The Restorative Justice Clinical Program is a unique and innovative suite of experiential learning activities, based at the University of Kent. Launched in January 2023, our mission is to enrich Kent students’ education by providing unique opportunities to develop their vocational skills and to support local communities with restorative justice services.
The Director of the Program is Dr Giuseppe Maglione, an internationally recognised expert in restorative justice and conflict resolution and practitioner with extensive experience.
Being involved in restorative justice fosters a sense of empowerment and agency.
Simran Abdullatif Soor BA Criminology and Sociology (Hons)
Restorative justice is an umbrella term which incorporates a variety of practices, aiming to prevent conflicts and harms, or to deal with their consequences, through voluntary dialogue and by emphasising accountability, collaboration, and reparation.
Restorative justice seeks to modify unbalanced power relations, changing social practices and institutions by promoting a culture of inclusion, dialogue, non-violence and attention to vulnerable individuals and groups.
The Restorative Justice Clinical Program consists of two different activities:
The optional module Restorative Justice: Theories and Practices SOCI5004 aims to provide students with a critical understanding of restorative justice in theory and practice. The first part of the module (Theories) explores key values, issues and debates in restorative justice set in the context of theoretical arguments and criminal justice policy and practice. The second part of the module (Practices) equips students with hands-on skills to analyse and respond restoratively to micro-social conflicts and harms using a learning-by-doing approach.
The Restorative Justice Clinic, the first and only initiative of its kind in the UK, is an extra-curricular module through which students conduct outreach and educational advocacy and engage with real life cases of conflicts and harms, under the supervision of the Clinic's director. The Restorative Justice Clinic receives referrals from a range of partners as well as self-referrals from anyone involved in conflicts and harm or aiming to prevent either. The Director and students assess the suitability of the referrals whilst complying with relevant ethical obligations, including the rules of confidentiality, and develop a relevant intervention.
Bespoke Professional Development Courses in restorative justice and conflict mediation aiming to educate and train professionals within public and private organisational settings (schools, universities, hospitals, prisons, etc.) in positive ways of dealing with conflicts and harms, through a critical lens.
BA Criminology student Charlie Whale talks through the benefits of the Restorative Justice Clinic module
To find out more about the Restorative Justice Clinical Program or to arrange an appointment please:
Email the Director Dr Giuseppe Maglione at g.maglione@kent.ac.uk
The Clinic is open to level 5 students. Students are closely supervised. Numbers are limited and applicants are required to have taken the training provided through Restorative Justice: Theories and Practices SOCI5004 or comparable training and experience.
Participating students earn Employability Points for the chance to apply for exclusive internships, work placements, training and more.
Students participate in the entire restorative justice process: outreach, analysis of referrals, risk assessment, restorative sessions planning and facilitation, reflective practice meetings, feedback to referrers and follow-up. Collective and one-to-one feedback is provided to support students’ reflective practice.
Students attend regular group discussion sessions led by the Director.
