IIRP UK & Ireland 2012 Conference

International Institute for Restorative Practices (IIRP) UK & Ireland

Putting Theory into Practice: The Restorative Way

www.iirp.edu/uk

in partnership with

featuring Swansea, Wales Swansea, Wales, UK | 29th November 2012

An IIRP CPD (Continuing Professional Development) event.

We invite you to attend the IIRP UK & Ireland 2012 Conference.

The 2012 conference will spotlight the City and County of Swansea, which is bringing restorative practices training and services to those who work with children and young people in the area. Teachers, police, social workers and a variety of agencies throughout the city have recieved training programs developed by the International Institute for Restorative Practices.

An interdisciplinary conference.

This conference will not only

feature the accomplishments in Swansea, but will include community groups, educationalists, social care and criminal justice professionals from across the

PLENARY SPEAKERS Plenary sessions feature speakers from Swansea and around the UK & Ireland (as detailed overleaf) including: Billy Nicol National Service Support Manager, Sacro, Scotland.

UK & Ireland who, in brief plenaries and a series of breakout sessions, will share their experiences in effectively using restorative practices.

Who should attend.

Social workers, teachers, school administrators,

probation officers, police, researchers, community volunteers, criminologists, counselors, academics, judges, policy makers, prison officers and others.

A participatory experience. As well as some featured speakers (see sidebar), many of our plenary speakers and 50-minute workshop presenters are practitioners and those actually implementing and sustaining restorative practices and services on the ground.

Booking your place:

Updated details and our simple booking process

can be found at the below ‘Eventbrite’ link. As a UK registered charity (1106409), IIRP UK & Ireland have kept the ‘early bird’ attendance fee to only £95 + VAT (available until 31st October 2012). The standard rate will then rise to £120 + VAT.

Book at: http://iirpukandi-2012conf.eventbrite.co.uk/

Lizzie Nelson Director, Restorative Justice Council.

Kelvin Doherty Assistant Director, Youth Justice Agency, N. Ireland.

Marian Quinn CEO, CDI West Tallaght, Dublin, Ireland.

10% Discount for Restorative Justice Council (RJC) Members.

Supporting Organisations: South Somerset

International Institute for Restorative Practices (IIRP) UK & Ireland

Putting Theory into Practice: The Restorative Way

in partnership with

featuring Swansea, Wales Swansea, Wales, UK | 29th November 2012 An IIRP CPD (Continuing Professional Development) event.

CONFERENCE PROGRAMME N.B. Though all are confirmed, named presenters are subject to change.

08:00 – Arrival, Registration and Refreshments.

09:00 – ‘Opening Address’ - Jack Straw, CEO, City of Swansea Council 09:05 – ‘Defining Restorative’ - Les Davey, CEO, IIRP UK & Ireland 09:15 – ‘Restorative Practices in Swansea’ - Hilary Davies, Swansea C.C. 09:30 – ‘Restorative Practices in Communities’ - Short Plenaries Marian Quinn (CDI West Tallaght, Ireland) A - Val Keitch (South Somerset CJP) B Claire Jones (Communities First, Swansea) C

10:00 – ‘Restorative Practices in Communities’ - Workshops A - F 11:00 – Break 11:30 - ‘Restorative Practices in Justice’ - Short Plenaries Billy Nicol (Sacro, Scotland) A - Graham Fay (Swansea YOS, Wales) B

Kelvin Doherty (Youth Justice Agency, Northern Ireland) C

12:00 – ‘Restorative Practices in Justice’ - Workshops A - F 13:00 - Lunch - Exhibition and Networking 13:45 – ‘Mainstreaming Restorative Justice - latest developments in policy and practice’ - Lizzie Nelson, RJC Director 14:05 - ‘Restorative Practice in Education & Welfare’ - Short Plenaries Nicola Preston (Primary Teacher/SENCO) A - Bev Phillips (Swansea Schools) B

Simon Saxton (Children’s Services, North Yorks. C.C.) C

14:35 – ‘Restorative Practice in Education & Welfare’ - Workshops A - F 15:25 – Refreshments on move to closing session 15:45 – ‘Closing Address’ - Richard Parry, Swansea, Lead Director for Children & Young People 16:00 – ‘Closing Circles’ with fellow participants at tables (microphone feedback) 16:30 - Close

International Institute for Restorative Practices (IIRP) UK & Ireland

Putting Theory into Practice: The Restorative Way

in partnership with

featuring Swansea, Wales Swansea, Wales, UK | 29th November 2012 An IIRP CPD (Continuing Professional Development) event.

