Exploring the theory and practice of youth work and youth development
On this page: introducing youth work • features • youth work pioneers • key reports • in the archives
new
YMCA and the development of informal and youth work education. In this major new piece, Tony Jeffs reflects on the YMCA’s 135-year engagement across the world with the professional education of those working with young people. He examines both the innovations and tensions involved in the growth and experience of different programmes, and the factors that led to the decline of informal and youth work education within the YMCA. This important research is also available to download as a pdf.
Pearl Jephcott, youth and the lives of ordinary people. Pearl Jephcott produced a series of influential studies of the lives of young people and was an important figure in the development of thinking about youth club work. She also undertook a number of studies that added significantly to our appreciation of working-class life. [Major update]
Introducing youth work
introducing youth work
What is youth work? How has it developed? Includes a guide to further reading.
school-based youth work
The growth of youth work in schools and current practice reviewed + an annotated bibliography.
detached youth work and project work
The background to the development of the work + a full annotated bibliography concerning theory and practice.
Featured
Fred Milson: developing the practice of youth and community work. Fred Milson (1912-1983) was an influential writer and trainer who did much to develop youth and community work practice within the Methodist church and the Youth Service generally. He was also an important contributor to national policy debates. The update includes a large amount of additional material about Fred Milson’s life and some updating of the rest of the text. [Major update].
Marie Paneth – Branch Street, The Windemere Children, art and pedagogy. Paneth was a talented painter, art therapist and pedagogue. Her book, Branch Street (1944) is a classic exploration of community-based work with children during the Second World War – and the healing use she made of art both with The Windemere Children (2020) and in later practice was pioneering. In this piece we explore her work – mostly in the 1940s – and continuing relevance. [Major update]
Josephine Macalister Brew, youth work and informal education. One of the most ‘able, wise and sympathetic educationalists of her generation’, Josephine Macalister Brew made a profound contribution to the development of thinking about, and practice of, youth work and informal education. [Major update with extended biographical detail].
Youth work pioneers
Robert Baden Powell – the founder of Scouting.
Dr Thomas John Barnardo – founder of the famous homes.
Mary Carpenter -Pioneer of reformatory schools.
Pearl Jephcott – Produced a series of influential studies of the lives of young people and was an important figure in the development of thinking about youth club work.
Sandra Leventon (1938-2001) was a key figure in the development of youth work in the UK. Doug Nichols and Lucette Tucker reflect on her contribution.
Josephine Macalister Brew – pioneer of informal education and of youth work.
Lily Montagu – a pioneer of youth work.
Hannah More – A key figure in the development of Sunday schooling.
Marie Paneth – Paneth was a talented painter, art therapist and pedagogue. Her book, Branch Street (1944) is a classic exploration of community-based work with children during the Second World War.
Charles Russell – Writer of a classic text on boys’ club work and innovator in practice.
Tom W. H. Pelham – Writer of one of the first texts on boys’ club work and and an important figure in the development of the work.
Maude Stanley – A key figure in the development of girls’ club work.
Arthur Sweatman – writer of one of the first accounts of youths’ club work.
Key reports
‘Albemarle Report’ – The Youth Service in England and Wales. The Albemarle Report (1960) provided youth work in England and Wales with a very influential rationale and framework – and was a key element in substantially increasing funding for youth work. See: Chapter 1: The Youth Service yesterday and today; Chapter 3: Justification and aims of the youth service; Chapter 5: Activities and facilities and Chapter 10: Recommendations and priorities.
The significance of Circular 1486 – The Service of Youth. Circular 1486 is usually taken as marking the beginning of the youth service in England and Wales. Published in 1939 Jonathan Roberts assesses its significance. Also read the full circular.
Department of Education and Science – Youth and Community Work in the 70s. A collection of chapters from the ‘Fairbairn-Milson’ Report (1969).
Ministry of Education: The aims and purpose of the youth service. This Report of the Youth Advisory Council appointed by the Minister of Education in 1943 (and published in 1945), provides a classic statement of youth work as non-vocational group work.
Youth Matters – the green paper on youth services. Here we outline the main proposals of the new English ‘Green Paper for youth’ – Youth Matters – and highlight some of the key issues and problems arising from it. These include a continuing attack on the civil rights of young people. Read, also about the background to the paper.
In the archives
‘Albemarle Report’ – The Youth Service in England and Wales. The Albemarle Report (1960) provided youth work in England and Wales with a very influential rationale and framework – and was a key element in substantially increasing funding for youth work. We reproduce key chapters.
Board of Education (1939) Circular 1486 – The Service of Youth. Circular 1486 is usually taken as marking the beginning of the youth service in England and Wales.
Jeffs and Smith – the problem of ‘youth’ for youth work. Article argues that ‘youth’ is now a deeply problematic notion and just as ‘youth work’ appeared at a particular time, so it will disappear (1999).
Rogers – Starting out in detached work. This classic (1981) booklet described and explained some of the causes of isolation experienced by detached youth workers and offered guidelines for action and recording during these early months which provided a means of identifying problems and overcoming them.
Smith – creators not consumers. rediscovering social education
Full version of this 1982 youth work text
Smith – developing youth work. informal education, mutual aid and popular practice
The full text of the 1988 edition is now on line: pdf (screen and print), epub (kobo and most Android and Apple reading apps) and mobi (kindle) versions.
Stanley – the way to start and run a girls’ clubs
Maude Stanley’s (1890) handbook Clubs for Working Girls was the first substantial exploration of what was involved in girls’ club work. Here we reproduce Chapter II. In it Stanley sets out her view of some of the key characteristics of such youth work
Stanley – ‘night schools’
This piece provides an insight into the way in which parish visitors approached their tasks – in particular, how they related schooling and club work to outreach. Taken from Chapter IX of Maude Stanley’s (1878) Work About The Five Dials, London: Macmillan.
Sweatman – youths’ clubs and institutes
Arthur Sweatman’s (1863) groundbreaking paper was the first to describe and advocate club provision for youths. It provides a particularly helpful insight to some of the activities of early clubs and institutes.
Acknowledgement: Photo by Luke Ellis-Craven on Unsplash