Our research approach
We are committed to the development of scientific evidence-based practice; the development of our programs is predicated on the best available scientific research evidence. We are committed to providing evidence for the efficacy of our work and will use a monitoring and evaluation framework that looks at process, outcome and impacts.
Whilst we value the scientific method, at heart we are knowledge seekers: curious, open to learning, willing to explore and driven to understand practices that have longevity, that are understood in community to lessen harm and that are respected in local fields.
We balance learnings from the scientific field with learnings from community, and as we are not ideologically driven to practice in any particular way, able to continually adapt our work as best-practice around what works, for whom, under what conditions and why develops.
Listed below is a collection of resources drawing from both Australian and international sources that supports restorative approaches in response to sexual abuse and related harms.
This list is not intended to be comprehensive, but as a guide which has informed our work and understanding in this field.
Restorative justice research
and practice guides
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Anne-Marie McAlinden, 'Deconstructing Victim and offender Identities in Discourses on Child Sexual Abuse: Hierarchies, Blame and the Good/Evil Dialectic' (2018) 54(2) British Journal of Criminology 180
Jane Bolitho, 'Complex Cases of Restorative Justice After Serious Crime: Creative and Enabling Spaces for Those With Disability', in Theo Gavrielides (ed), Routledge International Handbook of Restorative Justice (Routledge, 2018) 17.
Jane Bolitho, 'Inside the Restorative Justice Black Box: The Role of Memory Reconsolidation in Transforming the Emotional Impact of Violent Crime on Victims' (2017) 23(2) International Review of Victimology 233.
Jane Bolitho and Jasmine Bruce, 'Science, Art and Alchemy: Best Practice in Facilitating Restorative Justice' (2017) 20(3) Contemporary Justice Review: Issues in Criminal, Social, and Restorative Justice 336.
New Zealand Ministry of Justice in New Zealand, Restorative Justice Best Practice Framework (2017).
Jane Bolitho and Karen Freeman, The Use and Effectiveness of Restorative Justice in Criminal Justice Systems Following Child Sexual Abuse and Comparable Harms (Report for the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, March 2016).
Janet Chan, Jane Bolitho and Jenny Bargen, 'Restorative Justice as an Innovative Response to Violence', in Julie Stubbs and Stephen Tomsen (ed), Australian Violence Crime, Criminal Justice and Beyond (Federation Press, 2016).
Law Commission New Zealand, The Justice Response to Victims of Sexual Violence: Criminal Trials and Alternative Processes (Report No 136, December 2015)
Jane Bolitho, 'Putting Justice Needs First: a Case Study of Best Practice in Restorative Justice' (2015) 3(2) International Journal of Transitional Justice, 256.
Estelle Zinsstag, Marie Keenan, Vince Mercer and Karin Sten Madsen, 'Doing Restorative Justice in Cases of Sexual Violence: a Practice Guide' (2015).
Jane Bolitho, Jasmine Bruce and Jenny Bargen, Restorative Justice for Serious and Violent Offenders: Victim Offender Conferencing in NSW Australia (Report submitted to Corrective Serves NSW, 2014). Available on request.
Centre for Innovative Justice, RMIT University, Innovative Justice Responses to Sexual Offending – Better Outcomes for Victims, Offenders and the Community (Report, May 2014)
Shirley Jülich and Fiona Landon, 'Restorative Justice and Sexual Violence: Overcoming the Concerns of Victim-Survivors', Chapter 3 in Theo Gavrielides (ed), A Victim Led Criminal Justice System – Addressing the Paradox (IARS Publications, Restorative Justice Series, 2014).
Heather Strang, Lawrence Sherman, Evan Mayo-Wilson, Daniel Woods and Barak Ariel, 'Restorative Justice Conferencing (RJC) using Face-to-Face Meetings of Offenders and Victims: Effects on Offender Recidivism and Victim Satisfaction' (2013) 12 Campbell Systematic Reviews.
Mary P Koss, 'The RESTORE Program of Restorative Justice for Sex Crimes: Vision, Process, and Outcomes' (2013) 29(9) Journal of Interpersonal Violence 1623.
Kathleen Daly, Brigitte Bouhours, Roderic Broadhurst and Nini Loh, 'Youth Sex Offending, Recidivism and Restorative Justice: Comparing Court and Conference Cases' (2013) 46(2) Australian & New Zealand Journal of Criminology 241.
New Zealand Ministry of Justice, Restorative Justice Standards for Sexual Offending Cases (2013).
Restorative Justice Council UK Ministry of Justice, Best Practice Guidance for Restorative Practice (2011).
