AVON AND SOMERSET RESTORATIVE PARTNERSHIP Shaping the future of Restorative Justice
Delivering best practice Restorative Justice to meet the needs of the victims we support. Making things right instead of being resigned to what has gone wrong.
Putting victims at the heart of the Criminal Justice Service is one of my priorities in my Police in Crime Plan and we are fortunate to have many fantastic people providing victim services across Avon and Somerset. However we can all do more to support victims in their journey to recovery and I feel being able to offer services such as restorative justice will go a long way in helping victims regain control. As of October this year, I took responsibility for commissioning victims services and there was no doubt in my mind that restorative justice plays an important role in the victims’ recovery. It has always been my vision to develop access to restorative justice at every stage of the criminal justice process. I support any measure that allows the voice of victims to be heard, helping them to reach closure that cannot be found in sentencing alone. I have seen for myself the positive impact that restorative justice can have and continue to work with partners and communities to make this vision a reality. I hope that victims’ funding from the Ministry of Justice, specifically for restorative justice, will also help in raising awareness. Restorative justice has been proven to have more impact on an offender than a prison sentence or a court punishment alone. The offender has to face the consequences of their actions and I truly believe that for the majority of cases it will change their future behaviour. In order for restorative justice to work effectively however, it must be a victim-led process. Ensuring the victim regains control is an important step in the recovery journey. I want victims to receive services that help them through their difficult time and I feel that restorative justice plays an important part in this.
Sue Mountstevens Avon and Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner
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RESTORATIVE AVON AND SOMERSET
BACKGROUND
We are shaping the future of restorative justice provision in Avon and Somerset. Police and Crime Commissioners have been given funding from the Ministry of Justice to build capacity and fund restorative justice services. In 2015 we are going to work with partners involved in delivering restorative justice in Avon and Somerset to strengthen provision and design a restorative justice delivery model to inform commissioned services. This work is an exciting opportunity to develop victim-led restorative justice in Avon and Somerset and will be an important part of significant work underway to transform services for victims through Lighthouse, the Integrated Victim and Witness Care Programme. We view strong partnership working as essential to the success of this development and will ensure that all partners with an interest in restorative justice are given the opportunity to contribute to this important piece of work. We are fortunate in Avon and Somerset strong base and we see this as an exciting and make the most of new developments, and Somerset are able to access restorative their journey.
to be starting from a opportunity to build on so that victims in Avon justice at every stage of
Communities across Avon and Somerset are affected by crime on a daily basis. For some, knowing that the person who has caused them harm has been punished is enough to bring closure and enable them to move forward. For others, the Criminal Justice Service cannot bring closure. In Avon and Somerset we believe that victims should have a voice so they can express the hurt that has affected them and their community. Through the development of restorative justice services in Avon and Somerset we strive to put the victim at the heart of what we do. A multi-agency restorative justice service in Avon and Somerset will give victims a voice and access to support. Working closely with partner organisations to develop a joined-up approach to a restorative justice service it is our vision to improve the experience of victims throughout their journey. We recognise that time and effort are important investment for the success of the development however restorative justice is a learning process that seeks to bring together people who are willing to work towards common goals. Restorative justice requires vision and clarity of goals and as we lay out our plans for development we also make a commitment to the values and principles of restorative justice. Implementing a successful service model necessitates a new way of thinking about how we work collaboratively to deliver restorative justice services. It also requires an understanding that community cohesion, participation, and joint decision making are inherent characteristics of restorative justice. In developing restorative justice and presenting our vision for the future we commit to including people, to open communications, and to be open in our need to do things differently.
Helen Rosenthal Restorative Justice Development Manager, Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner Helen.rosenthal@avonandsomerset.police.uk
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Avon and Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner and Police have made a COMMITMENT to develop restorative justice, and put victims of crime and anti-social behaviour first. In doing so we will work towards becoming a benchmark of quality providing restorative justice that adheres to national standards which the police, local people and the Criminal Justice Service are confident in using. The Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner plans to remove some of the barriers that prevent victims from benefitting from restorative justice. By LEARNING from and working closely with practitioners and partners we want to embed restorative justice into Avon and Somerset. In doing so we acknowledge that there are evolving strategies for restorative justice and our VISION supports those strategies in considering how we can work with existing systems. In the future we hope to provide restorative justice practitioners with training, supervision, and support accreditation and ensure standards are met and upheld. A new service model will provide a QUALITY SERVICE to a range of communities so restorative justice can assist solutions at a COMMUNITY level. The development will raise awareness of restorative justice amongst the Police and the communities they serve and we will work with partners to streamline policy and procedures and be clear about our VALUES and priorities, allowing victims to request to participate in restorative justice at a time that is right for them. This will be made possible by investing in capacity building and ensuring the quality of restorative justice delivery across the Criminal Justice Service is of the highest standard. We will encourage RESTORATIVE JUSTICE CHAMPIONS, to develop a clear set of performance measures to record the amount of restorative justice being used and evaluate the effectiveness of this new infrastructure. The framework of the new service model will include an innovative service delivery model to integrate with other interventions and organisations, ensuring effective communication mechanisms are in place to promote restorative justice. The work will be collaborative, LISTENING to key partners, to adopt a truly multi-agency approach and ensure that restorative justice is embedded in the Constabulary. By building partnerships, involving both victim and offender services, we will improve the availability of restorative justice.
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RESTORATIVE AVON AND SOMERSET
RESTORATIVE JUSTICE WORKS
The Government funded a ÂŁ7 million seven year research programme which demonstrates that restorative justice provides an 85 per cent victim satisfaction rate, and a 14 per cent reduction in the frequency of re-offending. Evidence also proves that restorative justice in 70,000 cases involving adult offenders would deliver ÂŁ185 million in cost savings to the criminal justice system over two years, through the reduction in re-offending alone.
OUR VISION
In Avon and Somerset our vision is to give victims of crime and anti-social behaviour the chance to explain to offenders the real impact of an incident and to have the opportunity to get answers to their questions. For some it is the chance to hear an apology. Restorative justice can be another empowering tool that victims can access in an effort to help them cope and recover from the effect of an incident. The development in Avon and Somerset will increase the availability of restorative justice where the offender accepts responsibility and both victim and offender are willing to participate. Guaranteeing to all that it is a safe process to be involved in.
WORKING TOGETHER
Working collaboratively with partners, communities and the voluntary sector we can ensure that local people feel safe and are safe. Restorative justice is a key enabler of reducing re-offending meaning less crime and as a result fewer resources are required to prevent and tackle crime. Close partnership working will not only ensure victims are supported throughout their recovery but also that offenders are helped to turn their lives around, away from a life of crime. It is only by working together, providing tailored services to victims and offenders that we can ensure that restorative justice continues to be effective at tackling crime and the effects of crime.
ACCOUNTABILITY
The vision is to create delivery groups to oversee the design, implementation, and evaluation of restorative justice. The groups will include the expertise and knowledge of a diverse range of people, including practitioners, criminal justice agencies, community representatives, and the voluntary and community sector. The role of the groups will be to provide oversight on the achievement of program goals, adherence to restorative justice values, resource management, provide strategic leadership, direction and marketing. In particular, the groups can help to ensure that restorative justice coordinators are equipped with the necessary skills, knowledge, and sensitivity to run restorative justice processes and increase awareness.
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Valley Road, Portishead, Bristol BS20 8JJ e: pcc@avonandsomerset.pnn.police.uk t: 01275 816377 /AandSPCC /AvonandSomersetPolice
@AandSPCC / @ASPolice