Barnet Youth Offending Service

Restorative Approaches in Schools aims to resolve issues of conflict and victimisation affecting pupils' lives at school. It looks at conflict in a new way, by bringing people together and trying to put things right.

The meeting allows a pupil to say, in a safe environment, what has made him or her unhappy and why. It allows the wrongdoer to see what effect his or her actions have had and gives him or her a chance to put things right.

At the end of the meeting, the young people concerned agree and sign a contract. Everyone who attends the meeting will have a copy and all concerned will check that the contract is being kept to.

For children aged 5 - 13.

Quotes (from children)

"It is quite scary at first but when we do it, it is okay"

"I use it with my brothers when they are fighting"

The Barnet Youth Offending Team, consisting of multi-agency officers from social services, education, probation service, health and the police, deals with young offenders aged between 10 and 18 years of age. It has responsibility for supervising orders of the court and setting up programmes with the aim of preventing young people from re-offending.