Resolution 37 newsletter

16
Resolution 37 Autumn 2010 News from the Restorative Justice Consortium Company number: 4199237 Charity number: 1097969 Spotlight on Hull: Becoming the World’s First Restorative City The Independent Commission on Youth Crime Report Who Owns Restorative Justice? www.restorativejustice.org.uk

Transcript of Resolution 37 newsletter

Page 1: Resolution 37 newsletter

Resolution 37

Autumn 2010

News from the Restorative Justice Consortium

Company number: 4199237Charity number: 1097969

Spotlight on Hull:Becoming theWorld’s FirstRestorative City

The IndependentCommission onYouth CrimeReport

Who OwnsRestorativeJustice?

www.restorativejustice.org.uk

Page 2: Resolution 37 newsletter

elcome to the autumn issue ofResolution. These have beenexceptionally busy months for

the RJC, with a presentationsupporting the launch of the excellentYouth Crime Commission report (seepage 14), press work with VictimSupport leading to a front page piecein The Observer, and detailed workwith Ministry of Justice officials toexplore policy options and theevidence base ahead of the AutumnGreen Paper.

We do this work on behalf of ourmembers, and recently I’ve beenprivileged to get out and see some ofthe range of the work our membersare doing, from work in schools,through to work with serious offendersin custody.

In Swaleside Prison I sat in on thefinal session of Prison Fellowship’sSycamore Tree programme. Twentymen who had been through the sixweek course stood up to tell theirstories, what they’d understood aboutthe impact of crime on victims throughthe course, and how they wanted totake a next step to repair the harmthey had caused. As the course ended,nine out of the twenty men involvedasked to speak to the ProbationOfficer present, asking how they couldtake steps to meet, or write to, thevictim of their crime, to begin theprocess of making amends.Programmes like Sycamore Tree, orthe SORI programme and ForgivenessProject work in prisons, can startoffenders on the road to restoration.

In Hull, restorative practices are beingintroduced in schools and care homesacross the city.Restorative practices,like circle time, are all about thepreventive use of restorative skills tobuild and maintain relationships,building community within theclassroom, so that children arelearning to listen and respect oneanother and given the tools to resolveconflicts. I sat in with a group of sevenyear olds, as they each in turndescribed their feelings thatafternoon, and found ways betweenthem to support those feeling sad, ortired, or angry because of a playtimeargument.

Nigel Richardson, the Director ofChildren’s Services in Hull has a visionto train 23,000 professionals workingwith children and young people in Hullin restorative practice, so that in everyconflict situation the three questionsare: What happened? Who wasaffected? How can we all work to repair

the harm? Visiting Hull was aninspiration, and we’ve spotlightedwhat’s happening there in this issue,with articles from professionals in manyfields about how restorative practicehas impacted on their way of workingwith children and young people. We’dlike to spotlight other areas working tobecome ‘restorative counties’ in futureissues of Resolution – to tell us what’shappening in your area please get intouch via [email protected].

Ken Webster in his article on page 15poses the question ‘Who ownsRestorative Justice?’ making the casefor statutory/third sectorpartnerships, to ensure thatRestorative Justice stays true to it’sprinciples. In July I met DavidMiliband,the senior Labour politician,and briefed him on the evidence basefor Restorative Justice, and the costsavings that could be made if it wereoffered to all victims of crime, simplythrough reductions in re-offending.His response was “That’s all great(the research evidence) but actually, Ijust think it’s the morally right thingto do.” In a very tight financial andpolicy environment in Government,where I’m constantly putting the casefor Restorative Justice, it’s refreshingto be reminded that this isn’t aboutnumbers and statistics – it’s the morallyright thing to do.

Lizzie NelsonDirectorRestorative Justice [email protected]

WContents02

03

04

12

13

14

15

16

Director’s Introduction

News in Brief

Spotlight on Hull: Becoming theWorld’s First Restorative City

Introducing Professor TonyHazell

Restorative Policing and Adults

Youth Crime

Who Owns Restorative Justice?

Events and Training

Director’s Introduction02

About UsRestorative Justice empowers thepeople most affected by conflict to dealwith its effects through enablingcommunication between people whohave been harmed and people who areresponsible for that harm.

The RJC is the national voice for allrestorative practice. We are becomingthe Restorative Justice Council - thequality assurance body for the field.

Editor’s note

Resolution is here to reflect restorativepractice in all its forms and developments.Please get in touch if you would like tosubmit an article or have any suggestionsfor how we might improve the publication.

The articles in this newsletter express thepersonal views of the authors and do notnecessarily reflect the views of the RJC.

Chris Igoe, EditorE: [email protected]

Resolution is the quarterly newsletter of the Restorative JusticeConsortiumBeacon House, 113 KingswayLondon, WC2B 6PPT: 020 7831 5700E: [email protected]: www.restorativejustice.org.ukCompany number: 4199237Charity number: 1097969©2010 RJC. Not to be reproducedwithout permission.Image of the Humber Bridge on thefront cover by David H. Wright.http://www.flickr.com/photos/dhwright/

Page 3: Resolution 37 newsletter

03

News In BriefJustice Ministerdescribes historicopportunity for RJCrispin Blunt, Minister forPrisons and Probation,addressing the AGM of theAll-Party ParliamentaryPenal Affairs Group said:“We have a historicopportunity to look at howRestorative Justice can beintroduced into the criminaljustice system. I met withrepresentatives from theRestorative JusticeConsortium, and I haveasked them to work with myofficials, to put forwardproposals on howRestorative Justicemeasures could be usedacross every phase of thecriminal justice process:from pre-trial right throughto interventions in prisons toprepare offenders for release.”

Former Met Chief backs RJwith serious offencesFormer Metropolitan PoliceCommissioner Sir Ian Blairwriting in the Observer (5thSept. 2010) said “we shouldno longer be talking aboutpilots of Restorative Justice.We know that it reducesreoffending and that it isparticularly effective withviolent offences”.

Update from RJC’sStandards andAccreditation Board

The RJC Standards andAccreditation Board (SAB)represent the interests of theentire field in their work todevelop quality standards inrestorative practice. Theyare currently working toreview the RJC Trainers’Code of Conduct, and todevelop RJC policy onquality marks for registeredpractitioners, awards,training providers, andservices. The views of theSAB are also being fed intothe ongoing review of theBest Practice Guidance.

