Responding to youth offending: historical and current developments in practice

Abstract

This chapter proceeds from an understanding that youth justice stands at the intersection of two social constructions: crime on the one hand and childhood on the other. As a consequence, the meaning of youth justice is fluid and interpretations of what constitutes an appropriate response to youth offending vary over time and place. Focusing on England and Wales, responses to youth crime since the Second World War are explored over four distinct chronological periods. The analysis demonstrates that policy and practice are subject to periodic sharp reversals that both reflect, and give rise to, changing constructions of youthful lawbreaking. Such shifts, moreover, frequently betray a pragmatic reaction to political imperatives rather than any engagement with evidence, confirming that responding to youth offending is not, and has not been, a neutral endeavour.