ABSTRACT
Probation certainly cannot be said to have taken off and grown signifi cantly in its fi rst decade of existence. The war seems to have contributed to an increase in the use of probation, but this was to a considerable degree the result of increased use for juvenile offenders. There was a sudden drop in the use of probation from 11,719 in 1918 to 9,655 in 1919, with the bulk of this decrease the result of almost 1,700 fewer juvenile offenders being given probation. This may have been a cause for some worry, but it must be emphasised that probation had demonstrated its worth during the war, and a strong case had been made for developing it along more organised, professional lines by supporters such as Leeson, Clarke Hall and Pepler (see Chapter 2). Any such development would have had resource implications, however, and – despite the initial euphoria that came with the end of the war – economic reality had reared its head by 1920.
