Campaigns that foster an ‘us v them’ mentality leave lasting scars, as we’ve found to our cost during Brexit, election contests around the world and recent clashes on climate and migration. Hardly surprising then that some (though by no means all) campaigners are searching for approaches that don’t demonise opponents or risk deepening divisions.

‘Martin’ (not his real name) completed a course in restorative practice with us in partnership with the Lived Experience Advisory Forum (LEAF) in Oxford. In this article, he shares why restorative practice is important in the homelessness and housing sector.

Like all Shakespeare’s comedies, Much Ado about Nothing begins with a disturbance in society and broken relationships that need restoring, even before matters become more complicated for the characters. In Much Ado About Nothing, Beatrice and Benedick are at odds with one another in what is  called a “merry war” by their friends, but in a personal situation that runs deeply into some hurt in the past that is never made clear.

It was great to hear speakers at our recent conference explore different dimensions – and benefits – of relational leadership.  Warm thanks to Ruth Cane, Dr Nomahaza Mahadi and Rita Symons for sharing insights on this important topic.  Here are some of my ‘top takeaways.’ It would be great to hear top takeaways from others.

We recently had a great discussion with colleagues from Oxfordshire County Council about the value and use of silence in restorative practice.  

As Chair of Oxford Urban Wildlife Group for the last 5 years I have been privileged to be part of an amazing team of volunteers who are passionate about stewardship of a wonderful 3 acre nature reserve in the midst of East Oxford Boundary Brook Nature Reserve.  The habitats in the reserve were created in the 1990's, when the group took over the lease, of what was once abandoned allotment land.

It’s becoming commonplace to say that our public services are broken. An event late last week where the focus was on special educational needs and disabilities brought home vividly what ‘broken services’ mean in practice for families desperate for help and those looking to provide this – realities further underlined by today’s National Audit Office report.

Many people know me as an Accredited Family Mediator with an interest in how our life experiences impact us in the mediation room. However, not many people will know that I am also a Trustee at The Mint House which is the Oxford Centre for Restorative Practice, and I can deliver training in restorative practice for people working in criminal justice or other settings.

Growing up in the 1960s and 70s in what would these days be called a ‘blended family’, I was by turns the youngest child, eldest child and middle child in a complex, ever-evolving tangle of parents and siblings. Perhaps this explains why, as a writer, I’ve always been so interested in family dynamics and family conflict. Visible or not, these themes run like stubborn threads through nearly all my writing, even in works that superficially have little in common.

Shakespeare’s play Twelfth Night opens, like all his comedies, with a situation in which relationships are already disturbed or broken, and in which characters feel a profound sense of loss. The play ends with some restoration of relations and a partial establishing of justice, but we are acutely aware that the process of restorative justice is far from complete. All is not a happy-ever-afterwards.

Recently a burst of spontaneity while in Manchester saw us heading to a preview performance of Lynn Nottage’s prize-winning play, Sweat at the Royal Exchange Theatre, itself an icon of reinvention and creativity.

Why me? want to see a world where people affected by crime know what Restorative Justice is, know how to access it and can readily explore whether it might be suitable for them with a trained expert. 

Last week colleagues from around England and Wales - Blackley to Barry, Hull to Hotwalls (Portsmouth) and points between - came together for two days for a fascinating conversation about how restorative practice can become embedded in communities.

It was good to welcome Dr Steve Kirkwood to a recent Mint House network event, where he shared findings from his recent research looking at the potential of restorative justice (RJ) in addressing the harms created by the asylum system?  

The Mint House was grateful and delighted to receive funding from Westhill for a twelve-month programme of research and practice dialogues, exploring challenges and creative opportunities for embedding restorative practice across diverse sectors and in faith institutions.  We think there’s much to be done in this area that can help foster healthy relationships, strengthen connections and prevent and resolve conflict. 

Really good to see the recent publication of a systematic review looking at participant and facilitator experiences of restorative justice interventions in the forensic secure estate. The review was carried out by Kathryn Rowsell, Kirsty Pegg, Pete Wallis and Richard Barker, two of whom (Kathryn and Pete) are Mint House trustees.

If you are looking for some reading for the new year or looking for those last minute gift ideas,  there is a newly published book on restorative practice.

Many thanks to Alison (Newbon) and Brigitte (Hyde) for joining a recent Mint House network event to share Norfolk’s journey to embed restorative practice. Here are some of the things they touched on.

Can you imagine what a restorative pub quiz would look like? Well, having taken on the job of setting and running one, I am struggling. The problems are many. My enjoyment of a pub quiz comes from my competitive nature, the prospect of winning and the chance to show off my esoteric and admittedly useless, knowledge of trivia. These are not the aspects of my personality of which I am most proud.