Leading Work with Young People

This selection of essays explores the concept of leadership and how it is applied on the ground in youth work settings.

This book offers a stimulating selection of coherent articles about the role of leadership in modern-day youth work, separating the subject into six sections: leadership, practice, people, change, partnership and evaluation.

Some of the leading thinkers from the sector contribute, each bringing together their own unique ideas on the theme. Among them are Peter Hawkins and Robin Shohet, whose contribution "Towards a learning culture", along with Mike Hudson's "Managing change", are classics for those involved in organisational leadership.

The term "leadership" itself is introduced as a contested term in the opening chapter by Michele Erina Doyle and Mark K Smith. Their overview considers leadership as a way of motivating, bringing about a shared vision and making ethical decisions. Some, however, may view this approach as indecisive in terms of productivity and one that doesn't sufficiently take into account the contribution of the individual. Crucially, they argue, leadership has culturally specific meanings and this needs to be addressed as part of the thinking around leadership style.