DETAILED CONFERENCE PROGRAMME N.B. Though most presenters and workshops are now confirmed, named presenters are subject to change.

08:00 – Arrival, Registration, Exhibition, Refreshments and Networking.

09:00 – ‘Opening Address’ - Jack Straw, CEO, City of Swansea Council 09:05 – ‘Defining Restorative’ - Les Davey, CEO, IIRP UK & Ireland The International Institute for Restorative Practices (IIRP) has a particular way of defining restorative and related terms that is consistent throughout our courses, events, videos and publications. We have developed our definitions to facilitate communication and discussion within the framework of our own graduate school and for those who participate in our worldwide restorative practices learning network. Our purpose is not to label other processes or terms as positive or negative, effective or ineffective. We respect the fact that others may define terms differently and, of course, have every right to do so. Rather, we simply want to define and share a consistent terminology to create a unified framework of understanding.

09:15 – ‘Restorative Practices in Swansea’ - Hilary Davies, Prevention & Early Intervention Programme Manager, CYPSU, City of Swansea Council Ahead of the individual Swansea based plenaries and workshops throughout the day, Hilary will present an overview of Restorative Practices in Swansea covering progress to date and future intentions and direction.

09:30 – ‘Restorative Practices in Communities’ - 3 x Short (10 minute) Plenaries Marian Quinn, CEO, CDI West Tallaght, Dublin, Ireland (WORKSHOP A) Over the last two years, over 600 adults and 100 young people, in a designated disadvantaged area of Dublin, have participated in restorative practice training. The Childhood Development Initiative (CDI), has engaged practitioners and managers from schools, youth services, police and probation, community centres and residents associations, parents and community activists, nurses and community workers, as part of its vision of creating a restorative community. Alongside the challenges and limitations which such diversity brings is of course the richness of story and wealth of experience. This presentation will seek to share CDI’s vision, identify the challenges, and share some of the solutions.

The workshop will examine effective strategies for engaging a range of sectors to participate in, and utilise restorative practices, as well as involving participants in identifying mechanisms to support quality assurance and fidelity of approach.

Val Keitch, Manager, South Somerset Community Justice Panel (WORKSHOP B) This short plenary session and the workshop to follow will explore with the audience effective ways of engaging communities in the Criminal Justice System (CJS). The UK Government is talking a lot about the “Big Society” and giving more powers to local people. The Community Justice Panel tick all those boxes, but how do we make it work?

Claire Jones, Penlan Communities First Co-ordinator, Swansea (WORKSHOP C) This short plenary session and the workshop to follow will be facilitated by Claire Jones, a Communities First Coordinator in one of the most deprived communities in Swansea. Restorative practice has become a method well used in local schools. The Communities First Partnership saw the importance of increasing the local knowledge and application of this practice within a community setting, developing a consistent approach for all local children and young people. Come and listen to their story, their challenges and successes as they continue on their journey.

10:00 – ‘Restorative Practices in Communities’ - Workshops A - F As well as the above three workshops A, B & C, there will also be other workshops in this session, including: Linda Millington, RJC Head of Professional Service (WORKSHOP D) FEATURED TWICE OVER DAY ‘Safeguarding the restorative process’ With the increased use of restorative practice across a number of sectors, it is important to guarantee that anyone involved in a restorative process has a safe and positive experience. This workshop will outline the RJC’s work in ensuring that restorative practice is delivered to best practice and national standards. The workshop will focus on the RJC’s work with trainers, practitioners and restorative services. Particular attention will be given to the RJC’s Practitioner Register, informing delegates about how they can join the Register and achieve accreditation.

David Williams, Restorative Practitioner/Trainer, Swansea (WORKSHOP E) FEATURED TWICE OVER DAY ‘Implementing the Vision’ This workshop will follow the journey that Swansea has taken to date in implementing a Restorative Approach across the City.

