Derry CRJ welcomes funding move

Appropriate cases are being referred to police, the report said

Community Restorative Justice in Londonderry has welcomed a report which said it should be considered for government accreditation and funding.

Criminal Justice Inspection said schemes ran by Community Restorative Justice Ireland had made improvements.

Chief inspector Kit Chivers said they were working lawfully and were "valued in their communities".

The co-ordinator of the CRJ in Derry, Noel McCartney, said it was a positive move but would change very little.

"We probably won't be doing anything differently than we have been doing for the last year, but we'll certainly do things differently from how we've been doing them for the last eight years.

"Before this we would have been dealing with crime but for the last year we aren't dealing with that, and obviously the protocol states we can't deal with crime and we have no issue with that," he said.

Restorative justice can involve offenders being brought in front of their victims to make them understand the impact of their actions.

The report focussed on schemes ran by CRJI and noted that they had put in place internal complaints procedures which can be used to refer complaints to one of two independent persons.

It means that eight schemes operated by CRJI in Belfast and Londonderry, together with their two head offices, should receive accreditation.

Mr Chivers said his office would continue to inspect the schemes on a regular basis.

"Should we at any stage find anything improper in the operation of any of the schemes, we shall not hesitate to say so," he said.

All schemes seeking accreditation will be required to submit the names of staff and volunteers to a government-appointed suitability panel.

The panel will check whether they are suitable persons to be engaged in schemes that work in partnership with the criminal justice system.