Spatial Operational Decision-Making for Reducing Inequalities in Access to Justice 

Adegbola Ojo (School of Sociology and Social Policy, University of Leeds) Jon Parry (Skills
for Justice) Sabina Enback (Skills for Justice) Brenda Gonzalez-Ginocchio (Skills for
Justice)

Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is increasingly recognised as a cheaper, quicker and
flexible way of resolving disagreements. ADR uptake has grown significantly across the
United Kingdom (UK). The Welsh Government recognises the importance of an agile ADR
system. However, there is also broad acknowledgement that a majority of dispute
resolution providers are based outside Wales. This article summarises a research
programme aimed at investigating the public appetite for setting up dispute resolution
centres in Wales, as well as determining the most appropriate locations for such centres.
The centres are expected to provide a range of functions for mediators, training providers
and those seeking dispute resolution services. The methodology deployed in this study
entailed simultaneous location of the dispute resolution centres, and the allocation of
composite dispersed demand within a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) framework.
This also includes consideration for mobility issues in order to optimise objective functions
for the centres. The results from the analysis have enabled stakeholders to establish a
justification for the appropriateness of the site(s) selected for the centres. The results also
generated an evidence-base to establish how the locations of the proposed centres are
likely to affect their success. The broader implications of these analyses and visualisations
should be appraised with regard to the propagation of information to positively influence
change in reducing inequalities in the population penetration of alternative dispute
resolution. The belief is that these techniques can also provide intelligence to validate and
exemplify precision in resource allocation. This is of particular relevance to funding
intervention initiatives tied to specific community programmes aimed at strengthening
equity in access to justice across Wales.