Restorative Practice in the Criminal Justice System: Examining a Restorative Reasoning Programme in a Women’s Prison

Abstract

This paper is an analysis of a six-week Restorative Reasoning Programme that took place with 13 women in a UK women’s prison. It is an exploratory evaluation based on an adapted version of the QUALIPREV scheme. This two-stage evaluation examines both the processes of the programme, in terms of how well it ran, as well as the outcomes of the programme, in terms of how effective it was in supporting the women to address problem behaviours. Data comprise interviews with the two programme designers and facilitators and with two Prison staff responsible for activities and training; the programme materials used during the scheme; session evaluation forms; and post-programme self-completion reflections from the women engaged in the programme. Overall, the scheme had a range of positive impacts for the women: many expressed a change in attitude, including being more open for discourse and discussion around the harm they may have caused, being more willing to consider the repair needed in their personal relationships, and in some cases seeking subsequent referrals for further restorative work.

‘Spaces’ for restorative development: international case studies on restorative services

“…Increasingly, this also includes a broader depiction of restorative 'practice' 'that are focused on relational behaviour management and cultural and organisational shifts, for example in in prison culture, pedagogic and engagement practices in schools, interpersonal relationships in mental health wards, and in social work and social care (Rees and Hobson, 2021;Dhami et al, 2009;Wearmouth et al 2007;Teasley 2014;Parkinson et al 2018Cook et al, 2015. This inclusion of restorative justice and restorative practice at the policy level is taking place in diverse countries around the world, including in Canada, (Roach, 2012), Iraq (Al Hasani, 2021), China, (Zhang and Xia, 2021), and across Europe.…”