‘The customer is always right’? Consumerism and the probation service

Abstract

The probation service of England and Wales has faced ongoing change to its structures and challenge to its theory and value base throughout its history. Recent years have seen an acceleration in the scope of this change with sizable budget cuts alongside the threat of competition and subsequent privitisation of probation services. This article explores whether the more fundamental but subtle challenge to practice may yet come not from explicit governmental policy, but the underlying consumerist social structures at play that operate not only in governance, but also in the mindset of the public, practitioners and probationers alike.