Friday 7th October 2011

  

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West Midlands Mediation and Transformation Services (WMMTS), was established in late 2004 and emerged from dialogue between police and community regarding the escalation of gun related violence. The company, now known as The Centre for Conflict Transformation (TCFCT) is an integral part of an overall strategy designed to address gang violence across the City of Birmingham.  
 
The aims of the scheme seek to both facilitate a cessation of gang related shootings and provide a pathway for those who wish to exit the gun and gang culture to do so. Operating with a team of  15 mediators, all trained and accredited, the scheme has three broad strands, namely;
 
 
There is strong evidence that demand for the services of the scheme is growing, therefore it is important that demand is managed such that the team is not over-burdened.
 
In 2005  WMMTS became a limited company and is now the accountable body for and owner of the scheme. Funding is secured on a year on year basis, which provides a degree of stability, though those managing the scheme recognise the need to establish a long-term funding profile.
 
The assessment of the impact of the scheme, from a quantitative perspective is problematic for a number of reasons:
 
 
Notwithstanding these caveats, data in relation to gun related crime shows clearly that the only area showing a reduction in such offenses across the whole of the previous five years is Birmingham. The data also reveals that Birmingham continues to record over 50% of all such incidents in the West Midlands Police area. The only other area showing a consistent reduction is Sandwell, though at a significantly lower level of offending.

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