Punishment and Welfare in the Youth Justice System Essay

Punishment and Welfare in the Youth Justice system - Essay ExampleHistori cally, the debate over whether good practice in youth justice should mull over the punishment or welfare gravel has exercised policy-makers for over a century. From the 1960s to the 1980s, policy trends evolved toward the welfare model of punishment in which punishments are excluded, or are to be carefully adapted to the special needfully of young people. In the 1980s added attention was focused on late offenders with policy makers instituting a stricter punishment-orientated juvenile justice system, for example, the Crime and Disorder Act of 1998, which established the Youth Justice Board and reduced the era of prosecution to 10 years.1 Youth justice procedures in the 21st century are mixed, not all the way reflecting either the punishment or welfare model of corrections. The use of the reprimands and warnings system attempts to travel both tracks, be tough on adolescent crime while believing that youn g offenders can, more than adults, be influenced positively with guidance during the warning phase of punishment. It also involves police and parents in the discipline of youths. Both public and governmental opinion suggests the debate of the effectiveness of punishment or welfare has not been resolved. While the retributive character of the past has paled away and the adult-involved, rehabilitative approach has become predominant in juvenile justice, many call for increased punishment methods intertwined with the system of reprimands and warnings. A majority of parents want corporal punishment to be reintroduced in schools to tackle what they perceive is an increasing problem of classroom disorder.