Prison Reform Webinar.

From Conflict to contribution: Reforming prisons through a restorative approach

The Government are putting prisons in the spotlight and reform is on the table with 6 reform prisons being announced, but will it go far enough?

According to David Cameron;

“The failure of our system today is scandalous. 46% of all prisoners will re-offend within a year of release. 60% of short-sentenced prisoners will reoffend within the same period.
In a typical week, there will be almost 600 incidents of self-harm; at least one suicide; and 350 assaults, including 90 on staff. This failure really matters”

The present situation in our prisons is indeed inhumane, expensive and ineffective and it is a chronic waste of money, life and potential.

Maria Arpa has been working with transforming violent behaviour and researching the roots for conflict for more than 20 years. Her charity the Centre for Peaceful Solutions has worked in 5 prisons, with gangs, police, community and violent crime on the streets to great positive effect.

Maria’s experience has led her to develop an innovative approach, the Dialogue Road Map. An approach which has been developed and tested in five UK prisons, it has been proven be a highly effective tool for transforming resistance, hostility, anger, aggression and indifference into meaningful dialogue and collaborative action plans. Using restorative practices, the Dialogue Road Map leads to:

  • Greater emotional wellbeing and safety for prisoners and prison staff
  • Safer custody for all stakeholders
  • Reduction in violence, self-harm, bullying, isolation and addiction within prison
  • Reduction in re-offending and ultimately a reduction in prison numbers
  • Empowering prisoners to resolve disputes and violence themselves.

You can watch it here