With a focus on schools and key organisations working with children and young people, the

success of the roll-out has been dependant on effective partnership working. This workshop will highlight areas of good practice and identify some of the challenges encountered and include the vision for the future.

Debbie Williams, Pastoral Manager, TownHill Community School, Swansea (WORKSHOP F) ‘Restorative Practices in a Primary School’ - See and hear it direct from the mouths of the Children!

The workshop will give an overview of the changes that Restorative Practice has brought to the culture, educational trends and ethos of a Primary School in a socially disadvantaged area. We will give you an opportunity to observe a live ‘Restorative Conference’ re-enacted by the children from Townhill Community School. This will be followed by an open forum for questions which will be answered by the people who are making this work, the children themselves!

Restorative Practice is about building communities and empowering individuals to take ownership of ‘what happens next’. This will be an opportunity to hear from our future generation the difference that ‘Restorative Practice’ is making in school, home and the wider community.

11:00 – Break 11:30 - ‘Restorative Practices in Justice’ - 3 x Short (10 minute) Plenaries Billy Nicol, National Service Support Manager: Research and Evaluation, Sacro, Scotland (WORKSHOP A) Restorative Justice in Scotland: The plenary will give a brief history of restorative justice in Scotland. A short presentation of the range of services Sacro provide for young people, adults and for serious cases post-sentence will also be given, looking at suggested potential for increasing the use of restorative justice in Scotland.

The workshop that follows will briefly look at different forms of Justice and the range of restorative justice services available in Scotland. A discussion about what needs are met through these forms of justice, especially the potential of restorative justice to address harm in even the most serious of cases will form the basis of the workshop.

Graham Fay, Swansea Youth Offending Service (WORKSHOP B) The plenary will outline how in a joint response to reducing the number of 10 -17 year olds entering the criminal justice system, Swansea Youth Offending Service and South Wales Police have established over the last three years an effective decision making forum for addressing low level serious offending for those young people with no previous court convictions. This involves a process of individual assessment; planning and intervention that is sanctioned by representatives of the YOS, Police and an independent volunteer (Swansea Council for Voluntary Service) who meet weekly as a “Bureau” to decide on what appropriate pre-court action should be taken. The process is underpinned by a restorative justice model.

The workshop to follow Graham will be joined by Ron Turnbull, Alison Yeandle and Jude Jones (also from Swansea Youth Offending Service) and together they will outline the basis of the “Bureau” and provide evidence of its effectiveness. In addition a Restorative Conference that was held to deal with one particular offence will be highlighted, with contributions coming from various people involved.

Kelvin Doherty, Assistant Director, Youth Justice Agency, Northern Ireland (WORKSHOP C) The plenary will provide an overview of the implementation, outcomes and challenges found in the much lauded ‘Youth Conferencing Service’ of Northern Ireland. In the workshop to follow, Kelvin will seek to drill down into their practice, what makes a good conference, engaging victims, etc.

12:00 – ‘Restorative Practices in Justice’ - Workshops A - F As well as the above three workshops A, B & C, there will also be other workshops in this session, including: John Boulton, Director of Training and Consultancy, IIRP UK & Ireland (WORKSHOP D) FEATURED TWICE OVER DAY

‘Restorative Practices as an Anti-bullying Strategy’ John will set out his experiences and lessons learnt in applying restorative practices as a strategy to tackle bullying. He will discuss effective strategies for managing different aspects of bullying behaviour in Schools, Care settings and Workplaces, linking to a UK Department for Education Research Report ‘The use and effectiveness of anti-bullying strategies in schools’ – which provides some powerful and reliable research results which underpin the effectiveness of such an approach.

The session will look at some outcomes from a pilot scheme implemented in North Lincolnshire, England following delivery of a bespoke package developed jointly by ‘IIRP UK and Ireland’ and Anti-Bullying professionals, which combines Restorative Practices with Anti Bullying training. It will also look at how RP is being used in the workplace to tackle bullying and harassment.

David Williams, Restorative Practitioner/Trainer, Swansea (WORKSHOP E) FEATURED TWICE OVER DAY ‘Implementing the Vision’ This workshop will follow the journey that Swansea has taken to date in implementing a Restorative Approach across the City.

