Practitioners have always recognised those they work with as young people in need as well as offenders. The political imperative to be ‘tough on crime’ has distorted this perception, while managerialist approaches, believing that accountability demands minimal discretion, have made it harder for practitioners to do justice to the diversity of individuals’ circumstances. This article suggests that there is no inherent contradiction between good, consistent service delivery and wide (though not unbounded) discretion. Arguing that best practice requires both high accountability and wide discretion, it warns that an uncritical implementation of National Standards could lead to unfair and ineffective practice.
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