring the workforce to its optimal level. A significant portion of this FTE increase is attributed to Transforming Federal Corrections (Bill C-83) and Budget 2020's Support for the Correctional Service of Canada. Future year FTEs are also expected to increase as Bill C-83 measures continue to be implemented.

Estimates by vote

Information on the CSC's organizational appropriations is available in the 2021-22 Main Estimates.

Consolidated Future-oriented Condensed statement of operations

The consolidated future oriented condensed statement of operations provides an overview of the CSC's operations for 2020-21 to 2021-22.

The amounts for forecast and planned results in this statement of operations were prepared on an accrual basis. The amounts for forecast and planned spending presented in other sections of the Departmental Plan were prepared on an expenditure basis. Amounts may therefore differ.

A more detailed consolidated future oriented statement of operations and associated notes, including a reconciliation of the net cost of operations to the requested authorities, are available on the CSC's website.

CSC's 2021-22 planned expenses are projected to be $2,990,532,630. These expenses include planned spending presented in this Departmental Plan and also include expenses such as amortization and services provided without charge. CSC's planned revenues are projected to be $51,110,888 in 2021-22. Revenues are primarily generated by the CORCAN revolving fund.

Variances between the planned results for 2021-22 and the 2020-21 forecast results are largely attributable to the timing of key elements in the government expenditure cycle. The following major changes account for the largest differences between the forecast and planned results:

• $160.4 million expenditures related to CSC's response to COVID-19 that relates to 2020-21 only;
• $53.2 million for collective agreement increases in 2020-21 that are not anticipated for 2021-22; and
• $51.8 million related to the operating budget carry-forward in 2020-21 that is not included in the 2021-22 planned results.

Corporate information

Organizational profile

Appropriate minister(s): The Honourable William Sterling Blair, P.C., C.O.M., M.P

Institutional head: Anne Kelly, Commissioner

Ministerial portfolio: Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Enabling instrument(s): Corrections and Conditional Release Act, S.C. 1992, c.20

Year of incorporation / commencement: 1979 (March 31)

Raison d'être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do

"Raison d'être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do" is available on the CSC's website.

For more information on the department's organizational mandate letter commitments, see the "Minister's Mandate Letter".

Operating context

Information on the operating context is available on the CSC's website.

Reporting framework

The CSC's approved departmental results framework and program inventory for 2020-21 are as follows.

No changes to the approved reporting framework since 2020-21

Supporting information on the program inventory

Supporting information on planned expenditures, human resources, and results related to the CSC's program inventory is available on CSC's website and in the in the GC InfoBase.

Supplementary information tables

The following supplementary information tables are available on the CSC's website:

• Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy
• Details on transfer payment programs
• Gender-based analysis plus

Federal tax expenditures

CSC's Departmental Plan does not include information on tax expenditures that relate to its planned results for 2021-22.

Tax expenditures are the responsibility of the Minister of Finance, and the Department of Finance Canada publishes cost estimates and projections for government-wide tax expenditures each year in the Report on Federal Tax Expenditures. This report provides detailed information on tax expenditures, including objectives, historical background and references to related federal spending programs, as well as evaluations, research papers and gender-based analysis. The tax measures presented in this report are solely the responsibility of the Minister of Finance.

Organizational contact information

Mailing address

340 Laurier Avenue West

Ottawa, Ontario

K1A 0P9

Website(s): Correctional Service of Canada website

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Appendix: definitions