This course provides an overview of research, theory, and practice in the field of Youth Work. The course opens many lines of inquiry into knowing and doing Youth Work and being a youth worker in local, national, and global contexts in the past, in the current moment, and into the future.  

You will develop capabilities to explore, analyse, and critique diverse and nuanced aspects of Youth Work, including purposes of Youth Work, what constitutes good practice, and practices supporting young peoples’ meaningful participation. You will also deploy this questioning in relation to young people’s and your own lived experiences. 

You will learn about the contested nature of Youth Work, taking into consideration its history, the changing landscape of service contexts, critical and political orientations to practice, and the scholarly, theoretical, and professional bodies of knowledge that can shape understandings of it. You will also be introduced to key roles and responsibilities of workers across the youth sector especially in relation to ethical frameworks, policies, legislation and statutory obligations, places of practice, technological developments, and multi-disciplinary approaches.  

You will learn about the increasingly diverse settings in which Youth Work is practised, the broad range of roles of Youth Work professionals, and the potential beneficial contributions you can make to the field and to the lives of young people.