Full details of membershipof the SAB and the AdvisoryGroup are available onwww.restorativejustice.org.uk

Victims Commissionersupports RestorativeJustice“I give it [RJ] my 110 percent support where victimsare central to the process.However there is this thingthe Restorative Justiceprocess, in some of thosesituations the victim is notpresent nor even asked . Iam not happy at all aboutthese, but where theintegrity is intact, it gets myvote.” Louise Casey’sresponse to RJC question atRSA event on 20th July2010.

Home Secretary hints at arestorative future beyondthe ASBO In a speech entitled “Movingbeyond the ASBO” TeresaMay, the Home Secretary,said that police should havenew powers which are“rehabilitating andrestorative, rather thancriminalising and coercive.”

The speech follows a reportby the IndependentCommission on Youth Crimeand Anti Social Behaviour(see page 14) calling forRestorative Justice toreplace ASBOs in communitypolicing.

Teresa May’s full speech canbe read atwww.homeoffice.gov.uk

Grazia feature on RJKaty Hutchinson tellswomens’ magazine Grazia(30th August) how she cameto forgive the man whokicked her husband to death.Katy met Ryan twice duringhis three year prisonsentence, after initiallysending him a video message.She also spoke in support ofhis release at this parolehearing. Katy says she thinks“plans being considered inthe UK are a very good idea”(see top right). Katy’s storyhas been made into a filmBond of Silence.

Offering RJ to victims ofserious crime wouldprevent £185 million ofcrimeThe Restorative JusticeConsortium and VictimSupport have presented thecase for Restorative Justiceto Justice Minister CrispinBlunt. RJC and VictimSupport highlighted howRestorative Justice empowersvictims by putting them at theheart of society's response tocrime.

The briefing demonstratedhow, based on theGovernment’s own researchfindings, making RestorativeJustice available in cases ofburglary, robbery and violentoffences would lead toreductions in re-offending of27%. This would mean 27%less crime and 27% fewervictims.

If Restorative Justice wasoffered to 75,000 victims ofadult offenders, assuming justa 40% take up rate, thereductions in re-offendingwould lead to £185 millioncashable savings to criminaljustice over two years.

This was reported on thefront page of the Observer(25th July 2010). Therelevant page of theRJC/Victim Support briefingto Crispin Blunt is shownbelow.

Belinda Hopkins, Debra Clothier, Les Davey, Ken Webster, Annette Hinton,Claudine Rane, Val Marshall and Chris Stevens of the RJC’s Standards andAccreditation Board (pictured left to right).

Page 4: Resolution 37 newsletter

Becoming the World’s FirstRestorative City - Nigel Richardson

The adults working with children,young people and families arecommitted to adoptingbehaviours that build restorativeand constructive relationships tohelp achieve better outcomes.This requires us to be explicitand accountable about the waywe do business and the basis ofour organisational andprofessional practice, which inHull is based on restorativepractices.

I hope that the series of articlesin this issue of Resolution, givesyou some insight into what weare striving to achieve. Hull has along and proud history as amajor British seafaring port andbecause of that is known as thePioneering City. We trust that thework we are leading here is inkeeping with those traditions,and we believe that one day, byworking with children familiesand communities, we can becomea fully restorative city.

Nigel Richardson - AssistantChief Executive and Director ofChildren and Young People’sService, Hull City Council

In Hull we are working towardsbecoming the world’s firstrestorative city. We know this is abold ambition and the challenges inachieving this aim are significant;but we believe this is the best andmost effective way for us to worktogether with children, families andcommunities. We have a growingtrack record in deliveringrestorative practices and whilethere is still much to do, we have astrong direction of travel for thefuture.

Hull is home to 57,000 children andyoung people growing up in amulticultural, densely populated andfast - changing urban area. The cityhas high levels of unemployment,crime, poverty and need.Consequently, statutory, voluntaryand private organisations in the cityhave committed themselves to doingsomething different to improve thelives of children and young peoplehere. We are using restorativepractices as a shared way ofworking to ensure everyone has thesame ethos, delivering services in anopen, respectful and mutuallyaccountable way, set within arestorative framework. This

framework requires us to work withchildren, families and thecommunity and provides the `glue’that binds together agencies in acommon approach and language.

Restorative practices have beendeveloping in Hull for a number ofyears and much has been achieved.The City Council has committeditself to creating the `Familyfriendly city where no child is leftbehind’. To that end, services use anoutcome framework for children,where children in Hull can expectto;

• Be Safe• Be Healthy• Enjoy themselves • Achieve• Make a Positive Contribution• Achieve Economic Well being

The central question we ask staff toconsider is, `What is it like to be achild or young person growing up inHull and how do we make it betterwith them?’ This will require us tobe good at listening to children andyoung people and at involving themeffectively in key decisions thataffect their lives.

04

NeutralleThe Humber Bridge near Kingston upon Hull

Page 5: Resolution 37 newsletter

05

How do people experience usingrestorative practice at work?The Goodwin Development Trustis a registered charity situated inthe heart of Kingston-upon-Hull(www.goodwintrust.org).

Created over fifteen years ago bythe residents of the city’sThornton Estate with theintention of improving localliving conditions, the Trust nowmanages a diverse range ofprojects.

Goodwin became interested inrestorative practice nearly fiveyears ago and has trained all ofits 300 employees in restorativeapproaches. More recently theTrust formed a relationship withthe Hull Centre for RestorativePractices and the University ofHull’s law department.

In May 2009 we secured twoyears funding from the NationalLottery to undertake researchinto people’s experience of usingrestorative practice in theirworking environment. Two full-time researchers were appointedby the Trust to conduct theresearch project usingqualitative methods, such asinterviews and focus groups, inorder to understand andinterpret how people experiencethe implementation and use ofrestorative practice in theworkplace.

Although the Trust managesthree Children’s Centres wherethe staff have used restorativemethods for over four years, theresearch was designed at theoutset to involve a wider sampleof case studies. Volunteers wererecruited from a group ofcommunity workers, two localchildren’s homes, two localschools, Humberside’sNeighbourhood Policing Team

and the Hull Family GroupConferencing Service.

Early findings of the researchlook positive for restorativeapproaches. For example,because of their previousvocational training many of the

volunteers feel they already usedsome aspects of restorativepractice with their client groups,so the training in restorativepractice reinforced existing goodpractice. At the same time, theuse of circles and conferences ishaving a major impact on theway the participants interactwith each other as colleagues. Aprominent experience amongstthe participants is animprovement in communication.Work based meetings are nowmore enjoyable, people learnmore about their colleagues andwork problems are now solved bythe whole team, so thatindividuals are not left to sufferpressure of meeting targetswithout support.

