A police force has defended forcing criminals to apologise to their victims despite figures suggesting it does not prevent them offending again. The restorative justice system trialled by Thames Valley Police was criticised after a Home Office report showed it had no effect on reconviction rates.
But the force says this is unfair as the system is still at an early stage.
Officers also believe the process can have a significantly beneficial effect for the victim.
Authors of the Home Office report compared restorative justice in the Thames Valley with traditional cautioning in Sussex and Warwickshire.
The report concluded: "Within Thames Valley the type of caution was not a significant predictor of resanctioning rates.
"There was insufficient evidence to suggest that restorative cautioning was more effective," it said.
But Thames Valley Police Chief Superintendent Mel Lofty said the study covered only a small sample of 46 Youth Justice Boards over 18 months.
He said: "It is important to realise that this report looks at a very small proportion of early-stage projects and represents a time of learning.
"We must also remember that restorative justice is as much about the victim as it is about the offender and our results consistently show that those victims involved in such schemes demonstrate high levels of satisfaction with the process."
One-Minute World News 
News services
E-mail this to a friend 
Printable version 
Our results consistently show that those victims involved in such schemes demonstrate high levels of satisfaction with the process 
