Community Justice Conference

Community Justice, established in 2016, is often confused with Criminal Justice. This engagement aims to educate and inform partners about Community Justice, which provides alternatives to prison sentences. It focuses on accountability and community reintegration for offenders through community-based sentences, addressing underlying issues, and promoting positive outcomes such as reduced reoffending and safer communities.

What was the desired outcome?

An open conference event for the public was considered, however, due to the disruptive nature of the Covid-19 lockdown and staff changes across services, it was decided it was best to initially prioritise partner organisations and services. Services need to have an understanding of how Community Justice works, so the desired outcome was that they would have the opportunity to go back to basics and form a better baseline understanding of what Community Justice is and how their work links into this. They could then challenge their ideas on sentencing and be shown what an alternative option to a prison sentence can mean for those touched by the justice system, including those who have offended, their families, victims, witnesses and the wider community. This was done by highlighting different forms of Community Justice Work.