Purpose

Since 2018 The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) have commissioned a Restorative Justice Hub and Cluster Service to help victims of crime cope and recover from their experiences and to help offenders to take responsibility for their actions and make amends.

In April 24, following legal advice, a competitive procurement exercise was undertaken inviting applicants to apply to deliver the Greater Manchester Restorative Justice Service which will see high quality RJ delivered by staff located in every Local Authority area of Greater Manchester.

This was a 1-year contract, with a 12-month extension, commencing from 01/07/2024 to 30/06/2025 and 12-month extension from 01/07/2025 to 30/06/2026. The variation is to further extend this service from 01/07/2026 to 31/03/2027.

The service will offer RJ in each district and be available to neighbourhoods as an intervention for antisocial behaviour and low lever offending, it will also provide a service that will support both the victim and offender following sentence and in serious and complex cases.

This service will be an all-age Restorative Justice Service, delivering restorative practice in accordance with relevant Restorative Justice Council guidance in relation to preparation, facilitation and follow up.

It will deliver training, workforce development and awareness raising for services including GMP.
The service will Focus on Level 2 and Level 3 Restorative Justice and in supporting Greater Manchester Police to improve their practice at level 1.

The Service will ensure and promote equity of access that reflects the demographics of those who have experienced crime across Greater Manchester.

The Service will continuously improve service delivery using evidence-based systems, processes and research.

The GMRJ service will provide a champion in each district who will help to support partners and colleagues to understand Restorative Approaches.

Remedi were the only provider to bid to deliver the service.

A moderation process with representation from GMCA, GMP and GMPS was undertaken to ensure that even though Remedi was the only applicant that we were satisfied that they met the specification criteria, and we were satisfied that they could provide the service to the high standard that is required.

Remedi met the threshold and a joint decision to award was reached.

Decision

GMCA will extend the Remedi contract to provide the GM RJ Service from 4th July2026 to 31 March 2027 for a further 8 months

The variation is simply to extend the service from 4th July 2026 to 1st April 2027, Additional cost over the 9 months period is £187,500.00. Scope is unaffected.