Kelly Richards, 'Is it Time for Australia to Adopt Circles of Support and Accountability?' (2011) 22(3) Current Issues in Criminal Justice, 483.
Kathleen Daly, Conventional and Innovative Responses to Sexual Assault (Australian Centre for the Study of Sexual Assault (ACSSA) Report No. 12, 2011).
Kathleen Daly, 'Restorative justice and sexual assault: an Archival Study of Court and Conference Cases' (2006) 46 British Journal of Criminology 334.
Barbara Hudson, 'Restorative Justice and Gendered Violence: Diversion or Effective Justice?' (2002) 42(3) British Journal of Criminology 616.
John Braithwaite, 'Setting Standards for Restorative Justice' British Journal of Criminology (2002) 42, 563.
United Nations, Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children “Promoting restorative justice for children” 2016
https://violenceagainstchildren.un.org/sites/violenceagainstchildren.un.org/files/documents/publications/7._promoting_restorative_justice.pdf
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United Nations, Basic Principles on the Use of Restorative Justice Programmes in Criminal Matters’ (24 July 2002) E/RES/2002/12
Australian and international restorative practices for
sexual harm
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A report commissioned by NSW Department of Communities and Justice has recommended that the NSW Government develop a restorative justice services for survivors of sexual abuse. The Report entitled “This is my story, it’s your case but it’s my story” included interviews with survivors of sexual abuse. This is the first report to specifically recommend that the NSW Government develop restorative justice responses in sexual assault cases. Importantly, the report also recommended adopting a flexible, survivor-centred approach and that the service could be a Government or community based model.
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Open Circle, Centre for Innovative Justice, RMIT
South Eastern Centre for Sexual Assault, Victoria, Australia
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Circles of Support and Accountability and Restorative Justice, Community Transitions
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Youth Justice Conferencing, Youth Justice
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Project Restore
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Impact Justice, San Francisco, USA
Ahimsa Collective, San Francisco, USA
Contra Costa Family Justice Centre, Richmond USA
Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth, Oakland USA
Victims Voices Heard, Delaware, USA
Hidden Water, New York, USA
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Community Justice Initiatives, Waterloo, Ontario
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Thames Valley Restorative Justice Service, Ayelsbury, UK
Restorative Justice for All (RJ4All), UK
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In November 2021 the Victorian Law Reform Commission made specific recommendations on the use and application of restorative justice.
Overview of report:
• Restorative justice enables people who have been affected by a crime, including the person responsible, to communicate about the damage that has been caused and work together to repair it.
• There is strong support for making restorative justice available in Victoria, as an additional justice option alongside the criminal justice system. Everyone agrees it must be done safely and well.
• This chapter sets out a restorative justice scheme with guiding principles for sexual violence cases. It includes recommendations on:
– how to manage the risks of using restorative justice for sexual violence
– the relationship between restorative justice and the criminal justice system
– who should govern and have oversight of the restorative justice scheme.
Read the report recommendations
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The National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children was launched in October 2022 following months of community consultation. We are very pleased to note that specific commentary and recommendations on restorative justice have been included in the National Plan, in recognition of the views of survivors and their advocates and the work of the restorative community.
This development also recognises the many decades of advocacy, research, evidence and practice that support the use of restorative approaches in response to complex harms such as sexual and family violence.
Restorative justice plays an important role in meeting the needs of survivors, and as a meaningful pathway to accountability, treatment, safety and community connections for those responsible.
This is an important moment to pause, reflect and reimagine how we responses to sexual abuse and family violence and establishes a mandate for appropriately funded services, resources and the expansion of specialist restorative practices.
We quote directly from the National Plan:
“…Justice responses should also seek to accommodate the different needs and interests of victim-survivors and employ, where appropriate and safe to do so, different forms of accountability for perpetrators. These might include community sanctions and restorative processes, alongside legal sanctions and perpetrator interventions. Restorative justice processes should also be available where appropriate to young people and children who have experienced violence. These processes can promote healing and provide victim-survivors with a validating engagement with the justice system. However, these must be delivered by trained specialist services skilled in trauma-informed restorative justice processes…” and
“Alternative approaches: Perpetrator accountability may include restorative justice, mediation, family dispute resolution, and community courts are available, contextually specific, and meet the individual needs of victim-survivors…” page 65
Reference: National Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children
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This is the final report of a study titled a Community-Based Survivor-Victim Focussed Restorative Justice Pilot and based at the South Eastern Centre Against Sexual Assault and Family Violence (SECASA) in Victoria, Australia. The study has been undertaken through a collaboration between the Michael Kirby Centre for Public Health and Human Rights at Monash University, the Graduate School of Business and Law at RMIT University and SECASA.
Recommendations for responding to sexual harm