Participants state thatrestorative circles give them avoice and create a greater depthof understanding within theirteams. For example, in thechildren’s homes, employees have‘check-in’ and ‘check-out’ circlesevery shift where they discusswhat happened on the shift andhow they feel the shift went.Crucially, this allows staff toknow which colleagues andchildren may require extrasupport. Importantly, for the firsttime, the children living in thehomes also participate in thesecircles, so they too have a voicein meetings that may result in

decisions which impact on theirlives. In the community workergroup, employee conflicts aresolved using circles and workbased problems are discussed ina way that provides the wholeteam with an opportunity tooffer solutions to problems.

Of course, not all the findingsare positive and a recurringexperience is that manyparticipants in our research feelthe pressure of time constraintsaffect their use of restorativetechniques. Nevertheless, newways of using restorativeapproaches are constantlyevolving, and newimplementation strategies beingdeveloped, and existing onesshared, which should in thefuture alleviate this experience.

Dr Craig Lambert is the SeniorResearcher at the GoodwinDevelopment Trust. [email protected]

Miss Rebecca Shipley isResearch Officer for theGoodwin Development Trust [email protected]

“restorative circles give a voice andcreate a greater depth ofunderstanding”

‘Work meetings aremore enjoyable’

Page 6: Resolution 37 newsletter

Restorative Practice and Policing in Hull

allows a proportionate response tocriminal activity and prevents peoplereceiving a criminal record for minorfirst time offences.

Working with the Hull Centre ofRestorative Practices 200 police andCommunity Support Officers havereceived a one-day ‘Introduction toRestorative Practices’ trainingcourse, which equips them to userestorative practices as part of theirdaily work as neighbourhood officers.In addition 85 officers have beentrained to facilitate restorativeconferences, which we use to dealwith more serious crimes,particularly when restorativepractice is being used as analternative to prosecution. Officersare now able to work restorativelywith trained partners in schools, carehomes, youth services and otherservice areas. Three officers are RPtrainers, able to train new officersand people from other organisations.This way we can spread and maintainthe skills in our force, and make surewe stay true to the quality of trainingthat we need to deliver restorativepractice well.

Inspector Iain DixonD Division Violent CrimeHumberside Policewww.humberside.police.uk

A restorative approachcomplements many aspects ofpolice work. The desire to affectpeople’s behaviour through ashared understanding anddevelopment of a sense ofresponsibility is at the heart ofboth the criminal justice system’saims, and those of restorativepractices (RP).

Neighbourhood policing aims toprovide the public with a highlyvisible uniformed presence inevery neighbourhood, able to dealwith local issues and priorities.Very often these issues involveresidents who, for various reasons,have come into conflict with othersin their community. Adopting arestorative approach has providedour officers with a means to resolvethese neighbourhood disputes inthe course of our policing work onthe streets. In doing this we areseeking to develop a sharedunderstanding among the membersof the community about what hashappened, and how we can resolvethe problem. We use restorativepractice to break down barriersand allow people to live happilyside by side.

As well as using restorative skills toresolve the conflicts that arise inneighbourhoods, a restorativeapproach can be used as a means ofdealing with a crime as an alternativeto prosecution. We are using it thisway mostly with young offenders, butalso sometimes with adult offenders.Providing a crime meets certaincriteria, (in our area, it is of a lessserious nature, the victim consentsand the suspect is not a repeat offender) then the Police DivisionalCommander for Hull has agreed forsuch crime reports to be finalisedwith a restorative disposal as analternative to prosecution. This

06

CASE STUDY Building community spirit following damage to a community centreFollowing damage to a community centre a group of 8 localchildren were identified as being responsible. The manager of thecentre did not wish to take the matter to court and instead washappy to finalise the investigation with a restorative conference. Aconference was held with all 8 children, a responsible adult foreach and the manager of the centre. The conference was verysuccessful with all 8 children agreeing to attend the followingweek-end to clear a section of the centre’s garden of weeds andrubbish. All 8 children attended and carried out the agreed work.Not only did the conference help the children understand theconsequences of their actions, it also acted as a mechanism to buildcommunity spirit.

CASE STUDY Calming tensions following an ‘idle’ death threatA neighbour dispute had been ongoing for a number of years.Tensions escalated, which culminated in a fight where a man hadtold a woman he was going to kill her. This was said in the heat ofthe moment with no intention to carry out what was seen as anidle threat. However the woman took the threat seriously and hadbelieved since that time that her neighbour meant to do herserious harm. 3 years later the local neighbourhood policing teambecome involved due to a number of minor neighbourhoodincidents. RP was initially offered but the female stated she couldnot face her neighbour due to her fear of him. Tensions continuedto increase to a point where the female was upset and suicidal.RP was again offered as an option and this time was accepted byboth parties. After some initial difficulties all participantscontributed fully to the conference. The male neighbour wasgenuinely shocked that his comments had been so damaging. Allparties agreed to put the dispute behind them and move on withtheir lives.

Page 7: Resolution 37 newsletter

07

Restorative Practice with the under-fives at Clifton Children’s CentreI have been the Head at CliftonChildren’s Centre for three and ahalf years. I attended an‘Introduction to RestorativePractice’ course during my firstyear in post. I can clearlyremember the feedback I sharedat the end of the day: this is howI believe we should be workingand I now have a way to explainit to others. The challenge for uswas how to work in a restorativemanner with very youngchildren. As a children’s centre,we provide services for childrenunder five years old and work inpartnership with other agencies,such as health and job centreplus, to provide services tosupport families as a whole, toensure children get the beststart in life.

For example, a child in ournursery approached me cryingand told me that another childhad pinched her teddy bear. Ibrought the 2 three year oldstogether and asked each inturn “What happened?” and“How did it make you feel?” Ittranspired that the ‘wrongdoer’ had not intentionallycaused harm; he believed hewas continuing with the play,taking the teddy for a day out

at the seaside. So I asked“What can you do to makethings right?” The ‘wrongdoer’walked away, which initially ledto further upset, but soonreturned with another teddyand further discussion tookplace to negotiate how the playcould continue with two teddiesinvolved. I realised thatpreviously I might have triedother tactics, such assuggesting taking turns,diverting attention to otheractivities, returning the teddyto the crying child, or evenputting the teddy away. Irealised that all these actionsinvolved me doing something tothe children and not supportingchildren to take responsibilityto work together to repair theharm and work together to finda good way forward.

