Upon her return from the 13th International Seminar of the European Forum for Restorative Justice, Lauren Emmerson reflects on her experience hearing from colleagues from across the world as they explored the potential use of restorative practices in addressing the vulnerabilities faced by children on the move. In their workshop Lauren and Pamela Morrison explored how this applies to children placed in Scotland’s secure centres whose homes may be in England and Wales.
“Crossing Borders – Building Futures. Restorative Justice for Children and Young People on the Move”, 16 & 17 May 2025, Athens, Greece.
Last week CYCJ joined over one hundred participants from twenty countries, many European but also including representatives from Thailand, Canada, Iran, Zambia, Israel and the USA, at the European Forum for Restorative Justice’s 13th International Seminar. The event took place in Athens, hosted by the University of West Attica, and focussed on the transformative potential of restorative justice and restorative practices in addressing the vulnerabilities faced by children on the move.
Identified by UNICEF as among the world’s most at-risk populations, the opening address from Dr Najat Maalla M’jid, UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children, cautioned on the additional vulnerability that being on the move presents for children’s development and well-being, highlighting that children should always be responded to as children first and foremost and, of fundamental importance, that children’s rights belong to them and move with them, wherever they go.
Emerging themes and questions woven throughout the fabric of the event gave us lots to think about; what qualities should child-friendly justice possess? How do we embed the UNCRC into systems of accountability and justice for children? How much does adult fear and perceived threat to the status quo undermine the realisation of children’s rights? Can we truly deliver on child-friendly justice if we don’t connect with children relationally in the justice system, providing opportunities for remedy and redress from their first point of contact? Later, we considered the need to embody values of restorative justice in the micro (our interpersonal connections and relationships) as a means to wider systemic and macro change. However, the message that prevailed most sharply for me, was our collective duty to make visible our most vulnerable children; to shine a light on their unique needs and voices, to really see them.
Whilst most participants spoke about the experiences of migrant, refugee and unaccompanied children across Europe, CYCJ hosted a workshop where we highlighted the needs of children deprived of their liberty on the move in Scotland; specifically, children living miles from home in Scotland’s secure care centres having been placed from across the border in England or Wales. Drawing on data from CYCJ’s two censuses completed by staff in secure centres over single days in 2018, published in a report ‘ACEs, Distance and Sources of Resilience’ and later in 2019, published as ‘ACEs, Places and Status: Results from the 2018 Scottish Secure Care Census’ , we examined characteristics of individuals in the group, highlighting their enhanced vulnerabilities. We spoke of exposure to adversity throughout their childhoods, as well as the additional vulnerabilities to children’s development and well-being that the experience of being on the move, many geographical as well as cultural, miles away from their families, communities and support services presents. A further report, published in partnership between CYCJ and Nuffield Family Justice Observatory, sets out to provide a better understanding of the profile and experiences of children placed in Scottish secure care centres by English and Welsh local authorities. CYCJ will be repeating our census of children across Scotland’s secure estate later this year, expanding our enquiry into new areas to deepen understanding, hoping to make more visible the unique needs of this diverse and vulnerable group.
We then spoke about the opportunities for restorative justice and restorative practices to reduce vulnerabilities of children in secure care, in terms of their experience of victimisation and in supporting repair and healing in relationships and communities; both in their families and home communities, and in the temporary communities they have found themselves in miles from home. We were able to reference some of the relationship-focused work going on with children, and their families, living in Scotland’s secure centres Keeping Families Together.
It was good, elsewhere in the seminar, to hear about the impact of restorative circles, where experiences can be shared and healing supported by children themselves. Colleagues from the Thailand Institute of Justice examined the importance of school and education, highlighting opportunities for creative use of technology, in the form of a restorative justice web portal, to inform data-driven policy development.
The seminar brought welcome opportunity to inform the audience of recent policy and legislative developments in Scotland, which have been informed by increased visibility of Scotland’s most vulnerable children and the Scotland Government’s drive for a rights-respecting childhood for all. As well as Scotland’s incorporation of the UNCRC, we reflected on our Independent Care Review, highlighting its call for “acknowledgement that accepting children from outside of Scotland is a breach of human rights. It denies those children access to their family support networks and services” (Independent Care Review, 2020:110) and highlighted the work of the Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Act 2024 in bringing greater statutory rights for children being placed in Scotland from across the border.
Deepening the concept of visibility, a panel discussion, which included Tim Chapman, leading RJ thinker and Visiting Professor at the University of Strathclyde, explored ideas of ‘radical empathy’ and ‘radical respect’. In essence the need to truly see and hear children; to listen deeply and to put in the work to educate ourselves about an individual’s experience rather than to simply imagine how we might feel in their shoes. Powerful and moving words to close the seminar, which provided plenty for us to consider on our return to Scotland in our thinking about both those who have been harmed and those who have caused harm.
Lauren Emmerson
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