First police force achieves RSQM

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) Tameside Division has become the first police force to achieve the Restorative Service Quality Mark (RSQM).

The award recognises the good quality, safe and sustainable restorative service provided by the police force, which joins 17 other RSQM awardees from sectors including criminal justice, education and care.

Gary Coglan, GMP’s restorative justice development officer, said: “The RSQM has ensured that our restorative justice services are of the exceptional national standard that victims of crime deserve. 

“For an organisation as large as GMP, which provides restorative justice at many levels, the process was initially daunting. However, regular contact with our RSQM assessors ensured that the evidence we were providing was relevant. This saved us a lot of time and allowed us to focus our energy on the right areas for development.

“Achieving the award was a validation of all the good work that we have put into restorative justice and, as the first police force to achieve this award, we felt a sense of pride in what we are doing. The next goal is to ensure that these standards are built upon and shared across the whole of the GMP divisional areas.

“The RSQM ensures that restorative justice is delivered to the highest standard and, to anyone thinking of applying, I would say go for it!”

Vickie Yardley, the restorative justice coordinator at Tameside Division, said: “I am thrilled we have been awarded the RSQM. We put victims first, and achieving the RSQM will hopefully reassure anyone taking part in the process that we are working to a high professional standard. We will aim to give all victims, of any description and at any time, the closure they need to move on with their lives, but we will also support offenders in not reoffending.”