With the support of theRestorative Head TeacherNetwork I strive to lead my staffteam in a restorative manner. Allstaff at our centre complete theintroduction to restorativepractice, we use fun circles todevelop community, we use‘what’s on top’ and problem-solving circles to identifyconcerns and identify solutions.

Our lead practitioner takesresponsibility for developingchildren’s skills at workingrestoratively. We havechallenged ourselves to thinkabout what restorative practicemeans for our very youngestchildren, those aged 0-3, and in particular those who have not developed verbalcommunication. We recognisethat the principles can stillguide and influence ourpractice and staff use thelanguage of restorativepractice around the children.They have high expectationsthat the children are involved inrepairing harm.

This is reinforced by our puppetfriends, whom the childrenrecognise as members of ourcommunity. They are used bystaff to re-enact conflict andprovide opportunities torehearse and reinforce theconcept of finding out whathappened, how it made thoseinvolved feel and to identifywhat can happen to makethings better.

I am extremely proud when I seechildren ‘checking in’ at thestart of the session. Parents arealso part of the process. Aschildren and parents enter thesetting, you will see them havingconversations with each otherand staff about how they arefeeling and what they may need.

I was extremely proud when Iobserved one of our two yearolds approach his upset friend.He reached out his hand, gentlytouched her on the arm andasked “What happened?”Restorative practice is verypowerful and it can beintroduced to children from avery young age because it is allabout building community.

Alison AhearneHeadteacherClifton Childrens Centrewww.clifton-childrens-centre.co.uk

Staff using puppets at‘check-in’ circle time

Page 8: Resolution 37 newsletter

A tour: Collingwood Primary School

Go now to meet the school counciland they will tell you how importantschool is to them, how they view it asa community and how theyrepresent other pupils’ views inmeetings with the Headteacher andother staff. They will show youaround and tell you how we solveproblems in the school, how there isno room for bullying and how theirparents are involved and talked towhen there is a problem.

Now come and join our assemblywhere we will be exploring one of thekey words that form our Collingwoodvalues – we are talking aboutrespect, what that looks like and howgood we are at demonstrating itevery day in our dealings with people.Follow one of the classes out ofassembly and back into theirclassroom where they will finish theday with a class circle ‘checking out’,discussing their highlights andevaluating their day in preparationfor a new day tomorrow.

Estelle MacdonaldHeadteacherCollingwood Primary [email protected]

If_you put your head in at the door ofCollingwood you will probably hearlaughter coming from the staff room.That’s our staff circle where we aresharing funny stories in our ‘goaround’ before we get down to thebusiness of the day. Walk past thestaffroom and look into one of ourclasses where you will see thechildren sitting in a circle ‘checkingin’ and planning their day. Hear theclass identifying their feelings andlisten to how the other children offersupport to those who need it.

Walk on a little further and observeteachers beginning their lessons witha circle. See how the children areactively engaged and listen to howfantastic they are, and howconfidently they share their ideas.Pop your head round the emotionalwellbeing worker’s door and you willsee her running a restorative circlefor a small group of children whohave had friendship issues and need away to resolve their concerns andmove forward.

Turn and walk into the playgroundand watch the children playing circlegames and ‘circling up’ to solve petty

playground disputes. You can seehow our ‘buddies’ are supporting anddirecting children with play andmake note of the children using ‘thequestions’ to confront their peers.

Now walk over to the families’ centrewhere you can see the familiescompleting their family learningsignature and observe therestorative conference being run by aPolice Community Support Officer.You can also see the group run by ourhealth visitor with young childrenand their parents and how she ismodelling the restorative languagefor the parents. In the next room andyou may see our parents beingtrained in restorative practices.

Back in the school hall where thechildren are having their lunch youcan see the lunchtime supervisorsrunning restorative processes toresolve lunchtime issues. If youhave time, stay for the after schoolclub where our coaches will becircling up the children to start thecoaching session. Ask them howrestorative practices helps themcommunicate and deal with thechildren in their care.

08

CirlceCircletime at Collingwood

Page 9: Resolution 37 newsletter

09

Regime change, challenges andsolutions at Endeavour High SchoolChris Straker, Head ofEndeavour High School wanteda way to manage behaviourproblems in the school. Inrestorative practices, what hegot was a solution that, thoughsimple, changed the school inunexpected ways, not just forthe kids but for the adults aswell.

Introducing restorativepractices involves a systemchange – it is transformational.Restorative practices are botha philosophy and a way ofbeing, however idealistic allthat may sound.

Restorative practices are not,of course, a universal panacea.Our school is in an extremelychallenging environment andthrows up issues every day.Kids have not gone from beingperceived as ‘social zeros’ toheroes in a single leap. We stilldeal with complex needs in theweb of relationships that makeup the life of a young person,but we do so in a far lessreactive way.

We don’t, for instance,celebrate the number of formalconferences we have. Our idealwould be to have no formalconferences, because thatwould indicate that we aregetting it right at the basiclevel of human interactions andthe context we have tried tocreate.

We use the restorativequestions proactively, as part ofthe everyday vocabulary of theschool. We are explicit, in wayswe never were before, about ourexpectations of each other asadults and pupils. We haveworked to empower the pupilswith the tools to be their own,and our, restorative agents. Wehave tried to stop telling theirstory for them, to let themarticulate the issues and strivefor solutions themselves. We

don’t claim to be a 100%successful but we have seen adramatic fall in fixed- term andpermanent exclusions, as wellas our recording of a wholehost of data related to negativetypes of behaviour. Ofsted mayfind us wanting in some areasbut they always find the pupilsto be articulate and supportiveof each other and the values ofthe school.

We use circles throughout theschool : for ‘check ins’ and‘check outs’; in teaching andlearning; in problem solvingwith pupils and staff; in arange of staff personnel issues;and we also meet in informalstaff circles as regularly as wecan. In so doing we haveexperienced a greater voice andinfluence from the pupils.

Impact – always make sure youcan show that, of course: areduction in exclusions; animprovement in behaviour;pupil questionnaires showing aconfidence in the school to dealwith issues because pupils arepart of the process; animprovement in staffattendance. But change andimpact are also a feeling in aschool – a sense that the schoolno longer rides a wave of steeppeaks and deep troughs but hasa calmness and a clearerdefault position for all that we do.

Visit the school and you will seeour values clearly articulatedby pupils, both verbally and intheir behaviour. Restorativepractices have made our valuesexplicit through our actions.

