Restorative Justice aims to empower victim’s of crime, reduce epeat offending and encourage offenders to take responsibility for their actions.

When a young offender in Hampshire is sentenced in court, the victim of their crime is contacted by SOVA who work in partnership with the Youth Offending Team.  This of course means numerous shops and stores are contacted. 

For many store managers, staff, and loss and prevention officers it is an opportunity to explain directly to an offender the impact their behaviour has had on the store, challenging a common misconception that shoplifting is a ‘victimless’ crime. Experience has shown when an offender meets with store staff or loss and prevention staff they rarely return to the store to shoplift.  Some offenders maintain direct mediation is the hardest part of their sentence.

Sometimes a store manager is unable to facilitate a mediation meeting with an offender, they may request an apology letter if the young offender appears genuinely sorry for their actions.  Delivering the letter in person can have a big impact on the offender, again challenging an offender’s view that shop lifting is victimless.

Recently SOVA Wessex (now Rainer) in Portsmouth met with Mark Ferns from Storewatch to discuss possible Restorative Justice Interventions for young offenders who are charged with stealing from the CO OP in the Portsmouth area.

During the interview, Mark felt some CO OP managers were too busy to take part in direct mediation meetings with individual offenders, however felt it may be useful for each offender to take part in a programme of victim awareness where information can be ‘shuttled’ between the two parties.  This it was felt would make offenders more accountable for their actions.

Unfortunately there is little an offender can do to make direct reparation to the store, but Mark felt they could be directed to make indirect reparation to the local community by way of a short community reparation placement.  It was agreed that each placement should be a practical tasks that directly benefits the local community.

Since this meeting Rainer Wessex have worked towards delivering a programme of victim awareness with each young person charged with offences against the CO OP.  This includes a number of exercises to encourage victim empathy and ‘shuttle’ mediation - passing on information regarding the consequences to the store as result of their behaviour, for example the financial loss to the store, the time and paperwork involved and  anxiety to staff etc .

Leigh Park is a large residential area in Havant.  Residents fought to save a plot of land, behind Ramsdale Avenue when the local council wanted to construct a car park.  As a result the land has now been developed as an open play area and meadow land.  This area is greatly accessed by local residents for recreation.  The natural meadow land has now an established wild life uncommon for such a built up area. 

We feel these projects reflect Mark’s request that placements are local to the CO OP shops, practical by nature, and benefit the community.  All three project now rely on support from young offenders to keep them running. These projects virtually run with no financial backing.

Most young people also appear to benefit from these practical tasks.  The tasks help them to gain new skills and a sense of self worth.  They also feel they have had an opportunity to make amends to the community for their behaviour.  Some young people have remained involved in the projects on a voluntary basis after their placement hours are complete.   

During their sentence young offenders that offend against the CO OP will have had to work towards a number of targets, aims and goals which will cover a punishment element and reduce the risk of them re offending.  The Restorative Justice intervention is different, and although recent research concludes that offenders who take part in the restorative process (particularly in a face to face meeting with their victim) are less likely to re-offend, the main principles are not so ‘offender ‘ focused, but aims to meet the needs of the ‘victims’,  thus giving the CO OP, as the victim, an opportunity to pass onto offenders how their behaviour impacts on the business, other customers and staff.   This makes young people more accountable, and a placement enables them to make indirect reparation to the community.