Reviews : Police Powers and Politics ROBERT BALDWIN AND RICHARD KINSEY Quartet Books; 1981, p.p. 310, h.b; £9.95
| Author | Peter Simpson |
| Published date | 01 September 1983 |
| DOI | 10.1177/026455058303000313 |
| Date | 01 September 1983 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
112
REVIEWS
.
If
you
would
like
to
contribute
to
these
pages
or
have
any
comments
or
suggestions,
please
contact:
Peter
Simpson,
5
Derby
Lane,
Old
Swan,
Liverpool
L 13
6QA,
tel:
051-220
4461.
Authority
or
Freedom?
Probation
Hostels
for
Adults
ROY
FISHER AND
CHARLES
WILSON
Gower,
1982;
hb;
pp
209
Two
hostels
opening
within
a
few
months
of
each
other
in
the
same
Probation
area,
one
committed
to
an
ideal
of
residents
taking
responsibility
for
developing
rules,
in
a
tolerant,
permissive
atmosphere,
the
other
adopting
the
authoritarian,
total
institution
model
of
American-inspired
drug
treatment
regimes,
provided
a
ready-made
research
project
for
two
authors
with
an
interest
in
evaluating
probation
hostels.
However,
what
began
as
a
worthy
but
potentially
dry
piece
of research
was
transformed
by
events
into
a
dramatic
narrative
of
the
break-
down
of
one
institution
and
eventual
closure
of
the
other.
This
book
contams
a
wealth
of material
of vital
interest
to
anyone
associated
with
hostels.
Issues
raised
include
that
of
‘charismatic’
leadership
and
its
effects,
structure
and
responsibility,
authority
and
rules;
relationships
with
the
local
community
and
the
local
probation
service;
attitudes
of
resi-
dents
to
the
regimes,
and
perhaps
most
intriguing,
the
effect
of
Home
Office
policy
on
the
development
and
variety
of hostels
in the
1970’s.
The
problem
for
both
hostels
was
the
creation
of a ‘healing’ culture
acceptable
to
both
residents
and
staff.
Both
institutions
failed
to
achieve
this.
In
hindsight
it
can be
seen
that
one
institution
failed
to
provide
the
minimum
structure
necessary
for
residents
to
feel
safe
to
experiment
in
new
ways
s
of
behaviour;
while
the
other
was
so
rigid
and
demanding
that
the
majority
of
residents,
while
accepting
the
validity
of the
regime,
were
unable
to
endure
it
for
more
than
a
few
weeks.
The
authors
obviously
feel
loyalty
and
affection
for
the
staff
of
both
houses,
however
they
are
perhaps
too
charitable
in
their
conclusions.
The
refusal
by
staff,
or
at
least
the
warden
of
the
one
hostel
to
recognise
the
inevitable
authority
of their
role
and
provide
at
least
a
minimum
of
enforced
rules,
can
be
seen
as
wilfully
idealistic.
The
other
institution’s
belated
recognition
that
the
success
of
‘converting’
drug
addicts
in
therapeutic
com-
munities,
cannot be
simply
repeated
with
recidi-
vists,
shows
an
adherence
to
faith
over
reality.
Some
of the
problems
of the
hostel
are
ascribed
to
failures
of management
by
the
local
probation
service,
and
to
Home
Office
policy.
However
I
suspect that
ignoring
these
two
factors,
the
course
of
events
and
the
eventual
fate
of
both
hostels
would
not
have
been
markedly
different.
A
fascinating
book
which
deserves
repeated
study.
I
expect
it
will
become
a
classic
reference
point
fnr
fnhire
experiments
ROB
VOAKES
Probation
Officer,
Bradford
Police
Powers
and
Politics
ROBERT
BALDWIN
AND
RICHARD
KINSEY
Quartet
Books;
1981,
p.p.
310,
h.b;
£9.95
The
Police
and
Criminal
Evidence
Bill
is,
at
the
time
of writing,
in
abeyance,
but
all
the
signs
are
that
it
will
be
a
temporary
respite.
A
respite
during
which
all
probation
officers
would
be
well
advised
to
read
this
searching
appraisal
of
modem
policing,
with
a
historical
perspective.
It
is
this
perspective
which
correctly
allows
the
authors
to
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