In 2011, Victim Support commissioned the PRA to produce a radio documentary that gave three victims of violent crime the opportunity to explain the impact of these crimes to a group of prisoners. Face to Face was first broadcast on National Prison Radio on 23 March 2012, and such was the impact that BBC Radio 4 made the rare move of re-broadcasting the programme. For producing a ground-breaking example of restorative justice in action, the PRA and Victim Support were named ‘Charity Partnership of the Year’ at the Third Sector Excellence Awards, and the hour-long documentary won the prestigious ‘Gold Sony Radio Academy Award’, with the judges describing it as “True ‘stop what you’re doing’ radio. It was a programme that had made a difference to all who had participated in it … and the judges felt privileged to have heard it” (PRA 2017a).

For those involved, the event marked a significant turning point for the PRA, representing the wider acceptance and legitimacy of prison radio outside the criminal justice field. As both Maguire and Hooper indicate, the key factor is the restorative justice focus. Through bringing the victim's voice into the equation, prison radio no longer risks being perceived as focused solely on the rights of ‘undeserving’ prisoners but also becomes a platform for victims’ expression.

In this chapter, I focus on the context, content and effects of the Face to Face programme in furthering the development of the PRA and argue that the case demonstrates the potential of prison radio to promote, facilitate and inform restorative justice practice. First, I examine the restorative justice theme within the contemporary political context before turning to the programme itself, the wider reception and its impact and significance for the PRA. Through discussion of the increasingly victim-centred reporting of crime within mainstream media, I show that prison radio not only provides a voice for prisoners, but is able to empower victims of crime. Both mainstream media and criminal justice policy continue to marginalise those affected by crime, providing limited opportunities for expression of a range of views and largely reducing victims to a homogenous, vulnerable group. In contrast, prison radio facilitates a constructive and respectful discourse which promotes greater understanding between perpetrators and victims of crime, thereby contributing to a process of reconciliation and rehabilitation.