Careers & Volunteering

Careers with Restorative Solutions

Restorative Solutions currently employ around 50 staff members – some full time, some part time, and some sessional workers. 

Roles include Service Delivery Managers, Lead Practitioners, Trainers, Data & Referral Coordinators, Service Delivery Assistants and core staff providing Corporate Support.

 We also employ highly trained and skilled Programme Managers and Sessional Facilitators for particular, specific, long-term programmes, for example working with those who commit crimes of domestic violence and abuse (CARA) and our unique intervention programmes for those committing Hate Crimes.

This highly skilled and trained group ensure that service delivery to all our commissioners through intense work with victims, offenders and others affected by harm and crime is first class.

We advertise all job vacancies on our website so if we are hiring you will find details here and how to apply for specific vacant roles.

Volunteering with Restorative Solutions

Volunteering with Restorative Solutions will fundamentally involve gaining valuable knowledge and skills in order to facilitate Restorative Processes. 

By working directly with those that have been harmed by crime or conflict and those responsible for the harm caused, our aim is to enable communication to take place and allow everyone affected by an incident to play a part in trying to repair harm and find a positive way forward. This may be through facilitation of a face to face restorative conference, an indirect process managed by a practitioner or meeting with someone to hear their views and thoughts about what has happened.

Involvement in sensitive and complex case work, where the offence/incident or harm caused is more serious, is often something practitioners aim for. Once a volunteer practitioner has gained sufficient experience, they can be offered specialist training in order to co-facilitate these cases with another more experienced practitioner. 

Volunteer practitioners will also have the opportunity to work in partnership with, and alongside, professionals within the Criminal Justice System and their local communities. This can result in volunteer practitioners specialising in different areas of interest such as working closely with the Police, Courts, schools or on locally based projects such as Hate Crime Awareness courses, Restore Families and other local initiatives.

What time commitment is needed?

All volunteer practitioners are required to attend a 3 day accredited training course and an induction session for their local Service.

We request that volunteer practitioners should be able to commit to working with at least 6 Restorative cases per year. Each case is unique and so it is not possible to give an estimated number of hours per week or month. The number of cases available to work on is also dependant on the number of referrals that the Service receives. Therefore, it may not always be possible to work on 6 or more cases per year but we would like you to have the availability to do so, as a minimum, if required. 

Appointments with participants are flexible to meet their needs, as such, they can be during the day, in the evenings or at weekends.

Other events such as one-off community events may last a few hours or all day depending on the event. Local projects could be one off events, weekly sessions or a set number of sessions over a certain time period, although this is dependent on what is running in your local area.

Volunteer practitioners will also be expected to attend group supervision sessions and individual one to one supervision. This is to ensure case work is in line with safe and best practice as directed by Restorative Justice Council’s Restorative Practice Guidance 2020.

Who are we looking for?

We are seeking volunteer practitioners who:

• Are over 18 years old

• Are organised and able to prioritise their work

• Work on their own initiative

• Can be flexible and responsive to change

• Are reliable, punctual and hardworking

• Have an approachable and friendly manner

• Can remain impartial 

Volunteer practitioners must have:

• A full driving licence

• Car insurance with specified ‘business use’ and be able to provide evidence of this and their MOT certificate 

• An Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check (Previous convictions do not necessarily exclude people from this role, each case will be assessed on an individual basis)

• Two references

What support and training is provided?

During the induction phase of this role, volunteer practitioners will undergo a 3 day accredited Restorative Justice Facilitator training course. This will equip volunteer practitioners with the skills necessary to facilitate restorative processes. 

Volunteer practitioners will attend an induction session for their local Service, this is usually a day session. This looks at how Restorative Processes are implemented within that Service, local processes and Restorative Solutions policies and procedures.

On-going guidance and mandatory training such as Data Security and GDPR, Safeguarding, Risk Assessment and Trauma Awareness is available in various formats such as e-learning, workshops and full training sessions either face to face or virtually. Other opportunities for excellent training and to develop new skills is also available.

All volunteer practitioners will be supported by regular one to one meetings and group supervision sessions. Case Supervision is carried out in accordance with Restorative Justice Council’s Restorative Practice Guidance (2020) when a volunteer practitioner is leading on a case(s).

Development opportunities: After completion of the 3 day Restorative Justice training there may be the opportunity for volunteers to be accredited in the BTEC Award in Restorative Approaches. Requirements for this are that volunteers have undertaken 12 months volunteering or facilitated 3 restorative meetings.

What skills do I need?

• An interest in working with victims of crime / harm and those who have caused harm

• Basic IT Skills

• The ability to read and write to a good standard of English

• Good listening and verbal communication skills

• Ability to self-reflect and respect feedback from others

• The ability to work within the values and aims of RS 

• Adhere to RS policies and procedures

What skills will I learn? What are the benefits for me?

Volunteers will have the opportunity to:

• Gain skills and experience in facilitating restorative processes 

• Learn transferable skills such as good communication, report writing, conflict resolution and self- reflection

• Learn about the work of criminal justice agencies and other partnership agencies such as Victim Support

• Lead and support others by giving talks to various agencies about restorative practice and the processes involved

• The opportunity to work with like-minded people

• Contribute to our valuable work and feel like you have made a difference

• Help those harmed by crime or conflict to find a positive way forward from what has happened to them

• Assist those who have caused harm to explore ways in which they can repair the harm they have caused

How do I find out more?

See the next section of current volunteering opportunities or how to contact your local Service in order to find out whether they are recruiting, and to request a full volunteer role description and application form.