Implementing Restorative Justice in Youth Justice Settings: Shared Practice Model

This Guide incorporates a Shared Practice Model that was co-designed with Youth Offending Services in England and Wales. It forms the foundation for the RCT pilot and the framework for implementing the SPM. The Guide can also act as the “go to place” for anyone wishing to implement RJ for youth justice. It is organised under four sections:

The legislating and policy framework for implementing the SPM

The conceptual framework within which the SPM was developed and should be placed

The evaluation framework for the RCTs piloting phase

The practical framework (i.e. the SPM).

This Guide takes an evidence-based, neutral approach to using restorative justice, reaffirming the higher position that human rights, equity and victims’ rights have over any restorative justice outcome. Moreover, the Guide also reinstates that while YJSTs may pursue additional outcomes in the pursuit of youth justice (such as reducing costs), offering restorative justice, must not compromise harmed parties’ and young peoples’ safety and that it must be delivered within the YJB’s Child First Decision Making Framework. The content of all four sections, including the SPM, is the result of a combination of:

Evidence from the extant literature (desk research)

The co-design process with the YJSTs and young people who had offended and had gone through restorative justice

The Restorative Justice Practice Framework: A non-statutory international Guide

RJ4All’s expertise and experience in research, policy, evaluation and practice

Consultations with the project steering group consisting of YEF, YJB and Coram.

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“I strongly encourage practitioners from across the sector to read and draw on this guide to strengthen practice where appropriate and safe to do so. Not only does it offer both reassurance and ambition, but it reinforces the value of restorative justice as a powerful tool for supporting children, responding meaningfully to victims, and strengthening communities. At its heart is our shared commitment to consistent, evidence‑informed practice that enables children to build safer and more positive futures and makes our communities safer.”

Stephanie Roberts-Bibby, Chief Executive of the Youth Justice Board

“This Guide is the result of an intense journey of evidence gathering which started in July 2025 and was completed in December of the same year. It adopted a co-design process which involved the recruitment and enthusiastic engagement of 10 Youth Justice Services teams. It also created a Restorative Justice Practitioners Board with 5 members and 2 advisors who also formed part of the fieldwork. Moreover, 15 young people who had offended and experienced restorative justice were also included in the research. These original findings were combined with evidence from the extant literature, The Restorative Justice Practice Framework: A non-statutory international Guide, RJ4All’s expertise in research, policy, evaluation and practice as well as consultations with YEF, YJB and Coram. I had the pleasure of authoring the Guide which would not have been possible 9 without the active and enthusiastic contribution of Carmen Costa and Ronja Healy Karlsson RJ4All, Langley Kate from the YJB, Max Stanford and Emily Blackshaw from Coram, Susan Bello, Yasmin Jeddaoui and Shola Apena Rogers from YEF.”

Prof. Theo Gavrielides, PhD., Founder and Director of RJ4All