ABSTRACT
It is accepted that planning is an essential feature of youth work practice, in that it both helps to set direction in terms of overall strategy, as well as coordinate the decisions required for action on a day-to-day basis. Milburn (2001) reminds us of the importance of ‘planning ahead’ as a managerial task; however, planning in youth work is complex. Despite this there are increasingly simplistic demands on youth workers to plan their work in specific detail. It is assumed there is a specific relationship between those plans and the predicted outcomes of youth work. Furthermore youth workers are increasingly being made accountable for those pre-specified outcomes. It is this highly problematic situation which this chapter will attempt to address.
