Many have called to hear directly from the survivor-victim (SV) of sexual violence regarding their wants and needs after enduring this harmful experience. We previously reported on broad SV needs, perceptions of the extent needs are met, and criminal legal system (CLS) experiences. This qualitative study used the same sample (N = 11 CLS utilisers and 10 non-utilisers). After an overview of criminal, civil and restorative justice models, participants viewed a brief presentation on restorative justice conferencing. Following it, all participants were asked about their reactions to restorative justice conferencing. The analytic approach used computer-assisted qualitative data (CAQDA) analysis and ATLAS.ti software. The major finding was that reactions to restorative justice conferencing were mixed and were linked with prior CLS experiences and crime characteristics. A convergence of opinion unfolded wherein initial detractors became more positive about how restorative justice conferencing could help some people, if not themselves. Despite hesitancy or insufficient knowledge to fully endorse restorative justice conferencing as an avenue to improve CLS experience, ultimately all SVs believed it should be an available option. The results have implications for broader education on restorative justice in communities to support implementation of alternative justice options, particularly restorative justice conferencing.

This article discusses conflict mediation as an addition to community police work. After contextualising our topic within the scientific literature about restorative justice and restorative policing, the article presents six in-depth cases involving neighbour disputes, a street fight, domestic violence and non-consensual sharing of nude images. Our action-oriented research aims to describe the mediation sessions and evaluate them in light of three core principles of restorative justice. The conflicting parties must (a) voluntarily enter into a dialogue, and during this dialogue, the mediator needs to (b) address their individual needs and (c) promote healing, repair and restoration. We conclude that it is challenging to apply these principles fully in everyday practices of mediation in a community policing context. First, the symbolic dimension of police authority may sometimes have played a role in bringing conflicting parties together voluntarily, where previous attempts had failed. Second, in one case, the underaged victim and the offender were represented by their parents, leaving the protagonists’ needs out of the equation. Finally, we did not witness full healing and restoration in any of the cases. Instead, the mediator and the conflicting parties tried to arrive at pragmatic conflict resolution based on individual needs.

With the disclosure of widespread sexual abuse within the Dutch Roman Catholic Church, victim-survivors demanded justice from Dutch Church authorities and the Dutch state. As conventional approaches, such as criminal and civil law, were deemed to be inept in achieving recognition and repair, new procedures had to be established. The Church initiated several complaint, compensation and mediation procedures. Besides these ‘institutional’ procedures (initiated by the ‘wrongdoer’ itself), a victim-led mediation procedure was developed. This article provides an ex ante evaluation of these varied response procedures in terms of the promise they made to achieve recognition and repair. Their design was assessed through the theoretical lenses of procedural and restorative justice. While the procedural lens shows that there is too little space for the voice of victim-survivors, the restorative lens shows that all responses were too individualistic in design, failing to integrate systemic aspects of the harm done at the institutional, societal and familial levels. These aspects are crucial to addressing the recognition claims at stake.

Restorative justice has resulted from a paradigm shift in the way criminal conflicts are dealt with. It involves achieving the pacification of the conflict while meeting the needs of victims, offenders and society, through dialogue. This article applies the multiple streams framework (MSF) to analyse how and why restorative justice got onto the government agenda in Western European countries. It also applies the novel theoretical adaptation of the MSF to analyse why restorative justice implementation is uneven across Western European countries and even within countries. The study shows that the generalised dissatisfaction of citizens with the traditional criminal justice system, their empowerment and the performance of policy entrepreneurs constituted a favourable context for restorative justice to get onto the government agenda. The findings underline that the MSF provides a useful lens through which to examine the complexity and dynamics of restorative justice policymaking and implementation processes.

In restorative justice approaches to education, educators and community-based workers – such as teachers, administrators, social workers, and child and youth workers – often follow detailed scripts when conflict erupts. When used without conscious connection and reflection in post-incident reactive responses, such scripts can circumvent the actual issue and perpetuate harm. Centring humanity and relational connection in any restorative process requires intuitive and critical thinking if educators are to select questions with intention – they need to know when and how to modify approaches to facilitate equity and inclusion. Scripts are necessary for educators who need guidance and support when responding to conflict with a restorative process. Nevertheless, script use must be balanced with an intuitive, reflexive praxis that calls them to pause in the present moment and respond with intention. This article describes how three teachers used various scripted and unscripted approaches to resolve conflict and promote peace.