This is not an article about howto introduce restorativepractices into a school. Thatwould have to be much longer.Implementing restorativepractices eschews the NationalStrategy model and asksschools to use an explicit

framework within their owncontext that has a strong focuson the balance betweenchallenge and support. It isabout working with all parties and not doing things toor for them. It challengespreconceptions that thesolution to behaviour problemsis a mechanical process (forexample by rewardingbehaviour with marbles in a cupor ticks on a wall).

Introducing restorativepractice challenges schools tolook closely at the relationshipsin their institution and is clearthat, if they are right, all elsefollows. Simply applying anend-loaded structure boltedonto the school will not work.Instead, one must change thenetworks of relationships andchallenge everyone, especiallythe adults, to takeresponsibility for their actionsand, most importantly, beexplicit about their values andcommitment to restorativeways of working at all times.

If you want data from thisarticle you won’t get it –Google us and find the data onour website. But here is ananecdote: when a primary headwas asked about the outcomesof her implementing restorativepractices, she didn’t quotestatistics, she said, “I get myafternoons back after the lunchtime”. This tells us that she isno longer the only personresponsible for dealing with allthe issues that lunch breaksbring up; many more people inschool have become involved insolving problems or creatingthe context where issues thatonce plagued the place havebeen resolved. Now that ISregime change.

Chris StrakerHeadteacherEndeavour High [email protected]

Page 10: Resolution 37 newsletter

Family Group Conferencing in Hull

wellbeing of the child and offersupport where possible. Oneexample was when maternalgrandparents gave up their homeevery other Saturday to enable theirgrandchild and ex son-in-law tohave contact in a comfortablefamily environment to help buildtheir relationship ahead ofovernight stays. The grandparentshad made no secret of the fact thatthey ‘had no time for him’, but theywere willing to do this for the childthey loved. Had the child care teamor an agency suggested this, one canimagine the response! It was thegrandparents’ idea and indeed‘most people do the right thingmost of the time’.

Advocacy is key to giving the bestpossible service to families. Theteam work alongside a voluntaryadvocacy scheme and no meetinggoes ahead without the voice of thechild, young person or vulnerableadult being heard.

Gill KennettFGC ManagerHull County Council [email protected]

Hull City Council’s Family GroupConferencing (FGC) Service hasbeen running in the city for over tenyears. The service uses restorativepractice to engage with families andsupport them through difficult times.The key to their work is being openand honest and ensuring that allfamily members, including children,have a say in plans that directlyaffect them.

The team works across a range ofsupport services for families in need,or at risk. These include proactiveself referrals that are usually aroundcontact between estranged parents,to more complex cases includinglooked-after children and childprotection cases. The team also workclosely with health colleagues,children’s centres and other agenciesto ensure that families receive all thesupport they need.

The team hold surgeries in manyprimary and secondary schoolsacross the city, where staff andparents can find out about the serviceand discuss their needs. It is arecognised fact that issues do notoccur in isolation, and challenging

and truanting behaviour in school canbe a result of difficulties in home life.

The service also works closely withthe central duty team, where theylook to engage with families at thepoint of contact, in the hope that thiswill address issues before they getworse. The team also pick upreferrals from the central duty teamto try and prevent children andyoung people entering the looked -after system.

Family resource centres in the cityrefer to FGC for help on matters suchas returning children to familymembers, looking for alternativecarers to prevent adoption, and incomplex contact situations whenfamily might be best suited to coverthis. Their ethos is based on the beliefthat families are ‘experts onthemselves and, given theinformation and opportunity, willlook towards solving many of theirown problems’.

In the instance where a childprotection plan is necessary, otherfamily members will be part of thatplan and will contribute to the

10

Gill, Anne, Julia & Donnaof Hull Family GroupConferencing Service

Page 11: Resolution 37 newsletter

11

Restorative Practices in Residential CareSettings for Children & Young People in HullOK, we haven’t got it easy inHull. Poverty, generationalunemployment, migrantcommunities, and strictterritorial boundaries – allcontribute to a high proportionof families in difficulty andtherefore children who need tobe looked after. Others can talk– with insight and wisdom –about the social and culturalimplications of this situation.Meanwhile, those of us whowork directly with children inthe residential sector have todeal with the outcome on adaily basis.

Responding to children whobehave in a challenging andunacceptable way – rangingfrom verbal abuse through tocriminal damage and antisocialbehaviour up to assaults oncarers – is a constant backdropto our work. We have goodsystems in place for dealingwith each individual child. Wehave a well motivated staffgroup that wants to lead theyoung people to a betterinformed choice about dealingwith the issues they face intheir lives. What we didn’t havewas an integrated approach tomaking things better.

Residential settings traditionallyapplied “consequences” for“bad” behaviour. Repeatedinfringement would lead torepeated or increasedconsequences. These consequenceswere in reality sanctionsimposed by staff with the aim ofdeterring such behaviours. Anysummary analysis quickly showsthat they were largelyineffective.

Equally ineffective was thetendency to avoid challengingunacceptable behaviour, wherewell-meaning staff would “makeit all right” by side-steppingwhat a young person was doingthat was not acceptable.

Something had to change. Westarted by training all thecontracted staff in restorativepractices – in the basic ideas, incircle work, and an increasingnumber as facilitators. Weintroduced circles as a basicmodel of communications, bothwith children and between staffand children – and betweenstaff. Young people becameinvolved in deciding boundaries,in agreeing what would happenif guidelines were broken, theypicked menus, they contributedto house rules. They became partof the decision making processand felt some ownership of it.

We routinely used affectivestatements and questions inresponding to many events, fromminor disagreements to moreserious flare-ups. Mini-conferences, held almost on thespot, proved highly effective inhelping people who had fallenout rebuild their relationships(and I am not just talking aboutthe young people!).

And if something really hadgone wrong, we used therestorative questions as a meansof exploring it. This means theno-blame, non-judgementalquestions that allow awrongdoer to realise the impactof his/her actions on others, andequally allows the “harmedperson” to perhaps appreciate

how what they had been doingwas affecting someone else, orto understand the difficultiesthat the wrongdoer was facingat the time and have someempathy for him or her.

Yes, there was resistance. Yes, itwas seen as a fad. Yes, it was“another management imposedtechnique”.

But in the end, it works. It hashelped to tackle bullying. It hasreduced serious events withinthe homes. It has reduced policeand criminal justice involvement.It has demonstrably helpedchildren to see their actions incontext. The result is that thestaff team are open toaccepting that restorativepractices, with its key elementsof working with people (notdoing things to them), beingfair, allowing emotions andusing a no- blame questionstyle, is a framework forevaluating and reflecting onhow we all interact with eachother.

