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News

News Archives: Index

October 7, 2010: Probation Set For Industrial Action

October 5, 2010: Turning Prisoners Into Taxpayers

October 4, 2010: Murder Changes Now In Force

September 20, 2010: Probation Programmes Face Cuts

August 24, 2010: Victorian Poor Law Records Online

August 10, 2010: Justice Job Cuts

July 28, 2010: Prison Violence Growing

July 22, 2010: Police Numbers: Latest Figures

July 22, 2010: New Jurisdiction Rules

July 16, 2010: CCJS On Prison And Probation Spending Under Labour

July 15, 2010: Latest Statistics On Violent And Sexual Crime

July 15, 2010: Latest National Crime Figures

July 15, 2010: New Chief Prisons Inspector

July 14, 2010: Hard Times Ahead For Prisons: Anne Owers

July 14, 2010: Prison Does Not Work: Ken Clarke

July 13, 2010: Criminal Justice Reform: Sentencing and Rehabilitation

July 13, 2010: Criminal Justice Reform Priorities

July 12, 2010: What Price Public Protection, Asks Probation Chief Inspector

July 12, 2010: NOMS has failed, says Napo

July 10, 2010: IPCC To Investigate Death of Raoul Moat

July 9, 2010: Women In Prison: New Report

July 9, 2009: Unjust Deserts: Imprisonment for Public Protection

July 8, 2010: Police Search Powers Change

July 7, 2010: Make 'Legal High' Illegal, Says ACMD

July 2, 2010: Failing Children In Prison

July 2, 2010: Police Buried Under a Blizzard of Guidance: HMIC

July 1, 2010: Freedom To Change The Law?

June 30, 2010: A New Outlook On Penal Reform?

June 30, 2010: Revolving Door Of Offending Must Stop, Says Clarke

June 30, 2010: Ken Clarke: Speech on Criminal Justice Reform

June 29, 2010: No More Police Targets

June 26, 2010: Family Intervention Projects Questioned

June 25, 2010: Cutting Criminal Justice

June 24, 2010: Napo on Sex Offenders Report

June 23, 2010: Closing Courts: The Cuts Begin

June 23, 2010: Strategy To Tackle Gangs

June 15, 2010: Courts and Mentally Disordered Offenders

June 8, 2010: Working With Muslims in Prison

June 1, 2010: Your Chance To Nominate a QC

March 16, 2005: New Guide to Restorative Justice

The government has published a new guide on restorative justice for local police forces, prosecutors and offender managers. The National Criminal Justice Board issued the guide 'Restorative justice: Helping to meet local needs'  to all Local Criminal Justice Board members. It sets out  how restorative approaches work, particularly in increasing victim satisfaction and public confidence, and points to where local areas can make greater use of these approaches. The guide can be downloaded from the Government’s Restorative Justice Strategy page.

The Home Office states that restorative justice encourages offenders to take responsibility for their actions and repair the harm they have caused, and helps victims recover and put the incident behind them. It brings victims and offenders into communication, either face to face or indirectly, through a trained facilitator.

Restorative justice is always optional for victims. Research shows that over three quarters of victims who take part benefit from the process, taking the chance to tell the offender the impact of the offence, and have their questions answered about what happened. For many victims, the benefits include feeling safer and the chance of direct compensation and/or a personal apology from the offender if they want.

The guide is the latest step in the Government’s efforts to develop the use of restorative justice approaches. It focuses particularly on increasing victim satisfaction and public confidence in the criminal justice system , and offers tools and advice for agencies that want to implement the approach in their own area.

Speaking today at the Restorative Justice Conference Annual Conference in London, Baroness Scotland QC, Home Office Minister for the Criminal Justice System and Law Reform, said:

“Restorative justice encourages all of us involved in the criminal justice system to see justice in a new light. In many cases it helps victims of crime have a say in what happens to an offender. It can also be part of the rehabilitation process for offenders themselves.

“Restorative justice is about helping every victim get over the crime they’ve suffered. When a victim chooses to meet the offender it often helps them feel safer and more satisfied that justice has been done.

“So as we reform the criminal justice system to put victims and communities first, restorative justice should have a key place at the heart of our reforms.”

Restorative justice is already widely used in youth justice. It can be used in a variety of settings for adult offenders: either by police, including when someone is cautioned or as part of measures to tackle anti-social behaviour; or for convicted offenders before or after sentencing.#

For more online information about restorative justice, the Crimlinks restorative justice page is useful.