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Department of Justice review commends restorative justice in Northern Ireland and highlights need for 'fine-tuning'

A report by the Department of Justice Northern Ireland on the ongoing review of their youth justice system found that restorative justice now plays a crucial part in the response to youth crime in Northern Ireland.

The report commends restorative justice youth conferencing stating "youth conferencing in NI has proved highly successful and is an achievement of which Northern Ireland can be rightly proud."

Now internationally renowned, youth conferences offer an inclusive, problem-solving and forward looking response to offending in which the victim plays an important role. Re-offending rates are lower than for most other sanctions and victim satisfaction is high.

However, even with successful initiatives, fine tuning is needed to ensure that direct victim attendance is maximised, plans are relevant and proportionate and the incidence of multiple youth conferences is reduced through greater use of discretion by conference co-ordinators.

Delay in the system also needs to be tackled robustly if offenders and victims alike are to gain the full benefi ts of the restorative process. 

The report and an opportunity to respond to a consultation on the report can be found by following the links below. 

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26th Sep 2011

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