That’s how we build a sense ofcommunity, an appreciation ofrelationships. That’s the wayforward.

Matt SutcliffeSenior Care OfficerChildren & Young People’sServices,Hull City Council

Hull Centre for Restorative Practices

The Hull Centre for Restorative Practices (HCRP), with theInternational Institute for Restorative Practices UK, havebeen developing and co-ordinating the implementation ofrestorative practice across the wide range of organisationsdealing with young people in Hull.

For more information on the work of the HCRP contactMark Finnis, Head of Training and Consultancy, HullCentre for Restorative Practices by phone 01482 305800or email [email protected].

Page 12: Resolution 37 newsletter

I obtained a Masters Degree inPublic and Social Administrationfrom Brunel University in 1984and, in 1992, was awarded aPersonal Chair, primarily inrecognition of my work in forensicchild care. During the latter half ofmy academic career I developed aparticular interest in health policyand combined my university postwith that of a Non ExecutiveDirector, and subsequentlyChairman, of a large All WalesNHS Trust. In 2002 I wasappointed as a Lay Member of thenewly formed Health ProfessionsCouncil and in 2009 I took up therole as the first elected Lay Chairof the re-constituted Nursing andMidwifery Council (NMC), a rolewhich I currently hold.

The NMC is the largest statutoryhealth regulator in the world withover 650,000 nurses and midwiveson the Register. The Council itselfcomprises 14 members, 7 of whomare Lay Members (including myself)with the other 7 being ‘Registrants’.All 14 Council members wereappointed by the Privy Councilthrough the AppointmentsCommission following opencompetition. Our role is to set thepolicy and strategic direction for theNMC and to hold to account thework of the Chief Executive andother senior staff. My own role, inaddition to chairing monthlymeetings of the Council, involves aconsiderable amount of engagementwith a wide range of stakeholders,including politicians, professionalbodies and Trade Unions, voluntary

Having completed an honoursdegree in French, Spanish andPolitics at Bristol University in1968 I undertook two years ofpost-graduate study at CardiffUniversity, obtaining apostgraduate diploma in socialsciences and a postgraduatediploma in applied social studies.The latter also gave me aqualification as a Probation Officerand as a Child Care Officer. InAugust 1970 I began myprofessional career as a ProbationOfficer with NottinghamshireProbation and After Care Service. Ivery quickly became interested injuvenile offending and, togetherwith a local Child Care Officer Iestablished some of the first‘alternative to custody’programmes, known in those daysas ‘Intermediate Treatment’. I guessyou could say that this marked thebeginning of my interest in what isknown now as ‘Restorative Justice’.I continued my work with youngoffenders during time spent withthree different local authoritySocial Services Departmentsbefore deciding to focus on anacademic career, initially in EastAnglia and subsequently in SouthWales, where I still live.

Introducing Professor Tony Hazell organisations, staff within the healthdepartments of the 4 countries of theUK (health being a ‘devolvedresponsibility) and with service usersand other members of the public.

My interest in alternatives to custodyand, more particularly restorativejustice, was rekindled through myinvolvement in the role of HighSheriff of South Glamorgan, aposition which I held myself in 2009-10. In recent years the High Sheriffsof South Glamorgan have supportedRJ programmes established inCardiff Prison by one of the PrisonChaplains, Julia Houlston-Clark,particularly through charitablefundraising. It is perfectly clear tome that these programmes havebeen hugely successful and areworthy of continuing support,hopefully from government funds inthe near future. I was thereforedelighted to receive the invitation tobecome a member of the newRestorative Justice Council. I believepassionately in the importance ofhigh-quality public services and seeregistration, whether voluntary orstatutory, as an importantmechanism for assuring such quality.The new RJC will face manychallenges as it endeavours tobecome the means of assuring highquality in the field of RestorativeJustice and I look forward to usingmy previous and current knowledgeand experience in assisting theCouncil to achieve this objective.

Tony HazellRJC Trustee and Chair of Nursingand Midwifery [email protected]

12

Page 13: Resolution 37 newsletter

13

Grown up restorative policingDevon and CornwallConstabulary has been usingrestorative approaches since2004. Primarily, this was usedby Neighbourhood Teams as atool to resolve community issuesand neighbourhood disputes andwas used with good success.

Historically, there has been afriction between what thegovernment permitted policeforces to count as a method ofdetecting a crime, and whatappeared to the person on thestreet as a ‘detected’ offence.The Government then relaxed itsmeasurement of performanceand focussed on publicconfidence / satisfaction,enabling forces to use morerestorative approaches withintheir normal policing activities,as reported in previous editionsof Resolution.

In 2008 Devon and Cornwallcommenced a pilot scheme of aYouth Restorative Disposal(D&C YRD). The Devon andCornwall YRD is not the same asthe formal Government YRDpilot, although it mirrors italmost exactly. However, itincluded from the outset ‘HateCrimes’ (racially or religiouslyaggravated offences), and anoption for a local senior officer(Superintendent) to permit‘exceptional circumstances’where a YRD could be used formore serious offending.

As a result of creating our ownYRD it seemed ethical andappropriate to create a similarscheme for adults, which wecalled the Adult RestorativeDisposal (ARD).

The aim of the RestorativeDisposals was to provide staffand communities with decision-making opportunities based onethical values and local policingneeds, rather than mandatednational processes. This wasabout giving victims in Devonand Cornwall an opportunity to

be heard. In relation to youngpeople it was about aproportionate response to theiroffending behaviour – the firsttime they offended.

The YRD process has beencovered in previous editions ofResolution from ourselves andother forces around the country.This article will look at how theARD process has developed –and its early successes.

From mid April 2009 (when theprocess began) to early June2010, 2,329 ARDs were issued.Initial findings show that alarge proportion of theoffenders dealt with throughthis process are still under theage of 25, and 63% ofoffenders are under the age of35. However, the oldestoffender involved in the ARDprocess to date is 96 years ofage. This demonstrates to methe importance of flexibility forPolice Officers, PoliceCommunity Support Officers(CSOs / PCSOs) and CrimeInvestigators to be able to dowhat is ‘right’ in each situation.

For the whole period, 241(11%) of these have re-offended after their ARD (ofwhich just over 50% were aged18-25). Long-term nationalstatistics around re-offendingindicate that, of those leavingprisons, two thirds re-offendwithin 2 years. Whilst the 11%

figure is higher than many of usmight like (and higher than our8% re-offending rate for theYRD), it is still very low whenwe consider that (at this earlystage) 89% have not re-offended.

