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Young offending: towards a radical/critical social policy

Young offending is perceived as a serious social problem and always remains near the top of the political agenda. Over the post-war years, policy and practice moved from welfare/treatment towards punishment as the key for addressing the problem, culminating in New Labour's Crime and Disorder Act 1998. Thereafter there was increasing concern about antisocial behaviour. But is this an appropriate response? My research with young offenders suggested that it is not, and here, drawing on some of their views, I argue for a more radical/critical social policy based on equality and redistribution. Such steps towards an emancipatory project may seem utopian in the current political, economic and ideological climate dominated by global capitalism, but I argue that it is the way forward.