In Short: The Restorative Justice Scheme in the ACT celebrated its 20th anniversary, marking two decades of impactful service. Since 2005, over 1,124 conferences involving nearly 10,000 participants have reported a 96% compliance and up to 99% satisfaction rate. Attorney-General Tara Cheyne highlighted the scheme's role in fostering a culture of empathy and accountability in Canberra. The government remains committed to advancing restorative justice, ensuring it meets the community's needs and governmental objectives.
31 January 2025 marked the 20th Anniversary of the Restorative Justice Scheme in the ACT.
Richard Dening, Senior Director, Restorative Justice Unit, Justice and Community Safety Directorate, ACT Government
Over the 20 years of the scheme thousands of Canberrans have taken up this opportunity and experienced the benefits. Since restorative justice legislation commenced on 31 January 2005, the Restorative Justice Unit has convened more than 1,124 face-to-face conferences involving 5,882 victims of crime and 4,047 offenders. Compliance with outcomes has been consistently high, at 96 per cent in 2023-24, with participant satisfaction reliably between 95 and 99 per cent across the life of the scheme.
Attorney-General Tara Cheyne said these results are testament to the scheme’s success. “The government’s commitment to restorative justice has not only strengthened our justice system but has also fostered a culture of empathy and accountability, cementing Canberra’s reputation as an innovative jurisdiction” she said. “As we celebrate this milestone, we look forward to continuing our work to support and build-on restorative justice to provide those seeking accountability, healing and restoration with this valuable forum.”
The Territory’s journey toward restorative justice began in 1994 with the adoption of a pre-court diversionary conferencing program by ACT Policing, inspired by a similar program run by NSW Police in Wagga Wagga. The success of this program was established through a series of randomised controlled trials run in collaboration with the Australian National University. Distinguished Professor John Braithwaite, researcher at the ANU Centre for Restorative Justice reflected that “we made mistakes, particularly in the years before the ACT Restorative Justice Act, when our initiatives were just pilots. The world learnt from our mistakes thanks to the research of the ANU Centre for Restorative Justice. But our local political leaders did not exploit them in partisan ways that might have blown up Canberra’s great journey of reform. It has been a journey of Canberra at its best top-down and bottom-up as a champion of a worldwide experimental reform.”
A decade later the Crimes (Restorative Justice) Act was enacted, paving the way for the Restorative Justice Unit (RJU) to begin operating in January 2005. Dymphna Lowrey, founding convenor of the RJU reflected that “The success of the ACT Restorative Justice Unit comes not just from the innovative nature of the legislation which governs it, but from a deep commitment to those administering the scheme to provide a safe and robust process for victims of crime to be heard.”
On 20 February 2025, the ACT Government brought together a range of dignitaries, Scheme partners and stakeholders, as well as ex-staff and others who have played an important role in the development of restorative justice in the ACT. The event included a welcome to country from Ngunnawal Community Leader Selena Walker, followed by addresses by the Attorney-General, who shared her deep respect for the work of the Scheme and the Director General of the Justice and Community Safety Directorate, who reflected on his own experiences with the precursor Diversionary Conferencing Program run by ACT Policing.
RJU staff were recognised for their dedicated service to the RJU, to JACS and to the wider community. This was followed by a story-telling circle where attendees highlighted fond moments from their time involved in the scheme. We heard from Distinguished Professor John Braithwaite, John McDonald and Dr David Moore about their efforts to get restorative justice in the ACT started in the early 1990s. We then heard from stakeholders and RJU staff involved in the commencement of the legislative scheme, through its early work with young people who have caused harm, to its expansion to working with adults and domestic, family and sexual violence, concluding with current and newly commenced staff
Looking ahead, the ACT Government remains committed to supporting restorative justice accessibility. The findings from recent evaluations and independent research will assist the Government in considering future developments. This is timely opportunity to revisit its role and how it can best meet community needs and the Government’s broader objectives.
