Horizon project report published by the Restorative Justice Council
A report setting out the next phase of activity for the Horizon Project has been published by the Restorative Justice Council.
The project is a national restorative justice programme for those impacted by the Horizon IT scandal.
The report (available here) collates the views of 145 people who were impacted by the scandal and attended sessions hosted by the Restorative Justice Council, with their insights used to design a full national restorative justice programme, to launch in spring 2026.
The Restorative Justice Council, an independent organisation, was commissioned to write the report by the Department for Business and Trade, Fujitsu and Post Office.
The three organisations have responded to Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry Chair Sir Wyn Williams with a joint statement to set out their intention to further develop the ideas proposed in the Restorative Justice Council’s report. The joint statement is available here.
Commenting on the report, Post Office CEO, Neil Brocklehurst said: “I am grateful to those who have shared their experiences of the Horizon Scandal with the Restorative Justice Council. We must now act – together with the Department for Business and Trade and Fujitsu – to establish a lasting and meaningful restorative justice programme which is directly informed by the wishes of those who were harmed.”
Recommendation 19 of volume 1 of the report of the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry said: “By 31st October 2025, the department, Fujitsu and the Post Office shall publish, either separately or together, a report outlining any agreed programme of restorative justice and/or any actions taken by that date to produce such a programme. For the avoidance of any doubt, the word Fujitsu in this recommendation is intended to include both Fujitsu Services Limited and Fujitsu Limited.”
The department, Fujitsu Services Limited and the Post Office have accepted this recommendation.
Recognising that a general apology was “nowhere near sufficient”, they said they were committed to:
- working with the Restorative Justice Council over the coming months to continue to lay a firm foundation for direct and personal apologies where we can
- supporting a wider and longer-term programme of restorative justice to make amends in other ways
The department, Fujitsu Services Limited and the Post Office firmly believe that such a programme must be led by the views of postmasters.
To that end, they have together commissioned the Restorative Justice Council to ask postmasters to share their thoughts and feelings about what a future restorative justice programme should include. This project was announced on 1st September 2025.
The Restorative Justice Council engaged 145 former and current postmasters through five in-person listening sessions held in different parts of the UK and two online meetings. At the Restorative Justice Council’s request, those sessions were attended only by postmasters and their supporters.
The Restorative Justice Council’s report set out their findings, which are summarised very briefly in this statement.
The department, Fujitsu Services Limited, the Post Office and the Restorative Justice Council have also engaged with officials supporting the Inquiry’s Legacy Committee so that they could reflect their learning from the Inquiry Legacy Project.
“We will co-ordinate our plans with The Postal Museum, as an official partner for the Legacy Project, as they develop their proposals to consult and collaborate with the postmasters and those affected by the scandal,” they said.
Over the coming months the department, Fujitsu Services Limited and the Post Office will work together with the Restorative Justice Council to continue to listen to those harmed and ensure postmasters and their desires remain at the heart of the work to establish a practical, funded long-term programme. Plans for that programme will be announced in spring 2026 and are likely to evolve further in the light of experience, and of further understanding of postmasters’ views.
As well as the substance and financial structure of the programme, they will look to develop its future governance and hope to include postmaster representatives in that.
Alongside developing and commissioning the long-term programme, they will continue to work with the Restorative Justice Council on the pilot of the programme through to March 2026 and are asking the Restorative Justice Council to continue to engage more postmasters and hear from others harmed, including children of victims and to postmasters from historically marginalised groups.
You can read the full piece here: https://corporate.postoffice.co.uk/en/media-centre/#/news/restorative-justice-council-publishes-horizon-project-report-502790
