Children are at increased risk of becoming a victim of crime. Too frequently, children become victims of theft, burglary, violence, sexual assault, abuse, bullying and domestic violence. Yet current criminal justice systems are not designed to assist them in their struggle to overcome their victimization. Restorative justice, an alternative approach to justice which brings victims and offenders together to find their own ways to restore the harm, has a lot to offer for young victims. But there are many risks in a face-to-face encounter between a child victim and an older offender. This book establishes an integrated needs-rights perspective to look at these issues. The human rights of child victims are those stated in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the most consensual treaty ever accepted by the UN. The needs of child victims are those based on many empirical studies and theories developed in the psycho-social literature. Together, they create a detailed template that uncovers the shortcomings of the criminal justice system in addressing the needs-rights of child victims, and provide guidance as to how to practice restorative justice in cases of childhood victimization in a child-inclusive manner. Among the central findings of the book are the importance of participation and control, sense of fairness, apology, and acknowledgment of harm for child victims. Eight heuristics provide starting points for the development of safe, child-inclusive and respectful restorative justice programs addressing childhood victimization.

The care and protection of children experiencing or considered to be at risk of abuse or neglect within their families is a major policy dilemma. Children in the care and protection system do not fare well on a range of indictors, when compared to the overall population. In recent years there have been significant changes in policies and support for children in out of home care, including the adoption of the language of rights. Nevertheless, the care and protection of children who enter the system bearing that name is often dubbed one of social policy's 'wicked problems'. This paper synthesises concepts of human rights, children's needs and citizenship as a basis for redefining policy and services for children in out-of-home care. We suggest that improved support for children in out of home care requires the recognition of children as partners.

Using a randomized experimental design the Reintegrative Shaming Experiments (RISE) showed that restorative justice (RJ) is significantly more satisfying than court for both victims and offenders. It did not, however, explore the effect of victims’ age and baseline differences in the level of harm caused to victims of different crimes on outcome variables. The current study uses a two-factor ANCOVA to address these questions. Main findings suggest that whereas RJ made adults more satisfied than courts (Cohen's d = 0.50), conference juvenile victims were less satisfied than court juvenile victims (Cohen's d = –0.28). Moreover, more serious harm is associated with decreased process satisfaction for all victims. A complementary qualitative analysis identifies adult domination and insensitivity to youth's special needs as recurring themes.

Eleven Journals is een online tijdschriftenplatform van Boom uitgevers Den Haag (Boom juridisch, Boom criminologie, Boom bestuurskunde en Eleven International publishing)

Restorative justice (RJ) has attracted extended research relating to its potential to reduce crime, achieve fairness, and promote victims’ well-being, but there is only limited discussion about the involvement of the community in RJ processes. This study employs grounded theory approach to analyze 26 documented files handled by a RJ program in Jerusalem, Israel. It proposes a multilayered construction of community involvement in RJ referring to four modes of community involvement: facilitators, community representatives, social networks, and the direct stakeholders. The analysis uncovers the unique characteristics of each entity, their potential contribution in promoting community interests, and the challenges in fulfilling their potential contribution. The Article further offers a responsive definition for community representation. Practical implications for RJ programs are discussed.