Handbook for Facilitation of Restorative Practices in Child Care Institutions

Enfold Proactive Health Trust , 2021

Restorative Circles are part of a wider continuum of practices in Restorative Justice, which include both formal and informal processes. These may include restorative conversations, Family Group Conferences, VictimOffender Dialogues, and Restorative Circles. Restorative Circles can also be of many t ypes. This Handbook focuses on the work undertaken by the Restorative Practices Team at Enfold, with children residing in CCIs. Since 2019, the Restorative Practice team at Enfold Proactive Health Trust has been facilitating Restorative Circles with the staff and children of Observation Homes, Place of Safety, and Children’s Homes under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. This Handbook has been developed to share the insights that have emerged from our experience of facilitating over 250 Circles with children and adults. We believe that Restorative Practice is a way of life, and so our understanding and practice of Restorative Circles will always continue to evolve. Therefore, this Handbook is an initial offering gleaned from our learning so far, learning that has come from engagement with theory and conceptual frameworks and with practice with children and our team through regular Praxis. We hope this will be useful for organisations and individuals who have undergone basic training on Restorative Circles and wish to facilitate Circles with children in CCI or other settings.

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