From Punch to Parliament: advancing the Right To Be Heard
Meeting the Justice Secretary to widen access to Restorative Justice
After attending the play Punch, the Justice Secretary David Lammy described it as:
“The best play I have seen this year. It is authentic and very moving. A wonderful production.”
Following that performance, Sam Boyd and Jacob Dunne, co-founders of the Common Ground Justice Project, travelled to Parliament alongside David Hodgkinson — the father of James Hodgkinson, who died following a single punch in 2011 thrown by Jacob Dunne. Jacob met David through Restorative Justice – a remarkable story told in Punch.
Together they met with the Justice Secretary and his team to discuss our Right To Be Heard campaign with Whyme?, which calls for wider access to Restorative Justice (RJ) across England and Wales.
RJ brings victims and offenders together in carefully facilitated conversations that allow victims to ask questions, express the real impact of the crime, and seek answers or accountability. Evidence shows it can help victims heal, reduce reoffending, and save public money.
The meeting focused on how access to RJ could be widened so that far more victims are given the opportunity to choose it if they want to.
We were encouraged to receive a personal commitment from the Justice Secretary to support Restorative Justice, recognising the powerful role it can play in helping victims and reducing crime.
Restorative Justice is a powerful example of common ground in action: something that benefits victims, reduces reoffending, and delivers better value for taxpayers.
Through the Right To Be Heard campaign, we will continue working with victims, practitioners and policymakers to expand access to RJ — and we will be holding the government to account on this commitment in the months ahead.
Learn more about the campaign here:
https://www.commongroundjustice.uk/righttobeheard