With a focus on schools and key organisations working with children and young people, the

success of the roll-out has been dependant on effective partnership working. This workshop will highlight areas of good practice and identify some of the challenges encountered and include the vision for the future.

Austin Smith, Prison Officer, H.M.P. Swansea (WORKSHOP F) ‘Applying Restorative Practices in a Custodial Setting’ This workshop will cover: Conception and implementation of the project, working with the community and partner agencies, difficulties associated with applying RJ in a prison, our achievements so far and plans for the future.

13:00 - Lunch - Exhibition and Networking.

13:45 – ‘Mainstreaming Restorative Justice - latest developments in policy and practice’ - Lizzie Nelson, Director, Restorative Justice Council (RJC - covers England and Wales) At a time when many agree that restorative justice and practices have reached a tipping point, we are very pleased to have engaged Lizzie Nelson to open the afternoon session with a topical plenary, presenting an exciting and encouraging image of what is currently happening in the field from her unique and very well informed position as Director of the Restorative Justice Council (RJC). The RJC ‘provides quality assurance and is the national voice for restorative practice’ in England and Wales.

14:05 - ‘Restorative Practice in Education & Welfare’ - 3 x Short (10 minute) Plenaries Nicola Preston, Primary School Teacher and Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator, Bucks.

(WORKSHOP A) Nicola will talk about her current experience of the use of restorative practices in the emotional engagement of young people in their learning. She will discuss the role of these practices in developing emotional literacy in some of our most vulnerable young people. The workshop to follow will build upon these ideas and seek to debate and discuss the difficulties and potential dangers of trying to make a direct link between these ‘processes’ and the progress, attainment or engagement in learning of young people. Are we in danger of focussing on process and evidence rather than looking at the ‘whole’ and focussing on the needs of the young people we are working with?

Bev Phillips, Head Teacher, Blaenymaes Primary School, Swansea (WORKSHOP B) An opportunity to hear how a Primary and Secondary School in Swansea have implemented the approach and changed the culture to become Restorative Schools. Both at different stages of their journey, Bev will be joined

by Simon Davies, Assistant Head, Bryn Tawe Comprehensive School, Swansea, in the workshop to follow. They will share the benefits experienced from using Restorative Practices, together with challenges they experienced putting it into practice.

Simon Saxton, Residential and Alternative Provision Manager, Children’s Services, North Yorks. C.C. (WORKSHOP C) In his current post as Residential and Alternative Provision Manager, part of Simon’s designation is to lead in Restorative Practices and its training for Children Social Care which incorporates him chairing a local multi agency Restorative Practice steering group. This plenary and workshop to follow will outline how Simon set up in partnership a local community Restorative Justice project in Scarborough.

14:35 – ‘Restorative Practice in Education & Welfare’ - Workshops A - F As well as the above three workshops A, B & C, there will also be other workshops in this session, including: Linda Millington, RJC Head of Professional Service (WORKSHOP D) FEATURED TWICE OVER DAY ‘Safeguarding the restorative process’ With the increased use of restorative practice across a number of sectors, it is important to guarantee that anyone involved in a restorative process has a safe and positive experience. This workshop will outline the RJC’s work in ensuring that restorative practice is delivered to best practice and national standards. The workshop will focus on the RJC’s work with trainers, practitioners and restorative services. Particular attention will be given to the RJC’s Practitioner Register, informing delegates about how they can join the Register and achieve accreditation.

John Boulton, Director of Training and Consultancy, IIRP UK & Ireland (WORKSHOP E) FEATURED TWICE OVER DAY

‘Restorative Practices and Student Mentoring’ If Restorative Practices is to be implemented by any organisation it is best done so by everyone being in the ‘with box’ of the Social Discipline Window. What does this mean in practical terms? John Boulton will share his experiences of working with students in schools, both in the UK and Ireland. The session will look at how the material can be presented in a way which reflects the training provided to the adults and at the same time is accessible to the different age groups. The training has been provided throughout the 5 to 17 age range and is becoming increasingly popular. When the students understand, use and demand the restorative approach, it is very difficult for the adults not to follow.

