Restorative Services
Introduction
Has crime affected you? Do you wish your voice could be heard?
Restorative Justice can help.
Restorative Justice helps people affected by crime to communicate in a supported environment with the person or people responsible. It enables an opportunity to discuss the harm that has been caused and how to find a way to repair that harm. This communication can take the form of letters, shuttle communication, or even face-to-face meetings.
Restorative justice (RJ) is a voluntary process and, to be most successful, it is necessary for those who have done wrong to admit what they have done.
It can help:
- Repair some of the harm that has been caused.
- Give those who have been harmed a chance to express how they feel and to ask questions.
- People who have caused harm to appreciate how they have affected others and to reflect on their behaviour.
- All those involved to move on from the experience.
How it works
The Restorative Justice team are trained and experienced practitioners that are both staff and volunteers of Wiltshire Police. The facilitators work with those affected by crime or incident, and for each case referred to the service, two trained facilitators are allocated.
The facilitators will meet with all parties separately and will only proceed if both parties are happy to do so.
They will talk to you about the impact and consequences of what happened and what could be done to make things better for you. They will also talk to the person who committed the crime/behaviour about the harm caused and what could be done to make amends. This information can be communicated (with permission) to the other parties involved. Anyone can decide, at any time in the process, to stop their involvement.
Thoughts, feelings and questions can be passed on and answered by letter, or in a shuttle process or, ultimately, in a carefully prepared face-to-face meeting. Some restorative justice processes can take many months, others just a few weeks
Participating victims are welcome to have support in the form of friend, family member or professional to help support throughout.
We have already helped people of all ages in cases of:
- Bullying (face-to-face and online)
- Neighbourhood disputes
- Criminal damage
- Racial abuse
- Physical assault
- Car accidents
- Burglary
- Robbery
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Manslaughter and murder
Testimonies from previous participants
Perpetrators:
- Although RJ was not right for the victims at this time, the process helped me a lot.
- I felt better after the meeting.
A victim:
- I got answers to the questions I really wanted answered, and it was good to hear things from his perspective. It was a good experience; the facilitators created a safe, controlled environment (in the face-to-face meeting), which helped settle my fears.
- I felt a sense of relief.
Contact Us
If you are interested in Restorative Justice or would like to know more, please contact:
Telephone: 01225 256928
Email: [email protected]
Restorative Justice Council: Restorative Justice Council | Promoting quality restorative practice for everyone
Restorative Together is a team of fully trained restorative justice facilitators, many of whom are volunteers, who also have a vast depth of knowledge and experience in other fields.
The team work closely with Wiltshire Police, Horizon Victim & Witness Care, the National Probation Service, Wiltshire Council, Swindon Borough Council, Swindon and Wiltshire Youth Offending Teams, Prison service, housing associations and varying support agencies across Wiltshire and Swindon including Victim Support, Splash, Splitz, and Swindon Womens Aid to name a few.
Restorative justice is purely voluntary. Nobody can be forced to take part. Two trained facilitators contact all the parties involved. These facilitators meet with all the parties separately and, if they are happy to proceed, each person is asked to sign a consent form.
Anyone can decide, at any time in the process, to stop their involvement. Other separate meetings are held to find out peoples' needs and wishes. This information is communicated (with permission) to the other parties involved.
Thoughts, feelings and questions can be passed on and answered by letter, or in a shuttle process or, ultimately, in a carefully prepared face-to-face meeting. Some restorative justice processes can take many months, others just a few weeks.
We can be contacted through our partner agencies, or directly on:
New contact number : 01225 256928
Email: [email protected]
Open from 8am – 5pm
The Restorative Justice Council website has many examples of people who have been helped by restorative justice.