What has been really pleasing isthe positive press coveragewithin Devon and Cornwall andfeedback from our owncommunities. Our feedbackfollows widely publicised levelsof satisfaction within restorativeapproaches, where over 86%were positive about theexperience and 95% hadreceived their reparation withinthe agreed times.

The Restorative Disposalscontinue to be an important toolwithin the policing picture inDevon and Cornwall. Theyprovide an opportunity for aproportionate response tooffending behaviour; provide aclear opportunity for greatervictim / community engagementand, importantly, provide ouroffenders with a very realopportunity to acknowledgetheir offending behaviour andmake amends for it.

PC Phil SkedgellForce Restorative JusticeSupport Officer, Devon andCornwall ConstabularyFor further information [email protected].

Two young men, aged 18 and 19 years, were walking home inthe early hours whilst slightly intoxicatedand were seen by aneighbour causing minor damage to another neighbour’sshed. The following day, when visited by the local PoliceOfficer, both men accepted that they had caused the damage.Neither had been in trouble with the police previously. Thevictim was more than happy to use a restorative approachand so the young men repaired the damage to the shedroofing felt;one then bought a bunch of flowers for thevictim, the other wrote a letter of apology. The victim wasreally pleased with this outcome.

Case Study

Page 14: Resolution 37 newsletter

Restorative Justice is crucial for afresh start in tackling youth crime

young people are referred tothe Crown ProsecutionService, the Commissionrecommends that – as inNorthern Ireland – youthconferencing should be usedas a ‘discretionary’alternative to prosecutionand as a Youth Courtsentence on conviction.Young people’s consentwould be needed to takepart.

Other participants would bethe facilitator, parents orcarers, the police and thelocal Youth Offending Team(YOT). Victims, or theirrepresentatives, wouldparticipate whenever willingto do so; a communityrepresentative might also beincluded. The restorativeplans agreed by conferenceswould last up to a year andcould include a formalapology, a payment, unpaid

Restorative justice (RJ)should be placed at theheart of radical reforms tothe way society responds tooffending by children andyoung people, according tothe IndependentCommission on Youth Crimeand Antisocial Behaviour,which reported its findingsin July.

The Commission, chaired byAnthony Salz, an eminentcommercial lawyer andVice-Chairman ofRothschild, concludes thatrestorative youthconferencing – modelled onthe approach used inNorthern Ireland – is theright way forward forEngland and Wales in bothprinciple and practice. Itsreport, Time for a FreshStart, argues thatprofessionally facilitatedconferencing not onlyachieves clearer,proportionate justice foryoung offenders and victims,but can also lead to lowerreoffending rates and lessuse of custody.

Estimating the public costsof dealing with youth crimeand antisocial behaviour atmore than £4 billion a year,the Commission condemnsthe waste of taxpayers’money on unnecessary useof imprisonment. It suggeststhat the number of under-18s in custody can safely be halved to below athousand offenders whopose a genuine danger to the public.

But while encouraging thenew Government to makesubstantial reductions in theannual £300m youthcustody budget for Englandand Wales, the Commissionalso calls for investment inearly intervention to tackle

seriously antisocialbehaviour among children,prevent later offending andsave yet more public money.

The Commission’s centralrecommendations forexpanding RestorativeJustice include the use of‘street-level’ mediation bymany police forces to dealwith less serious offencesinvolving children and

young people. The reportcites Norfolk, where morethan 2,500 RestorativeJustice interventions havebeen administered since2007 and both reoffendingand processing costs arelow compared withconventional cautioning orprosecution.

Proposing that RJ shouldprovide the mainstreamresponse where children and

14

community work andtreatment for mental health,drug or alcohol problems, aswell as sanctions includingYOT supervision, curfewsand electronic ‘tagging’.

The report notes that victimparticipation rates inNorthern Ireland have beenencouraging (two-thirds)and that reconviction ratesare notably low fromconferences where thevictim, or a representative,has been involved. Nearlynine out of ten victimsexpress satisfaction andyoung offenders consider theprocess fair – although alsotough and demanding.

The Commission argues thatvictims, the wider public andchildren and youngoffenders all currently loseout because of systemicfailures in the existingresponse to youth crime.Restorative Justice, as partof an agenda for sustainablereform, would ensureproportionate consequencesfor children and youngpeople who break the law,but also enable them tounderstand the impact oftheir behaviour on itsvictims and develop theirown sense of why crime isunacceptable.

David UttingCommission Secretary

The IndependentCommission on Youth Crimeand Antisocial Behaviourwas organised by the PoliceFoundation and funded bythe Nuffield Foundation. Itsreport and executivesummary can bedownloaded fromwww.youthcrimecommission.org.uk

© The Police Foundation

Page 15: Resolution 37 newsletter

Whilst, in the current challenging economic climate, savingmoney is essential, this must not become the primary focusof restorative practices. Nor should the focus be on forcingindividuals to participate but, rather, the focus should be onhow the needs of all those involved or affected can beidentified and addressed as much as possible in order tocreate safer, more inclusive communities.

Many restorative projects are managed and delivered bythe statutory agencies and the community (including thosewho have been victimised, witnesses and otherstakeholders) only provides a service to the system.Ownership has, therefore, remained with the statutoryagencies. Whilst, rightly, holding the person who hascaused harm to account, the aims of those projects tend tobe focused on reducing offending and re-offending withinvolvement from the community, especially those whohave been victimised, being inconsistent. Much of theemphasis is on quantitative evaluation, with qualitativeevaluation being of secondary importance. Outcomes aremore likely to be imposed and the gate-keeping for accessto such programmes excludes many who may benefit fromparticipating in a restorative practice, because they do notfit the referral criteria.

In community and statutory agency partnerships, the projectis more likely to provide a service to the community.Ownership is then shared between members of thepartnership. The aims of such a partnership approach arelikely to focus on creating and maintaining safercommunitiesand put equal emphasis on qualitative andquantitative evaluation. Outcomes that are realistic andacceptable to everyone are negotiated, not imposed.Because these partnership projects empower the communityat all stages, the support of the community is assured andthey are much more likely to be sustainable. This is also atie-in with ‘the Big Society’.

Paul McCold of the International Institute for RestorativePractices, as far back as 2000, provided a ‘typology’ ofRestorative Justice practices that listed those practices asbeing either partly restorative, mostly restorative or fullyrestorative. I would add a fourth dimension to that‘typology’, that of being truly restorative.