Holly Milne, Business Development Director, BusinessLab, Aberdeen, Scotland. (WORKSHOP F) ‘Family Learning Signature’ The Family Learning Signature is a unique and engaging tool (entirely compatible and complimentary with restorative practices), designed to help education authorities to improve attainment, attendance and behaviour, particularly with hard to reach families and disengaged learners. The Family Learning Signature was developed as part of an extensive BusinessLab research programme and has since been used to support improved outcomes for hundreds of families throughout the UK, helping schools, local authorities and other organisations supporting families to target resources and work in collaboration with families to develop solutions that meet their needs.

The Family Learning Signature has been used to improve attendance, behaviour and attainment, reducing exclusions and meeting school KPIs and preventing young people from disengaging from education. As a result, the Family Learning Signature is also delivering significant cost savings to both schools and local authorities, through more effective early intervention and improved targeting of resources.

15:25 – Refreshments on move to closing session 15:45 – ‘Closing Address’ - Richard Parry, Swansea, Lead Director for Children & Young People 16:00 – ‘Closing Circles’ with fellow participants at tables (microphone feedback) 16:30 - Close An IIRP CPD (Continuing Professional Development) event.

in partnership with

Supporting Organisations:

South Somerset

International Institute for Restorative Practices (IIRP) UK & Ireland

Putting Theory into Practice: The Restorative Way

in partnership with

featuring Swansea, Wales Swansea, Wales, UK | 29th November 2012 An IIRP CPD (Continuing Professional Development) event.

PLENARY & FEATURED WORKSHOP PRESENTER BIOGRAPHIES (in order of appearance) N.B. Though all are confirmed, named presenters are subject to change.

Jack Straw, CEO, City of Swansea Council - Jack‘s career in the public sector began in 1973.

He became of full member of the CIPFA in 1983 and gained an MBA in 1998. He worked for Nottingham City Council and Coventry City Council before joining Swansea City Council in 1989.

He left Local Government in 1993 and joined the NHS and held posts such as Finance Director, General Hospital Manager and Chief Executive of the Local Health Board, before returning to the

City and County of Swansea as Executive Director. He was recently appointed as the Chief Executive for the City and County of Swansea in 2011.

Les Davey, CEO, IIRP UK & Ireland - With over sixteen years experience as a restorative practitioner, trainer and consultant, Les has expansive knowledge and involvement in the development and delivery of restorative practices and conferencing training, consultancy and service delivery in criminal justice, communities, schools, workplaces and the looked-after children’s sector. Les was a founder member of the Thames Valley Police, Restorative Justice Consultancy, responsible for the development and roll out of their RJ training from 1996 until 2000. Since then, Les has lead IIRP’s work in the UK & Ireland as Director of Real Justice and since 2006, as CEO of the UK registered charity - ‘International Institute for Restorative Practices (IIRP) UK & Ireland’.

He has a long record of involvement in the development and revision of UK National Occupational Standards for Restorative Practice and the Best Practice Guidance upon which they are based. Les was founding Chair of the Restorative Justice Council (RJC) Standards and Accreditation Board, when he lead the work on the RJC Trainers Code and the early work on the RJC Practitioners Register.

Hilary Davies, Prevention & Early Intervention Programme Manager, CYPSU, Swansea - As a Programme Manager Hilary supported the development of the Prevention and Early Intervention Programme in Swansea. Over the last two years she has lead and managed the setting up of the Restorative Practice Project in schools and key organisations working with children and young people. Hilary has worked in the Education department for several years in a cross-cutting role and has developed links across the schools, partnerships and departments across the Council.

She is passionate about restorative practice and the opportunities it gives to the wider community.

Marian Quinn, CEO, Childhood Development Initiative, West Tallaght, Dublin, Ireland an organisation co-funded by Government and philanthropy, to design, deliver and evaluate a range of services aimed at improving outcomes for children and families. Commissioning eight independent evaluation teams, a broad range of quality assurance processes and delivery mechanisms, Marian has considerable expertise in balancing research alongside child-centred approaches. Marian has previously worked in the Department of Justice where she had responsibility for children and families in the asylum process, and the Health Services Executive as Director of Children’s Services. She has also worked in the voluntary sector with early school leavers and young people at risk.

Marian wrote and managed the ‘Copping On Programme’, a national crime prevention initiative, and has been published widely in relation to youth crime.

