How Restorative Justice could help you

“Having restorative justice has completely changed my life. I feel stronger, more confident and able to work on relationships. I will forever be grateful.”

This week is Restorative Justice Week, an international campaign dedicated to highlighting how restorative justice (RJ) can support people affected by crime. In Dorset, I commission Restorative Justice Dorset to carry out this important service in our area. I know the value restorative justice provides to victims of crime, helping them to deal with what’s happened to them through a professional, mediated approach.

Restorative justice aims not only to help victims, giving them an opportunity to talk about their experience and the impact on their lives, but also maximises the offender’s awareness of their actions, particularly the way it has affected their victim.

In Dorset, all victims of any crime or harm can self-refer to the restorative justice service, with perpetrators able to do the same, except in cases of domestic abuse or sexual violence. Police and victim services, probation, witness and support services can also refer – this is a victim-centred service. I want to be clear that RJ is not an alternative to criminal justice – it can run alongside and helps people to cope and recover post-conviction as well as for cases that may not go through a formal court process.

Who can it help?

Victims of crime:

• For victims struggling to cope or recover or those who feel unable to move forward, RJ can provide a forum to be heard, which is vital to the healing process. 
• RJ can help victims take back control and have a say in how offenders can make amends.
• RJ gives victims the opportunity to ask questions or talk about how they have been affected.

Offenders:

• For offenders, RJ presents an opportunity to make a form of retributive acknowledgement.
• This could consist of an apology or commitment to do things differently in the future. This can be important for both victims and offenders to deal with emotions and stress caused by crime.
• The process can form the basis of some kind of reintegration of the offender back into the community; this is important for both the victim and offender if they are part of the same community.

I know from the feedback the service receives just how important restorative justice can be. For victims of crime, it can be incredibly healing, and for offenders, it can reduce reoffending, something which is important to ease pressure on the police and wider criminal justice service. The process provides clarity, a chance to acknowledge wrongdoing and potentially make amends. Most importantly though, it allows the victims to be heard. Below, we can see from one of the case studies, the power of restorative justice.

Two paramedics were assaulted when called to assist a vulnerable person who had fallen and cut herself after being involved in an altercation. They had to call the police as the offender threatened them both, starting to punch and kick them while they tried to examine her. The offender was given an out of court resolution as the victims wanted them to receive help and support for her mental health and did not want to support a court prosecution.  Through restorative justice the offender wrote a heartfelt letter of apology after listening to how the victims felt about the behaviour and the impact of being confronted with violence whilst trying to help and treat people when at work. The offender not only apologised for their actions but described some of the support they were receiving and the steps they are taking including studying and working with the Community Mental Health Team.

Feedback from the victim: “Great to have a positive outcome. We were able to say how we were affected and that what we wanted most was for the offender to receive help which appears to be the case.”

Feedback from the offender: “Thank you for helping me to say sorry. I felt terrible, and this has made me realise I need help.” 

Putting victims and communities first is a key part of my Police and Crime Plan, and that’s why I support restorative justice. I want victims to be heard and have the chance to express how an offender’s actions have affected them and their lives. For some, a simple sorry is what is needed to help them recover, for others, understanding ‘why’ is important. But the power of restorative justice is that it provides the safe space for these difficult and complex conversations and communications to happen, either face to face or indirectly. Thank you to Restorative Justice Dorset for enabling victims to be heard, and for pushing offenders to realise the impact of their actions.

David Sidwick

Dorset Police and Crime Commissioner

You can find out more about the work of Restorative Justice Dorset here