From time to time I find it useful to take stock and to look at what projects we have on the go at the RJC, what we have coming up, and what we would like to do next. This helps to ensure that what we are doing is in line with our priorities and aims as an organisation, to check that we have the right balance of work, and to identify any gaps. A month or so into the new financial year we have been going through that process and I thought that it might be useful to share the highlights of our current work programme.
Why me? have today released the results of their research into Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) provision of restorative justice.
The research focused on PCC expenditure and delivery. Why me? looked at what services have been commissioned and how accessible they are to victims, as well as trying to find out how much of the £23 million the Ministry of Justice allocated for PCC delivery of restorative justice over the three years from 2013 had been used.
According to media reports over the weekend, the appointment of a new head of Ofsted is imminent. And while the people who are reportedly on the shortlist may not be familiar to most of us, this could be a very significant appointment for the future development of restorative practice.
Jon Collins, the RJC’s chief executive, gave oral evidence to a Justice Select Committee hearing in Westminster this morning. The hearing was part of the select committee’s inquiry into restorative justice, and followed on from a written consultation earlier this year.
The session covered topics including the evidence for cost effectiveness, how well the Victims’ Code is working in practice, the potential for a Victims’ Law and the use of restorative justice for domestic and sexual violence.
The RJC is pleased to announce the publication of a new guide on restorative justice for the police. The police have a vital role to play both in delivery of restorative justice for low level offences and in sharing victims’ details to enable restorative justice to go ahead in more serious cases.
“I want to even out the power imbalance between us, to sit across the table on my terms and look into his eyes.”
This quote, taken from a powerful excerpt from her forthcoming book, describes why Carmen Aguirre wanted to meet the man who had raped her as a teenager. This is in no way unusual. Many of the victims who I have spoken to have wanted to regain power and control, as an important step towards putting a crime behind them and moving on.
The RJC is pleased to have agreed funding for 2016-17 with the Ministry of Justice to deliver a programme of work to promote the use of restorative justice and ensure quality in its delivery.
In line with reductions in government spending, however, the RJC’s funding from the Ministry of Justice has been significantly reduced compared to the last two years. We will therefore be continuing to carry out a programme of work with the Ministry of Justice, but on a smaller scale than previously.
The RJC has published Working with women who offend: A guide for restorative justice practitioners.
This brief guide for practitioners is based on the findings from the seven-month research project entitled Making restorative justice work for women who have offended. Funded by Barrow Cadbury Trust, this study aimed to explore female offenders’ access to, and experiences of, restorative justice.
The RJC has published Making restorative justice work for women who have offended, a new research report that sets out a series of recommendations for practitioners and policy makers on how to improve female offenders’ access to and experiences of restorative justice.
