Troubled and Troublesome Teenagers: Towards Critical and Relationship-based Practice

In neoliberal and associated managerial times, social work in the UK is dominated by the speedy completion of bureaucracy to ration services and assess/manage risk. Concerning children and families, unless there are child protection issues little help or support is provided with parents/carers often told to change their behaviour/lifestyle or face the possibility of losing their children to adoption. To counteract this, we argue for critical and relationship-based practice, using work with troubled and troublesome teenagers as an example. Such practice involves a broad responsibility to seek equality and social justice as well as address individual problems and difficulties. Importantly, the article includes the perspective of someone who has the lived and care experience of being a troubled/troublesome teenager.