It’s no secret that our justice system is broken. Right now, prisons in England are at 98% capacity. Yet, it is predicted this will grow to 112% (exceeding current limits) by 2030.
As a result, people are being released earlier and earlier to make space for a rapidly growing prison population. In the words of Chief Inspector of Prisons, Charlie Taylor, “The bath was in danger of overflowing, and [the Government] either had to turn the taps off or they had to let some water out.”
The prison population in England by David CleggIf we are going to tackle this problem, we need to address its roots. And the roots are simple: childhood. Many adults currently serving prison sentences were first caught up in the justice system when they were children and have been stuck in a cycle of reoffending ever since. Indeed, the current reoffending rate for children in the justice system is over 30%.
You can’t harm to heal
Our current system assumes punishment will lead to rehabilitation. In some Young Offender Institutions (YOI) young people are locked up for up to 22 hours a day.
Yet, if punishment alone worked, we would not have a current prison system that is so broken.
One of the lessons we’ve learned through 40 years of community work is that you can’t harm someone to heal them. You can’t punish someone into transformation. That’s why we set up Oasis Restore, the UK’s first secure school, as a therapeutic alternative to YOIs offering young people convicted of causing serious harm opportunities for learning, therapy and self-discovery.
Prevention is a lot cheaper than restoration
We’ve also learned that prevention is a lot cheaper than restoration. Stopping crime before it even happens is the best approach we can take to fixing our justice system. That’s why Oasis runs schools, community centres, and youth work, to support children and families to avoid the trauma that so often leads to crime later in life.
As a society, we have two options. We can continue with our current system, locking people away for extended periods, focusing on punishment as the way to heal hurting people and continue to watch our reoffending rate, and therefore prison population, grow. Or we can try a new approach. One rooted in restorative justice. An approach that asks not, ‘What’s wrong with you?’ but ‘What’s happened to you?’ An approach that attends to the trauma that people have faced, rooted in the idea that you can’t hurt to heal.
That’s why we are running the Restoration Revolution — two conferences, one in Manchester and one in London — to reimagine a different world.
Across four days (November 16-19) people from across the justice community will gather: people who work for justice institutions, people who have been subject to the justice system, and everyone seeking to change it through policy, practice, research, leadership, advocacy and the arts.
Together we will create a compelling vision for criminal justice that pushes policy and practice change and begins with children and young people.
For too long, public conversation about justice has been polarised, dominated by punishment, shame, and division. We want to change this. Join us, and let’s build a new future together.
Book your place today to avoid missing out: https://www.shiftuk.org/the-restoration-revolution
