March 16

March 16, 2005: New Guide to Restorative Justice

The government has published a new guide on restorative justice for local police forces, prosecutors and offender managers. The National Criminal Justice Board issued the guide 'Restorative justice: Helping to meet local needs' to all Local Criminal Justice Board members. It sets out how restorative approaches work, particularly in increasing victim satisfaction and public confidence, and points to where local areas can make greater use of these approaches. The guide can be downloaded from the Government’s Restorative Justice Strategy page.

The Home Office states that restorative justice encourages offenders to take responsibility for their actions and repair the harm they have caused, and helps victims recover and put the incident behind them. It brings victims and offenders into communication, either face to face or indirectly, through a trained facilitator.

Restorative justice is always optional for victims. Research shows that over three quarters of victims who take part benefit from the process, taking the chance to tell the offender the impact of the offence, and have their questions answered about what happened. For many victims, the benefits include feeling safer and the chance of direct compensation and/or a personal apology from the offender if they want.

The guide is the latest step in the Government’s efforts to develop the use of restorative justice approaches. It focuses particularly on increasing victim satisfaction and public confidence in the criminal justice system , and offers tools and advice for agencies that want to implement the approach in their own area.

Speaking today at the Restorative Justice Conference Annual Conference in London, Baroness Scotland QC, Home Office Minister for the Criminal Justice System and Law Reform, said:

“Restorative justice encourages all of us involved in the criminal justice system to see justice in a new light. In many cases it helps victims of crime have a say in what happens to an offender. It can also be part of the rehabilitation process for offenders themselves.

“Restorative justice is about helping every victim get over the crime they’ve suffered. When a victim chooses to meet the offender it often helps them feel safer and more satisfied that justice has been done.

“So as we reform the criminal justice system to put victims and communities first, restorative justice should have a key place at the heart of our reforms.”

Restorative justice is already widely used in youth justice. It can be used in a variety of settings for adult offenders: either by police, including when someone is cautioned or as part of measures to tackle anti-social behaviour; or for convicted offenders before or after sentencing.

For more online information about restorative justice, the Crimlinks restorative justice page is useful.

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