A Pledge Card for Reducing the Harm, Hurt and Cost of Community Conflict
With campaigning ahead of the 4th July General Election now in full swing, Calm Mediation’s CEO Ed Procter explores the role that well funded community mediation schemes could play in addressing the problem facing all political parties. How do we improve standards of living and balance the public finances without increasing the tax burden of low to middle income workers?
What if community mediation was a big answer to the problem of spending less and delivering more?
Here is Calm Mediation’s five point Pledge Card for how modest investment in community mediation can help to decrease public expenditure, empower citizens to become more resilient and self-reliant and improve mental health and wellbeing.
Pledge Card for Reducing the Harm, Hurt and Cost of Community Conflict
- Free of charge family mediation for all individuals with income of less than £50k, combined with an increase to legal aid rates for family mediation (which have not risen since 2004) to ensure access to high quality services. Saves millions of pounds on legal fees and court costs. Helps to support families, safeguard children and alleviate child poverty.
- Introduce mediation training and supported peer mediation schemes in all schools throughout the UK at an average cost of around one third of a full-time teaching post per school. Saves millions of pounds of teacher time dealing with classroom disputes, millions of pounds spent on managing serious behavioural issues, suspensions and exclusions. Improves the wellbeing and mental health of students facing fall outs with friends, bullying, fighting, social media issues and family disputes. Boosts the economy and develops world leading future citizens by ensuring all school leavers enter the workforce with outstanding negotiation, listening and communication skills.
- Extend the use of Restorative Justice at all stages within the criminal justice system. Saves millions in court, legal, prison and mental health therapy costs. Empowers victims of crime to heal on their own terms, improves victim empathy among offenders and reduces reoffending.
- Introduce community mediation schemes in all neighbourhoods to address anti-social behaviour that falls below or close to the criminal threshold. Empowers communities to resolve their own conflict without criminal escalation, improves mental health and wellbeing of citizens and saves millions of pounds of police, council, legal and court costs.
- Free of charge neighbour mediation schemes, for residents with incomes of less than £30k, to deal with disputes between neighbours, tenants and property owners/managers. Improves mental health and wellbeing of citizens facing noise problems, harassment, poor living conditions and evictions. Saves millions of pounds of police, council, court and legal costs. Improves housing conditions and reduces risk of homelessness.