Val Keitch, Manager, South Somerset Community Justice Panel - Val trained as a probation officer and worked in the prison service as well. Since 2004 she has set up and managed the groundbreaking Community Justice Panels in Someset, England. Val is also a certified trainer with IIRP UK & Ireland. She is passionate about restorative practices and is keen to see it used more with a wider audience.

Claire Jones, Penlan Communities First Co-ordinator, Swansea - Claire is an experienced Community Development Practitioner with more than 10 years experience and knowledge of working in community settings. She has been involved with a wide range of community organisations and projects and has sat on numerous Boards of Development Trusts and Charities. Qualified with an MSc in Community Regeneration, she is currently a Communities First Coordinator for one of the most deprived areas in Swansea.

Claire is passionate about community regeneration and has seen the contribution that Restorative Practice has made towards changing attitudes and behaviour amongst children and young people. Claire is convinced that restorative practice can benefit the whole community, and that interagency collaboration is key to effective delivery and local change.

Linda Millington, RJC Head of Professional Service FEATURED TWICE OVER DAY - Linda leads on the professional side of the RJC’s work. She manages the Trainer and Practitioner Registers, the RJC’s programme of professional development workshop and is currently developing a series of ‘How to Guides’ focusing on key areas of restorative practice. Linda’s background is in quality assurance and previously worked for Skills for Justice, leading on the development of restorative practice national occupational standards.

David Williams, Restorative Practitioner & Trainer, Swansea FEATURED TWICE OVER DAY - I am a police officer with south Wales police and have served in Swansea in a wide range of roles.

Currently I am working as a member of the successful Youth Offending Service as a restorative practitioner and trainer. I have run a number of restorative conferences in a wide range of offences, which has given me a greater understanding of the key elements of Restorative Practices.

I have been working with the City and County of Swansea for the past 2 1/2 years rolling out RP in the primary and secondary education, social services and the third sector.

Debbie Williams, Pastoral Manager, TownHill Community School, Swansea - I am the Pastoral Manager at Townhill Community School and just over two years ago we began our journey as a Restorative School. We pride ourselves in our children and their eagerness to share their experiences of restorative practice with anybody who is willing to listen. I have gone on to become a trainer and am currently involved in supporting the Local Authority in a rolling programme of sharing this excellent practice in schools. I train children to empower themselves by using Restorative Practice to repair and restore relationships with their peers Billy Nicol, National Service Support Manager: Research and Evaluation, Sacro, Scotland - Billy Nicol is National Service Support Manager: Research and Evaluation for Sacro. Billy worked in Restorative Justice Services with young people and with adults in Aberdeen since 1998. Billy was then seconded to the Programme team in 2010 to provide support to Aberdeen City in developing the Whole System Approach before returning to Sacro in April 2012. Before Sacro, Billy’s work in the voluntary sector was in community living projects, which supported both adults and young people with learning difficulties work towards independent living. Billy completed a PhD on ‘counterfactual thinking and victims of crime’ in 2006.

Graham Fay, Swansea Youth Offending Service - Between 1992 and 1996 I worked as a support Social Worker for foster carers in a Teenage Family Placement Scheme, before moving back into youth justice as Social Worker in the newly formed Youth Justice Team, within Neath Port Talbot Council. In 1999 I moved back to Swansea to work within the Youth Offending Service and have been in my current post since 2000.

During the last thirteen years, I would like to think that I have made a positive contribution towards developing restorative practice within Swansea as a qualified practitioner and coordinator. In this respect I am enthusiastically supported by others in the Restorative Practices Team within Swansea YOS. Kelvin Doherty, Assistant Director, Youth Justice Agency, Northern Ireland - Kelvin Doherty is an Assistant Director with the Youth Justice Agency Northern Ireland who has experience both as a RJ practitioner and senior manager responsible for restorative conferencing.

He is particularly interested in the application of RJ in the statutory setting. He was previously employed with the probation services of Inner London, Manchester & Northern Ireland. He was a member of the steering group of the EU funded project ‘Conferencing: a way forward for Europe’ 2011 and the Restorative Justice Council advisory group that developed the ‘Best Practice Guidance’ in 2011.

He is about to begin a research project with EU partners researching desistance and RJ. In 2010 he published ‘The Development of Restorative Justice in Northern Ireland’ (Willan).

