Domestic Abuse Awareness - Restorative Together
Police and Crime Commissioner Angus Macpherson funds a number of support services throughout Wiltshire and Swindon that help victims of domestic abuse. Every day this week we will be highlighting each of them in the hope that many more victims will be empowered to get the help they need.
I am delighted to commission £89,000 worth of funding into Restorative Together.
Restorative Together helps people affected by crime to communicate with the person or people responsible. This communication can take the form of letters, shuttle communication, or even face-to-face meetings.
It is a purely voluntary process. 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.
The service has 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.
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.
Restorative Together can be contacted directly on:
- Tel: 01380 861 280
- Email: [email protected]