About the RJC

Our vision is to harness the power of restorative practice to cultivate a culture where it is widely accessible and recognised as a valuable tool for empowering community transformation, resolving conflicts, promoting healthy relationships, and facilitating positive change. We believe restorative practice plays a vital role in creating a more peaceful and harmonious society.

Serving as the national, independent membership body for the restorative sector, our mission is to promote and advance the use of restorative practice, in all its forms, for the betterment of the public. We believe that restorative practice has the power to enable communities to cultivate a culture that prioritises reconciliation and empowers individuals to build strong, effective and resilient relationships. By embracing a restorative and relational mindset in every aspect of society and our own lives, we create safe environments where those in conflict can engage in meaningful dialogue and begin the journey of repairing the harm caused. It is our goal to see restorative principles deeply integrated in all aspects of our society.

Our commitment to serving the restorative sector is demonstrated through our focus on education, research, and the ongoing enhancement of our standards, principles and practice guidance. We recognise the changing needs of this sector and strive to continuously adapt and respond to them.

The Key Pillars of the RJC

At our core lies a strong set of values that guide every aspect of our work. These values are not just words on a page, but they are ingrained in every aspect of our organisation's operations. Our values of impartiality, integrity, quality, trust, collaboration, and inclusivity are the foundation of the Restorative Justice Council. They help us to stay true to our mission and ensure that we hold ourselves accountable as we work towards our goal of creating a better and more harmonious society.

Impartiality

We are committed to acting impartially in all our practices. Our aim is to ensure that everyone engaging with the RJC is treated fairly and without bias. We recognise that individuals come from diverse backgrounds and have different perspectives and we strive to uphold each person's dignity and respect. This impartiality is essential to building trust and creating an environment where honest and open communication can take place.

Integrity

Integrity goes hand in hand with impartiality. At the RJC, we believe in doing what is right, even when no one is watching. We hold ourselves accountable to a high ethical standard and carry out our work with transparency and honesty. We want all parties engaging with us to have faith in our methods and believe that we are acting in their best interests. This commitment to integrity helps to maintain the credibility and effectiveness of our organisation.

Quality

We are dedicated to delivering high-quality services to all our stakeholders. This commitment to quality is reflected in our events, CPD programs, Standards, and Codes of Practice. Our goal is to continuously improve and refine our methods to ensure that we are delivering the best possible outcomes for all individuals and organisations engaging with us. We are proud of the standards we have set and we are always striving to exceed them.

Trust

Our success is rooted in trust, serving as the foundation upon which we build our endeavours. With a deep sense of dedication to impartiality, integrity, and quality, we strive to cultivate and uphold trust and assurance in our work. Our relentless efforts to preserve this trust are a testament to our professionalism.

Collaboration

We firmly believe that meaningful collaboration is the key to our success. That is why we place great importance on closely working with our partners and key stakeholders in order to further our charitable objectives. We ensure that our collaborators align with our fundamental values and share our overarching mission and vision.

Inclusivity

We’re not satisfied with only addressing problematic behaviours and attitudes that simply seek to make ourselves feel better about the future of historically marginalised and under-recognised groups within our communities. We will take actions that address the behaviours and power structures driving underrepresentation. We are committed to highlighting the real problems and recognise the importance of putting the responsibility of change on the discriminators and systems that both enable and trap under-represented groups. We understand that under-representation is a symptom of the problem and that’s why we will encourage and support our members to engage in and open up uncomfortable conversations. Through our actions we will support the restorative sector to embed practices that nurture a diverse restorative community with a variety of skills and qualities.