DYFED-POWYS Police will explore alternatives to jailing criminals as part of a newly-approved crime plan.

Restorative Justice, a process in which the victim and the offender collectively resolve how to deal with the aftermath of an offence, will be “explored” and “developed further” by the force, the Police and Crime Commissioner Dafydd Llywelyn outlined in the new 2012-21 Crime Plan revealed this week.

“Restorative Justice provides alternative ways to deal with a victim’s feelings in a comforting manner that suits them,” the plans says.

“During 2017, the Chief Constable and I intend to further develop Restorative Justice practices, building on current good practice.”

The plan says the force will “explore restorative justice approaches as an alternative to custodial sentences and formal sanctions”.

Mr Llywelyn also says in the plan that he wants “all crime and incidents to be recorded accurately”, and to work with victims “to reduce the number of non-reported crimes, such as domestic abuse, hate crime and sexual offences.

“I am prepared to see a short-term increase in recorded crime volumes whilst Dyfed-Powys Police work to improve compliance with national standards and work with victims to encourage the reporting of crime,” he said.

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