Juvenile Delinquency and the Labyrinth of Services: A Case Study

Abstract

The Maria Colwell case (1973) called into question the effectiveness, individually or collectively, of intervention by various professionals in the problems of a child “in trouble”. Issues were raised concerning the extent of communication between these professionals and the breakdown in co-ordination of approaches by official agencies, including the school. The school stands at a point of central concern for it is within this context that the most regular contact between children and professionals occurs. It is within the classroom that problems often initially become manifest, and it is at this point that the earliest decisions concerning these problems must be taken. In all too many instances teachers employ external means to “solve” problems, which then pass beyond the classroom. Rarely is assistance offered to pupils who are defined as “being in trouble” in a concerted or coherent fashion, and there appears to be a mutual lack of confidence between schools and other external agencies. At the heart of...