Now, almost 15 years later, he has returned as the governor of Bathurst Correctional Centre.

Mr Lees was somewhat of a latecomer to Corrections NSW, not starting his career until 2004 at the age of 33.

Prior to that he worked in a variety of industries, including in banking and in pubs.

"I joined Corrections in 2004, just as I was completing a psychology degree. I started having some children, so I thought I better get a job," he said. "It was a good time to do it. I started in Corrections in 2004 and I finished my degree in 2005."

Given the nature of the work, a degree in psychology was a good foundation to have when he started his career.

"I think it was just something totally different than I'd done in the past, so it was a bit of a change of lifestyle and a change of experience," he said.

"I think it probably fitted in well with what I was doing at university with psychology and criminology as well, so it seemed to be a good fit."

Mr Lees' first role was at Dillwynia Women's Correctional Centre, in Sydney, which he said "was quite an experience in itself".

His job involved the day-to-day management of the prisoners.

After 12 months, he moved on to a different facility, the Bathurst jail.

It presented a different experience for him, as he was no longer looking after female prisoners.

"I actually came to Bathurst and did 18 months here in Bathurst back in my younger days," Mr Lees said.

"That was again a little but of a culture shock. Dillwynia down in Sydney was a brand-new centre and then coming to Bathurst, which was 130 years old, it was very different and runs very differently than dealing with the females."

After leaving Bathurst, Mr Lees spent 10 years at Wellington Correctional Centre and then three at Macquarie Correctional Centre.

Now back in Bathurst, Mr Lees admits there has been a few changes since the last time he worked within the prison walls.

One such change was the 220-bed expansion, which was only recently completed.

While Mr Lees is unsure how long his stay in Bathurst will be, he's hoping he will be able to have a positive impact on the culture of the facility.

At the top of the list is ensuring a respectful relationship between the corrections officers and the prisoners.

Mr Lees is a big believer in having a "pro-social environment" in prisons, which centres around treating everybody with dignity and respect.

"I always say to my staff here that the people we are looking after, you might have been having a beer with them three weeks ago or playing football against them a month ago, or something like that," he said.

"They're the same people, so there's no reason we should treat them any differently. Dignity and respect, and listening to their views, things like that, because they're part of this environment as well and they should have an input in how things evolve between the staff and the offenders."

Over his many years in corrections, Mr Lees can say what he is most proud of in his job are the things staff do for inmates, such as helping them gain qualifications while in custody and ensuring female inmates maintain contact with their children.

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It's a job he loves and will likely do for many years to come.

"There's never been a day that I've woken up and thought 'I don't want to have to go to work'. I actually do enjoy coming to work and doing this role, from day one when I was in the job, I do enjoy it and I want everyone else that works here to enjoy it as well," Mr Lees said.

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