Restorative Justice and Restorative Practice

The restorative justice and restorative practice group are engaged in a wide variety of research with national and international partners. At the core of this work is the examination of and contribution to evidence-based practice in restorative work that includes the evaluations of exiting projects, theoretical work on the nature and form of restorative justice, and the supervision of PhD students in the area. Work in the group includes:

Restorative practices with young people in a variety of settings, including: how to improve relationships between young people and the police; the development of restorative programmes in supported housing contexts; in the development of restorative schools’ programmes; and in out of court disposals for ‘Children First’ strategies.

Work in developing restorative programmes, including: Sierra Leone, exploring the creating and maintaining of peace after civil war; in Northern Ireland, exploring the tension between top-down and bottom-up.

Work with policy support and development, including: with the Restorative Justice Council UK on developing the recording and evaluation of restorative work and the potential for national reporting frameworks; representation on the steering group for the All Party Parliamentary Group for Restorative Justice; collaborations and evaluations with local restorative Justice agencies, including a number of projects in partnership with Restorative Gloucestershire.

Work across the criminal justice system, including: tracking the implementation and impact of restorative Out Of Court Disposal programmes; the use of restorative justice and practices within prisons; work developing evidence based programmes for restorative justice rollout in policing.

The team also offer the UK’s first Postgraduate Certificate Advanced Restorative Practitioner, in which those graduating receive both an academic qualification as well as RJC Advanced Practitioner recognition.