NCJ Number
204189
Journal
British Journal of Criminology Volume: 44 Issue: 1 Dated: January 2004 Pages: 34-54
Date Published
January 2004
Length
21 pages
Annotation
This case study of the youth justice system in England and Wales examined the processes and the implications of the “joined-up” services approach to juvenile justice.
Abstract
The notion of a continuum of services or a collaborative approach to treatment and intervention strategies has become a ubiquitous theme throughout United Kingdom government. This “joined-up” services approach was recently implemented in the youth justice system in England and Wales. The goal of the collaborative approach is to prevent offending behavior by young people. However, critiques have charged that the new “joined-up” services approach is a move toward more punitive treatment of youthful offenders and away from the welfare-based approach historically implemented in England and Wales. The current study examined the realities of the new youth justice system through an ethnographic, participant-observation study of one county-based youth offending team over a 2-year period beginning with its formation. The strategic development of the multi-agency service is analyzed along with its core and specialist services. Data included extensive interviews and regular attendance at meetings. The authors explore the reality of implementation on three levels: core practice, specialist projects, and strategic management. The reality of implementation is contrasted to governmental rhetoric. The case study revealed that the social work ethic continued to operate as an overarching policy within the new “joined-up” services approach to youth justice. Rather than offering a purely punitive approach to youth justice, as its critics contend, the reforms are more accurately described as a mixture of three strategies: a punitive strategy, a managerial strategy, and a restorative justice strategy. References