This 2009 independent expert analysis of the economic benefits of restorative justice revealed that restorative justice would likely lead to a net benefit of over £1 billion over 10 years.
The report concluded that diverting young offenders from community orders to a pre-court restorative justice conferencing scheme would produce a lifetime saving to society of almost £275 million (£7,050 per offender).
The cost of implementing the scheme would be paid back in the first year and during the course of two parliaments (10 years) society would benefit by over £1 billion.
Restorative Justice and Domestic Violence/Abuse (2008, updated April 2010) is a report commissioned by Cardiff Prison to look into increasing the effectiveness of their Supporting Offenders through Restoration Inside (SORI) programme with domestic violence perpetrators.
Many women’s organisations believe that restorative justice has no application to domestic violence, and that victim-offender mediation can only be dangerous for victims. This view is echoed by the British government.
This 2010 report by the NSPCC evaluated Hertfordshire County Council’s introduction of restorative justice in its young people’s residential units.
The report found that police were called out fewer times following the implementation of restorative practices.
The NSPCC recommends that residential units should continue to implement restorative ways of working, as they have many positive benefits for staff and residents.
The report also raised issues about the use of restorative justice with bullying.
In 2009 the International Institute for Restorative Practices put together this summary of findings from schools implementing restorative practices in the UK, Canada and the US.
The findings show evidence of restorative practices' effectiveness in tackling disruptive behaviour and building positive school environments.
In the New Zealand criminal justice system, restorative justice is primarily delivered through a meeting between the victim and the offender called a restorative justice conference. Currently, the Ministry of Justice provides funding for about 1,500 conferences per year.
Community (or Neighbourhood) Justice Panels are an innovative community-based model of restorative justice being used in Sheffield, Somerset and Manchester. This 2010 report by Sheffield Hallam University compares the effectiveness and cost of community mediation with interventions by statutory agencies.
In 2009, Sheffield Hallam University, in conjunction with Manchester Metropolitan University, were commissioned to undertake an evaluation of the Sycamore Tree programme by Prison Fellowship England and Wales.
The Sycamore Tree Programme is a victim awareness programme that teaches the principles and application of restorative justice.
From 2001, the government funded a £7 million seven-year research programme looking into three restorative justice schemes: CONNECT, the Justice Research Consortium (JRC) and REMEDI.
This paper summarises the results, including that:
This 2013 seminar, organised by the Restorative Justice Council and The Forgiveness Project with the Ministry of Justice, explored the evidence base for restorative justice and where the gaps in our knowledge lie.
The seminar was hosted by Lord Stone of Blackheath at Millbank House in Westminster, London.
Minutes of the seminar are available to download, as are the presentations from Professor Joanna Shapland and Dr Heather Strang.
This 2013 report found ways in which immaturity among young adults can affect restorative justice practice.
These include a tendency for young adults to have chaotic lifestyles, dependence on family members, low levels of emotional literacy, difficulties in accepting responsibility and a lack of a sense of agency (or belief that they have the potential to do something positive).
The report recommends that restorative practitioners are made aware of these challenges and suggests ways in which each can be handled successfully.
