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Is Probation Still Possible?

NCJ Number
238806
Journal
Howard Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 51 Issue: 2 Dated: May 2012 Pages: 173-189
Author(s)
Peter Raynor
Date Published
May 2012
Length
17 pages
Annotation
This article discusses the present and likely future state of probation services in England and Wales with their good standing and reputation in the third quarter of the 20th century.
Abstract
This article is based on the 14th Bill McWilliams Memorial Lecture, delivered at the Institute of Criminology in Cambridge on 22 June 2011. It contrasts the present and likely future state of probation services in England and Wales with their good standing and reputation in the third quarter of the 20th century, and considers whether there are core features of probation which can be identified in its earlier theory and practice which help to account for this. It traces the recent history of probation services in England and Wales in the context of social and political changes, and questions how much a probation service which moves away from help towards punishment can still have in common with earlier visions. Finally, some future possibilities are discussed, together with the political conditions which might help or hinder them. (Published Abstract)