Board Profile
Restorative Practices International Ltd
ACN: 135 526 797
The Inaugural RPI Board took office on 23 February 2009 when RPI was officially constituted as a not-for profit company limited by guarantee.
The board have adopted a staggered approach to replacing board members in the hope of bringing in new faces and fresh ideas in whilst not losing organisational knowledge.
Board Profile
Chair
Leigh Garrett
Adelaide, South Australia
Leigh Garrett is the Chief Executive Officer of OARS Community Transitions and the Centre for Restorative Justice in Adelaide, South Australia. He commenced work as CEO of OARS (Offenders Aid and Rehabilitation Services ) in January 1994 following a period working in a Senior role in the South Australian Department for Correctional Services. At that time OARS focused largely on providing treatment and support for offenders and their families. In 1997 he established the Centre for Restorative Justice as a response to community feeling that different approaches to justice were needed to ensure that the current system did not continue to generate damage and harm for victims, offenders and communities. The Centre for Restorative Justice operates a range of services based on the principles of restorative justice, including significant work in schools, and also within the Criminal Justice System in South Australia. Leigh has had extensive experience in the criminal justice arena. He is passionate about social and criminal justice reform and enjoys playing an active part in the growth and development of staff and services. He is particularly passionate about reshaping criminal justice systems and school systems to incorporate restorative practices. In 2002 Leigh's achievements in the Not-For-Profit sector were recognised when he was awarded the National Title `CEO of the Year” for the Not For Profit Sector by Equity Trustees. Email: leigh.garrett@rpiassn.org
Vice Chair
Margaret Thorsborne
Queensland, Australia
Marg is the current Vice Chair, a co-founder and founding member of RPI. Starting out as a biology teacher, Marg came to restorative justice through her work as a school counsellor.
Now a published author and recognised expert in the field of RP in schools and workplaces, she works across Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the USA. Her interests lie in organisational culture change and developing emotionally healthy workplaces. Marg is based on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia.
Email: marg.thorsborne@rpiassn.org
Treasurer
Leigh Garrett
Leigh is acting as interim Treasurer of RPI.
Email: secretary@rpiassn.org
Secretary
Leigh Garrett
Leigh is acting as interim Secretary of RPI.
Email: secretary@rpiassn.org
Board Members
John Lennox
Tasmania, Australia
John is a former Police Officer who has had 30 years experience in community policing, training and conferencing of juvenile offenders. He was an early advocate of conferencing in Tasmania, Australia. Police and has been largely responsible for training of Authorized Police Officers (pursuant to Youth Justice Act 1997) since 1997. He has also delivered training in restorative practices to all police cadets since 2004. He has presented papers at National and State conferences and attended international conferences. He has contributed to the development of Tasmania Police youth policy and the development of a revised Authorized Officer training course. In recent years, he has advocated restorative practices in schools and provided personal development courses to teachers and students, social worker courses and other non-government agencies. John’s work in this area has resulted in the award of two commendations by Tasmania Police.
He is based in Tasmania, Australia and is presently a consultant in Restorative Practices. He is an experienced board member.
Email: john.lennox@rpiassn.org
Dr Vernon (Vick) Kelly
Philadelphia, USA
Vick is based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. He was a co-founder of The Silvan S. Tomkins Institute in 1991. As its first Training Director, he was involved in one of the initial presentations of restorative justice principles to an audience in the USA and the Mayor of Philadelphia. He is currently Chairman of the Board and integral in the expansion of the organisation as The Tomkins Institute: Applied Studies in Motivation, Emotion, and Cognition.
His practice of psychiatry has included work with children, individuals, couples and families since 1975. His expertise in the biology of emotion and affect script psychology has contributed to the understanding of the motivation for change during restorative interventions. He has lectured internationally about these principles in the USA, Canada, Norway, Australia, and New Zealand. We welcome Vick’s experience and insight onto the board.
Email: vick.kelly@rpiassn.org
Julia Hennessy
Wellington, New Zealand
Julia has been a practicing social worker / and social work senior Manager in the area of children and families for over twenty years. She has led projects in the UK introducing Family Group Conference and Restorative Justice practices into mainstream service delivery. Julia has spoken and trained world-wide on these practices. She has contributed to resources being published in these areas. Julia now lives in New Zealand and is the General Manager for one of the largest NGO social services providers.
Julia currently is an Executive member on Restorative Justice Aotearoa (RJA) which is the national association for practitioners of RJ in New Zealand.
Email: j.hennessy@rpiassn.org
Katy Hutchison
Vancouver, BC, Canada
A native of British Columbia, Canada, Katy is an author and restorative justice advocate. As a family victim of violent crime Katy focuses her work on building capacity for community safety and healing. She has travelled internationally speaking to audiences in schools, universities, correctional facilities and at conferences. Working with educators, law enforcement and employment professionals Katy explores both restorative practice and forgiveness and the role they play in helping individuals and systems move through conflict in a healthy way. Katy’s book entitled Walking After Midnight: One Woman’s Journey Through Murder Justice and Forgiveness is published by New Harbinger Publicatons and her story inspired Lifetime Network’s movie, Bond of Silence. Katy also serves on the Board of Directors of Crime Stoppers Victoria and of Glenlyon Norfolk School.
Katy was nominated for the Courage to Come Back award in 2004, the Women of Distinction award in 2005 and she received the Canadian Living From Me to We award for social action in 2006.