Truly restorative practices must adhere to the principles ofrestorative processes first published by the RestorativeJustice Consortium in December 2004. They must also seekto include, with their informed consent (not forced), allthose involved in, or affected by, conflict or behaviour thatcauses harm. The needs of everyone are considered equallyin the process that adopts an inclusive, non-judgementalapproach to enable those involved in, or affected by, tonegotiate an outcome that is realistic and acceptable toeveryone.

Ken Webster, Managing Director, KW Consultancy & Training Ltd. Forfurther information, contact Ken by visitingwww.kwconsultancyandtraining.co.uk or by [email protected].

The views presented hereafter are mine alone and, whilst Iunderstand they may be controversial, I hope that theyencourage an open debate on how we need to develop ourthinking and practice and why everyone who believes in theconcept of restorative practices should be aspiring to achievetruly restorative practices. An explanation of what I meanby truly restorative is provided later in this article.

At the European Forum for Restorative Justice’s 10thAnniversary conference in Bilbao, Spain in June 2010, retiredConcord, Massachusetts Police Chief Len Wetherbee and Ipresented a session with the above title. I spoke about theissues that set a community/statutory agencies partnershipapproach to restorative practices apart from those that aremanaged and delivered solely by the statutory agencies. Lengave an example of such an approach, speaking about thecommunity/statutory agencies partnership Communities forRestorative Justice (www.C4RJ.com) project in Concord andhow effective a non-profit partnership of communitymembers and police departments can be.

This ‘theme’ is also timely in view of Prime Minister DavidCameron’s vision of ‘A Big Society’. If, as I read it, the PrimeMinister was encouraging us to think about what we, asindividuals, could do to help create and maintain communitiesthat value everyone and empower us, then the idea iscommendable. To adapt the words of the late President JohnF. Kennedy, we should think not about what our communitiescan do for us, rather what we can do for our communities.Restorative practices can be very effectively used incommunities with well- trained, highly motivated members ofthose communities, supported by the statutory agencies,taking on the role of facilitators, thus relieving statutoryagency staff to focus on their ‘core business’. Such a model isworking very well in Concord, Massachusetts and the team atNewham Restorative Justice Network (NRJN) and Rightsand Equality in Newham, East London (REIN) is developingits initiatives along similar lines.

My support, as a police officer, for Restorative Justice camefrom an awareness of the frustration towards the criminaljustice system felt within the communities in which I worked.A great deal of that frustration came from the belief thatpeople who had been involved in, or affected by, crime andoffending behaviour were not only further victimised by thesystem, but also that ownership of the situation they foundthemselves in had been taken from them by that system. Ibelieved at the time, and believe even more passionately now,that Restorative Justice was a concept that could return‘ownership’ of behaviour that causes harm or offence to itsrightful owners, the community.

Media misrepresentation, including recent Daily Mailcoverage of the work of the Restorative Justice Consortiumand Victim Support (Daily Mail, Monday 26 July 2010),continues to portray a negative image of the concept. Articlessuch as this brings restorative practice into disrepute, as dothose about “forcing offenders to apologise to their victims”and, indeed, many proponents and so-called ‘experts’ ofRestorative Justice who continue to speak in similar terms.

15

Who takes ownership of a RestorativeJustice programme?

Page 16: Resolution 37 newsletter

The RestorativeJustice TrainingCompany has a smallnetwork of very

experienced trainers, and willendeavour to provide the most suitabletraining for you and your team at verylow cost.www.restorativejusticetraining.co.uk

Events & Vacancies

Join the RJC

If you believe in Restorative Justice, join the Restorative Justice Consortium and help support our work.

Supporters receive a free copy of our quarterly newsletter Resolution, and our monthly e-bulletins, with all thelatest restorative justice news. In addition, full members of the RJC receive discounts on all RJC events, freetelephone advice and support from the RJC, and the opportunity to advertise on our website, the largest restorativejustice e-resource in Europe.

We rely on our membership to help us promote the use of Restorative Justice; your support will help us do evenmore.

Supporting membership start from just £30 for the year so join now at www.restorativejustice.org.uk/-index.php?Join_the_RJC

For up-to-date information on RJ events go to:www.restorativejustice.org.uk/?Events

13th IIRP World ConferenceWednesday, 13th – 15th October 2010

Hull, England

The IIRP's 13th World Conference,"Restorative Practices AcrossDisciplines," will be held October 13–15,2010, in Hull, in collaboration with HullCity Council. The conference will featureseveral plenary speakers, including Hull'sDirector of Children and Young People'sServices, Nigel Richardson, whose visionof a family-friendly city has led to trainingin restorative practices for 23,000professionals and volunteers throughoutthe city.

More information visit www.iirp.org

Restorative Justice Training and Training OrganisationsRJC select a small number of Restorative Justice training providers who subscribe to RJC Code of Practice for Trainers each issue (spaceallowing) to receive a free advertisement of their services. For the full list of trainers, training courses and the accompanying RJCcomplaints procedure visit www.restorativejustice.org.uk

KW Consultancy & Training Ltd is anorganisation specialising in providinghigh quality training appropriate for allwho are involved in trying to resolveconflict caused by harmful behaviour inwhatever context it occurs.www.kwconsultancyandtraining.co.uk

Enhancing the Community: Restorative Approaches in DurhamWednesday, 17 November 2010

Durham City Town Hall, Durham City

With contributions from Looked AfterServices, Youth Offending, Education andthe Police, this Conference will look atthe application of RestorativeApproaches in different settings acrossCounty Durham. Delegates will learnfrom the successes and set backsexperienced in Durham and will haveopportunities to network withRestorative Practitioners and to considerhow to take the Restorative Approachforward in their own setting.

Standard delegate rate £90. For furtherinformation or to book please call CYPSCommunications on 0191 383 6535 oremail [email protected]

Peer Mediation inSchools Forum

Friday, 24th September 2010,West Bromwich Albion Stadium,

Birmingham

Supported by the Civil Mediation Council,the Peer Mediation In Schools Forum isan international event aimed at drawingtogether ideas and knowledge fromaround the world on this importantsubject. The objectives are to learn what ishappening, to consider how best topromote peer mediation, here and globally,and to listen to children involved in theprocess.

Around the Forum it is intended to hold anumber of training days in different partsof the country to allow selected schools indifferent areas to experience what peermediation might do for them.

For information and booking visitwww.schoolsmediationinternational.org

fair process personnel have beentraining restorative practice since 2004and have flexible courses that arebespoke to client [email protected]