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Spotlight on our Service

Falkirk Council Conflict Resolution Service

Falkirk Council is situated in Central Scotland in the Forth Valley region. It has a population of approximately 160,000 and the district is approximately 115 square miles. Falkirk is the home of The Helix Park and the famous sculptures called The Kelpies. We are also fortunate to have the Falkirk Wheel, the world’s only rotating boat lift which links the Forth & Clyde Canal to the Union Canal.

Falkirk Council’s Mediation Service was established in 1996 and Falkirk Council was the first local authority to establish an in-house Mediation Service. The aim was to increase community awareness and understanding of mediation and to promote mediation and other conciliatory methods of conflict resolution. It was also our aim to establish excellent working partnerships with our referring partners and agencies. The service succeeded in all their aims and we had a very busy and successful Community Mediation Service.

In July 2019 it was decided that Falkirk Council would offer a centralised service for neighbour conflict and Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) whereby the Conflict Resolution Service would deal with all requests for mediation and ASB complaints from the start of the process right through until case closure to ensure a more effective customer journey. 

Mediation & Intervention Officers

The Conflict Resolution Service included specially trained mediators who delivered a community mediation service for lower-level neighbour disputes and lifestyle differences and a Family Mediation Service to prevent youth homelessness in young people 16 – 25 years. 

In addition, the service also included Early Intervention Officers and Investigation Officers who dealt with the more serious ASB. 

In 2022 the service saw a restructure and part of that was merging the roles of the Mediation Officer and the Early Intervention Officer. All were trained in mediation and it became their role to respond quickly and effectively to new mediation referrals and low level ASB complaints. They did this by gathering and assessing information to establish the facts and identify the most appropriate response. The Mediation and Early Intervention Officers use their mediation skills on a daily basis. The officers specialise in engagement and building to identify support needs, and signpost to support or other relevant services.

At every stage of our process we continually assess and mediation is always an option if we think it is appropriate as our aim is to solve the root cause of the problem, increase opportunities and good outcomes for everyone. Mediation turns a two-way dispute into a three-way search for a solution.