Evaluation of restorative justice for offenders
- UK Restorative Justice Council: Reported 85% satisfaction from victims who had taken part in face-to-
face restorative justice meetings.
S - Sherman and Strang: Reviewed 20 studies involving 142 men convicted of violence and property
offences. Only 11% of the men who had taken part in restorative justice reoffended compared to 37% of
the matched control group.
N/A
P
I
A
Fisher: Found reoffending for sexual crimes doubles after 5-20 years after offense when restorative
justice is used. Not suitable when the criminal’s want power over the victim.
C
✔Cost effective: Shapland concluded that every £1 spent on restorative justice would save the
government £8 though reduced reoffending. However there are costs involved in training mediators and
high dropout rates from offenders who cannot face victims, so it’s not always cost effective.
✔First time offenders: Most effective with young first time offenders, as they are malleable and easily
shocked by the extent of their actions.
✔Improves victim satisfaction: (See UK Restorative Justice council in S column). Also makes victim feel
E more heard.
✘Not suitable for the victim: Victim may be too traumatised or may not recollect the incident very well.
✘Not always an obvious victim: Offenders must feel genuine remorse however in some large scale
crimes there isn’t always an obvious victim.
✘Public may disapprove: Restorative justice can feel like the soft option to the public who may not
approve of not punishing offenders adequately (retribution). Feminists have also called for a ban when
using restorative justice for rape victims as they believe it is inappropriate.
D
- UK Restorative Justice Council: Reported 85% satisfaction from victims who had taken part in face-to-
face restorative justice meetings.
S - Sherman and Strang: Reviewed 20 studies involving 142 men convicted of violence and property
offences. Only 11% of the men who had taken part in restorative justice reoffended compared to 37% of
the matched control group.
N/A
P
I
A
Fisher: Found reoffending for sexual crimes doubles after 5-20 years after offense when restorative
justice is used. Not suitable when the criminal’s want power over the victim.
C
✔Cost effective: Shapland concluded that every £1 spent on restorative justice would save the
government £8 though reduced reoffending. However there are costs involved in training mediators and
high dropout rates from offenders who cannot face victims, so it’s not always cost effective.
✔First time offenders: Most effective with young first time offenders, as they are malleable and easily
shocked by the extent of their actions.
✔Improves victim satisfaction: (See UK Restorative Justice council in S column). Also makes victim feel
E more heard.
✘Not suitable for the victim: Victim may be too traumatised or may not recollect the incident very well.
✘Not always an obvious victim: Offenders must feel genuine remorse however in some large scale
crimes there isn’t always an obvious victim.
✘Public may disapprove: Restorative justice can feel like the soft option to the public who may not
approve of not punishing offenders adequately (retribution). Feminists have also called for a ban when
using restorative justice for rape victims as they believe it is inappropriate.
D
