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RJC accreditation - our journey
RJC accreditation – our journey
As we are nearing the start of this year’s restorative skills course, thoughts turn back to our accreditation journey, which started in 2023. Having our training evaluated and accredited is important to us. Accreditation allows us to review our materials and processes through the lens of a third party, updating and refining through the evaluation process. Accreditation is an opportunity to step back from the everyday work and ask ourselves – “is this training still fit for purpose?” Having an accredited course is also useful for how other organisations view us; it is to a greater or lesser extent a kitemark of quality. These are just a few reasons why we at the Scottish Community Mediation Centre, value accreditation.
Back in 2023 we had a valued working relationship with a Scottish university who credit-rated both our Restorative Skills and Mediation Skills courses within the Scottish Credit and Qualification Framework (SCQF). Unfortunately for us, they took the decision to cease their offering of credit-rating to external training providers. After a shortlisting exercise, in late 2023 we approached the Restorative Justice Council (RJC) and met with them to explore the accreditation process. Having gained an understanding of the process, timeline and cost, we obtained Sacro management approval for applying for accreditation, and the work began.
Restorative practice explored
Where someone has been harmed, a restorative intervention may help. There are a number of terms in use within the restorative landscape – restorative justice, restorative practice, restorative conferences to name a few. You may well have heard of these, but have questions or be unsure how a restorative process works and what it is in practice.
Twice a year the Scottish Community Mediation Centre run a workshop that explores some of the principles of restorative practice, and how the restorative process usually works. Our next workshop is now just over a month away, on 19th November.
For more information or to book a place, please visit our webpage.
Of Curiosity
“Curiouser and curiouser!” Cried Alice (she was so much surprised, that for the moment she quite forgot how to speak good English).”
Having worked alongside and got to know many mediators over the years, one of the themes that emerges from conversations is their ability to ask good questions. What do I mean by ‘good questions’? I have previously blogged about the value of open questions, however in this context I’m talking about something different.
Using open questions is a good way of finding out a lot of information from a neighbour in a conflict. But using an open question that is carefully phrased and occurs at the right point of a conversation, can reveal a lot more than the question itself would suggest. To understand a person’s perspective, to fully appreciate their point of view, it can be at times necessary to explore their underlying motives and concerns. What drives an experienced mediator to do this will be the desire to get the full picture and understand what the key interests of that person are in their dispute, or it may also be driven by an innate curiosity.
Moving beyond harm
Ever heard of restorative practice and wondered what it is?
Been involved in situations where harm has been done and wondered if there is a better or different way to handle it?
Our accredited training course in Restorative Skills starts in a month’s time. Designed for those who have little or no experience of restorative skills, it takes you through all stages of the restorative process, and is highly interactive and practical.
What makes a good neighbour?
What makes a good neighbour?
If you were to ask a group of people what makes a good neighbour, you might initially be surrounded by a lot of silence. For many of us, influenced by 24-hour news and social media, our focus is on the world being a place of risk, of negativity and of threat. What almost always goes unspoken, are the small but important acts of decency, respect and care that bind together communities and neighbours. So what makes a good neighbour?
There is no right or wrong answer to this question. On this morning’s walk before work I reflected on our two neighbours both quite different and yet both good neighbours.
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