Critical Issues in Youth Work Management

This valuable textbook communicates the complexities and controversies at the heart of youth work management, exploring key issues in a critical fashion. Written by a team of experienced youth work lecturers, the chapters cover topics such as planning, evaluation and supervision, whilst acknowledging the changing structures of integrated services and the impact of public service reform.
Divided into three sections, it covers:


Historical and theoretical context

Critical practice issues, including leadership, policy constraints, planning and accountability

Managing in different settings, for instance integrated services and the voluntary sector.

Aimed at both youth work students studying for their professional qualification, as well as practicing managers, Critical Issues in Youth Work Management encourages critical thinking about what management in youth work is and what it can be. It includes reflective questions and further reading, and case studies are integrated throughout.

Jon Ord is Reader in Youth and Community Work at UCP Marjon, Plymouth, UK. He has worked as a youth worker for twenty years, and is the author of Youth Work Process, Product and Practice, as well as a number of articles concerning the theory and practice of youth work.

Introduction Section 1: The Context of Youth Work Management Chapter 1: From Advice to Management: The Arrival of Youth Workers’ Accountability / Bernard Davies Chapter 2: The Neo-Liberal Policy Context of Youth Work Management / Paul Bunyan & Jon Ord Chapter 3: ‘Theories’ of Youth Work Management / Roger Harrison & Jon Ord Section 2: Critical Issues in the Practice of Youth Work Management Chapter 4: On Managerial Discourses, Cultures & Structures / Pat Fuller & Jon Ord Chapter 5: Are Youth Work Leaders Free to Lead? An Exploration of the Policy Constraints / Sue Lea Chapter 6: Planning: For Opportunities Not Outcomes / Jon Ord Chapter 7: Evaluation: Ensuring Accountability or Improving Practice? / Sue Cooper Chapter 8: Re-Balancing Supervision / Sue Cooper, with Pauline Grace, Graham Griffiths & Kate Sapin Chapter 9: Managing Centre-based Youth Work / Jon Ord, with Mohamed Moustakim & Emily Wood Chapter 10: Towards an ‘Intelligence Based’ Approach to Detached Youth Work Management / Graeme Tiffany Section 3: The Settings of Youth Work Management Chapter 11: Managing Youth Work in Integrated Services / Bernard Davies & Bryan Merton Chapter 12: The Management of Faith Based Youth Work / Simon Davies Chapter 13: Managing in the Voluntary Sector: The Particular Challenges of Managerialism / Ilona Buchroth