One of the world’s most eminent thinkers and trainers in Restorative and Criminal Justice is to join the University of Strathclyde’s Centre for Law, Crime & Justice as a Visiting Professor.

Professor Tim Chapman is currently the Chair of the Board of the European Forum for Restorative Justice, and is a leading thinker on youth and criminal justice, including community sanctions and probation. He is widely sought across the world as a trainer, adviser and speaker.

A key architect of the internationally-admired practice guidelines for the Restorative Youth Conference scheme in Northern Ireland, Professor Chapman has unrivalled knowledge and experience of training those who facilitate Restorative Justice practices.

With extensive experience in the Northern Ireland Probation Service, Professor Chapman has also trained serious politically-motivated prisoners in restorative practices in order to move them away from violence, as well as more than 60 prison officers. He has also conducted research into the training of judges and prosecutors in restorative justice; this led directly to a new initiative to extend restorative justice to adults within the Northern Irish court system.

Professor Chapman recently led a major six-country research programme examining the contribution of restorative justice to the security experienced by communities affected by conflict in an intercultural context. His academic work setting national standards for probation and criminal justice social work delivery has been highly influential both in England and Wales and in Scotland.

Professor Chapman said: “I’m delighted to be joining such a world-class team of experts at Strathclyde and thoroughly looking forward to developing my contribution in teaching, research and training.”

The Director of Strathclyde’s Centre for Law, Crime & Justice, Professor Cyrus Tata, said: “We’re absolutely thrilled that Tim is joining us. “It’s been a privilege to work with him in recent years and so I know first-hand the extremely high regard in which he is held in scholarly, practice and policy communities not just in the UK, but across the world.”

Restorative justice brings those harmed by crime or conflict and those responsible for the harm into communication, enabling everyone affected by a particular incident to play a part in repairing the harm and finding a positive way forward. It requires highly skilled and sensitive facilitation.

Professor Chapman will be leading training in Strathclyde’s course Restorative Justice & Practices Essential Skills Course. He will also contribute to the teaching of Strathclyde’s LLM/MSc in Criminal Justice & Penal Change, as well as collaborating with colleagues on research projects.