Anuradha overcame cultural barriers to rehabilitate offenders and decrease Central Queensland recidivism

“Why I most like to be in my job is that I get to see people making changes to their life and trying to become a better person.”

Rockhampton Queensland Corrective Services Senior Case Manager Anu.

For the past two and a half years, Rockhampton Community Corrections senior case manager Anuradha (Anu) has helped to rehabilitate Central Queensland offenders through her work at Rockhampton Community Corrections.

But the road to what she described as something of a dream career was not easy.

“I was born into a very cultural family in Sri Lanka,” Anu said.

“In Sri Lanka, if you’re female, you’re meant to be a doctor. That’s what my family expected me to do.

“When I was growing up, I realised my passions lay elsewhere. I became a lawyer with all the passion in the world for myself, but I had to convince others that that’s the best choice for me.”

Before moving over to Australia in 2017 to complete her Masters in Law, Anu was a practising lawyer.

She pivoted to corrective services as she considered it a greater opportunity to help fellow residents achieve their goals.

Now Anu manages people classified as high-risk with the aim to reintegrate, educate, and rehabilitate them, and to increase community safety by decreasing recidivism.

Anu helps to rehabilitate people classified as high-risk and to decrease recidivism rates.

“Mental health issues, drugs, alcohol, significant trauma, you name it,” she said.

“I make so many decisions in one day. I always make sure that it’s according to various legislations … to just help and mitigate any offending rates in the community, basically ensuring that Queenslanders are safe.

“Why I most like to be in my job is that I get to see people making changes to their life and trying to become a better person. That’s really rewarding.

“Sometimes it’s helpful to listen to every little thing. It can make a huge difference in some people’s life, just to actually appreciate the smallest needs in life.”

For her dedication and display of community spirit, Anu has been nominated for a QBANK Everyday Heroes Award.

“I didn’t expect this,” she said. “It quite surprised me to be honest.

“I was so proud and honoured to be nominated for the award. It’s an honour to be recognised for the work we do to make the community a better place.”

Anu also thanked her colleagues, whom she said were extremely supportive.

The five ‘category a’ QBANK Everyday Heroes Award winners will each receive a $1,000 cash deposit and $1,000 will be donated to their charity of choice.

Nominations for the QBANK Everyday Heroes Awards close August 13, with finalists being announced September 13.

Nominations may be made online.

Originally published as Anuradha overcame cultural barriers to rehabilitate offenders and decrease Central Queensland recidivism