North Wales Police pilot for Neighbourhood Justice Panels
13/07/2012
The Ministry of Justice is working with 15
local Neighbourhood Justice Panels, from today, designed to resolve
anti-social behaviour and low-level crime which affects local
communities.
The Panels will deliver agreed restorative
justice outcomes and can include the perpetrator agreeing to carry
out tasks which make amends to the victim or the community. They
are designed to give victims and the wider community much more of a
say in the punishments handed down.
The panels consist of volunteers from the
community, who are provided with training in restorative justice,
and facilitate meetings between the victim and perpetrator. The
police, local authority, parents/appropriate adults, youth services
and victims’ services can also be represented at the panel meeting,
depending on the circumstances of the case. The aim is to agree
meaningful action on the part of the perpetrator that meets the
needs of the victim, and any wider community involved.
In North Wales the pilot will run in North
Denbighshire and elsewhere in the UK it will be tested in Barnsley
(South Yorkshire), Broadland (Norfolk), Halton (Cheshire),
Islington (London), Kirklees (West Yorkshire), Lambeth (London),
Manchester, Salford (Greater Manchester), Staffordshire, Stockport
(Greater Manchester), Swindon (Wiltshire), Trafford (Greater
Manchester), Wakefield (West Yorkshire) and Wigan (Greater
Manchester).
Minister for Policing and Criminal Justice
Nick Herbert said "Too often offenders are dealt with
behind-the-scenes, with little regard for the effect of crimes on
victims and communities. We want to reconnect the justice system to
the local communities they serve.
“Our commitment to work with 15 Neighbourhood
Justice Panels across the country is a big step in ensuring local
areas have a direct say in determining the appropriate response to
the crime and anti-social behaviour which affects them.”
These pilots follow on from local innovation
in Sheffield, South Somerset and Norfolk but are not intended to
deal with cases that involve more serious offences and therefore
should be prosecuted or dealt with through formal out of court
disposals such as a caution, which would be given by the
police.
The panels form part of the Government’s wider
criminal justice reform White Paper ‘Swift and Sure’, launched
today, which aims to prevent crime and the victims it creates.
These reforms build on the lessons learned
from the response to last summer’s disturbances and are intended to
modernise criminal justice services, speed up court cases, improve
transparency so the public can understand how the system works, and
engage local communities in dealing with low-level offending.
Police Sergeant Peter Evans of the North Wales
Police Community Safety Department said “North Wales Police have
opted out when dealing with low level crime, the main
principal of the panels will be to try and resolve anti social
behaviour, neighbourhood and community disputes.
Participation in any panel will be completely voluntary, it’s
not about shamming anyone, it’s using restorative approaches to
achieve an agreed collective outcome. The panels are not
there to decide who is innocent or guilty it’s about everyone
trying to repair the harm that has been caused, and its
implications on the future.
“We hope the pilot will commence in North
Denbighshire in late August, run for six months and then we will
report back to the Ministry of Justice”
Gareth Pritchard Assistant Chief Constable of
North Wales Police said "We've been using restorative justice
in a number of cases very successfully for quite a long time so it
is an interesting development where volunteers, and the offender
and the victim in appropriate cases can come together. "Clearly we
would be careful about which cases we would refer to the Panels and
anything serious would not be considered appropriate.
“We want to look at the issues behind
causative crime and see how we can change behaviour. That is
our ambition. We are trying to reduce crime and anti-social
behaviour and reduce incidents that are of concern in the
community. This is just another option."
Sergeant Evans who is coordinating the pilot is setting up
Neighbourhood Resolution Panel Volunteer facilitators in Rhyl,
Prestatyn, Abergele and St Asaph. He said “A Volunteer
Restorative Justice Facilitator’s role will be to visit people who
have been effected by Anti Social Behaviour or neighbourhood/
community disputes and if all are in agreement facilitate face to
face meetings with all parties involved helping them move on
positively with their lives.”
For more information contact Peter Evans on 01745 539251
or peter.evans@nthwales.pnn.police.uk