Victim/Offender mediation

UNITE are working in partnership with South Tees Youth Offending Service to provide victim-offender mediation for young offenders.

Victim offender mediation is a process of facilitated communication between a victim of crime and the offender who committed the crime. It can be direct in a face-to-face meeting, or indirectly at either the victim or offender request, but without other participants. In either case a mediator, who acts as a communication channel between the two parties, manages the process.

There are other forms of restorative justice meetings: · Restorative conferencing i.e.- where victims and offenders and their families and supporters meet face to face, also leading to an outcome agreement. · Family group conferencing - similar to restorative conferencing but focusing on the family as a support structure for the offender. The process gives the family time to discuss a way forward, separate from the main meeting.