John Boulton, Director of Training and Consultancy, IIRP UK & Ireland FEATURED TWICE OVER DAY - John Boulton was the principal of a residential special school for EBSD (emotional, behavioural and social difficulties) pupils, in Oxfordshire, England, for 15 years. He introduced restorative justice into the school in February 2004. In 2005-2006 he was awarded a Churchill Foundation Travel Award to research restorative justice in the United States and, in particular, visit the different types of provision within the IIRP organisation. John’s particular interests include restorative practices as a tool for organisational change and the application of restorative practices in different settings.

Austin Smith, Prison Officer, H.M.P. Swansea - I began working for HMPS in 1983 at HMP Wandsworth, transferring to HMP Swansea in 2002. Prior to my involvement with Restorative Justice (RJ) I had covered most roles within the prison service, generally having direct contact with offenders.

My first involvement with RJ was 2 years ago when I was asked to implement a programme of RJ at HMP Swansea, I was trained as a facilitator later as a trainer. In March 2012 I received a commendation from the Butler Trust for my work in bringing RJ to HMP Swansea.

Lizzie Nelson, Director, Restorative Justice Council (RJC - covers England and Wales) Lizzie worked in the House of Commons, the European Parliament, and as Government Relations Officer in the voluntary sector, before joining the Home Office in 1998. Her civil service career covered a wide range of policy areas, including EU enlargement, leading policy on women prisoners, anti-social behaviour and the Violent Crime Bill.

From 2003-5, Lizzie was Head of the Home Office Restorative Justice Policy Team, responsible for the Government’s Strategy on Restorative Justice (2003) and Best Practice Guidance for Restorative Practitioners (2004), as well as policy oversight of the Government’s research programme on restorative justice. In 2006 she joined the Board of Trustees of the RJC, and became Director in January 2010.

Nicola Preston, Primary School Teacher and Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator Nicola has been involved in Restorative Practices since 1996 as a founder member of the Restorative Justice Consultancy in Thames Valley Police. Since that time she has been a trainer, facilitator and researcher in the field working with the International Institute for Restorative Practices as an Assistant Director and more recently as a Primary School Teacher and Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator in an area of high deprivation.

Nicola has an MA in Restorative Practices and Relationships and is currently working towards an MA in Education looking at the role of Restorative Practices in engagement in learning.

Bev Phillips, Head Teacher, Blaenymaes Primary School, Swansea - Beverley Phillips, Head teacher at Blaenymaes Primary School since September 2008. I first became interested in Restorative Practice in January 2010, as I felt the four principles that underpin the RP process would greatly benefit my staff and children. Being further enthused after listening to Nigel Richardson and Estelle McDonald from Hull, I pursued training for all staff and furthered my own development by becoming a trainer myself. I am proud to be the Head teacher of a Restorative Practice School in Swansea.

Simon Saxton, Residential and Alternative Provision Manager, Children’s Services, North Yorks. C.C. - Simon Saxton has worked for North Yorkshire County Council since July 2007. Prior to this he worked for Leeds City Council and has worked in Children’s Social Care for 13 years. His current post as Residential and Alternative Provision Manager, part of his designation is to lead in Restorative Practices and its training for Children Social Care which incorporates him chairing a local multi agency Restorative Practice steering group. Simon has recently completed a MA /Post Grad Cert in Restorative Justice at Hull University. Simon has set up in partership a local community Restorative Justice project in Scarborough.

Holly Milne, Business Development Director, BusinessLab, Aberdeen, Scotland. - Holly is responsible for all of the business development activity at BusinessLab from developing initial proposals to managing the delivery of major projects. She works closely with potential and existing clients to understand their needs and ensure these are met to a consistently high standard.

Holly also spends time working with BusinessLab partners and associates to understand emerging issues in a variety of different sectors and how BusinessLab can respond to these. This ensures BusinessLab is always well placed to meet changing market and societal challenges.

Richard Parry, Swansea, Lead Director for Children & Young People - In his role as Corporate Director of Education Richard is also the lead Director for Children & Young People, and is responsible for implementing preventative and early intervention practices including Restorative Practice, Flying Start Family Learning Signature and Literacy.

An IIRP CPD (Continuing Professional Development) event.

in partnership with Supporting Organisations:

South Somerset