Youth Work, Music Production and Measurement

This book focuses on how youth work and music is measured and valued. The collection explores the landscape of youth work and music, music production and young people’s identities, and the opportunities and constraints within the measurement of these kinds of programmes. In addition, it analyses the impact of music-making on young people’s wellbeing, the criminalisation of minoritized groups of young people and subcultures, and the evaluation of informal education and creative education. Amid ubiquitous music-making and sharing by young people globally, these essays provide a practical resource with particular relevance for educators and cultural policymakers.
Chapter 10 is available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.
Dr Frances Howard is Associate Professor of Youth Research, at Nottingham Trent University and has been the evaluator for several Nottingham-based Youth Music projects. She has published research on young music-makers, youth work and music-making and arts programmes with at risk youth. Frances’ research monograph: Global Perspectives on Youth Arts Programs: How and Why the Arts Can Make a Difference, was published in 2022.
Dr Brian McShane is Senior Lecturer in Criminology at De Montfort University. Brian’s research focuses on masculinities, violence and preventative responses. Recent research includes evaluation work for Youth Justice Services on non-statutory offers to young people and for Youth Endowment Fund on A&E Navigator services supporting young people at risk of violence. Brian is co-editor of the collection Youth, Transitions and Social Justice: Researching Spaces of Social Action, published in 2025. 
Simon Glenister is the founder of Noise Solution, a multiple national award-winning social enterprise established in 2009 that leverages music technology to create social impact. Simon's work is equally informed by a career as a professional musician and his research in digital youth work and well-being, during his MEd at the University of Cambridge.

List of contents

Chapter 1: Introduction. Frances Howard, Brian McShane, Simon Glenister.- Chapter 2: Co-Lab Yth. Michael Collyer, Charlie Porter-Baker.- Chapter 3: From the Bedroom to the Booth Music production as community of practice in youth work settings. Frances Howard.- Chapter 4: Music Technology and Young People's Identity: Examples from two studies. Alec Crooke.- Chapter 5: Sub-Cultural Identity and Its Convergences with Music Production. Luke Watkins.- Chapter 6: "I wanna use lyrics": The studio as emancipatory space and the embedded conflict of intervention. Brian McShane.- Chapter 7: "I'm Pretty Proud of Myself": A Hip Hop program and unique journeys to positive development and functional music skills. Raphael Travil, Ian Levy.- Chapter 8: Understanding Barriers to Engagement Amongst Gender Diverse Music Technology Youth. Eddie Dobson.- Chapter 9: Musicking Youth Work: The role focused youth work and community media in the Sunderland music scene. Marc Husband, Caroline Mitchell.- Chapter 10: Listening to Practice: Valuing the informal in youth work evaluation. Tania de St Croix, Louise Doherty.- Chapter 11: How do we Evaluate Youth Music-Making Programmes? Ben Felstead, Frances Howard.- Chapter 12: A Self Determination Theory Informed Approach to Psychological needs Fulfilment of 'Labelled' Youth: An exploration of the emerging evidence for changes in well-being from a digital youth work intervention combining informal music mentoring with digital stories. Simon Glenister.- Chapter 13: Where Now for Youth Work? Frances Howard, Brien McShane, Simon Glenister.

About the author

Dr Frances Howard is Associate Professor of Youth Research, at Nottingham Trent University and has been the evaluator for several Nottingham-based Youth Music projects. She has published research on young music-makers, youth work and music-making and arts programmes with at risk youth. Frances’ research monograph: Global Perspectives on Youth Arts Programs: How and Why the Arts Can Make a Difference, was published in 2022.
Dr Brian McShane is Senior Lecturer in Criminology at De Montfort University. Brian’s research focuses on masculinities, violence and preventative responses. Recent research includes evaluation work for Youth Justice Services on non-statutory offers to young people and for Youth Endowment Fund on A&E Navigator services supporting young people at risk of violence. Brian is co-editor of the collection Youth, Transitions and Social Justice: Researching Spaces of Social Action, published in 2025. 
Simon Glenister is the founder of Noise Solution, a multiple national award-winning social enterprise established in 2009 that leverages music technology to create social impact. Simon's work is equally informed by a career as a professional musician and his research in digital youth work and well-being, during his MEd at the University of Cambridge.

Summary

This book focuses on how youth work and music is measured and valued. The collection explores the landscape of youth work and music, music production and young people’s identities, and the opportunities and constraints within the measurement of these kinds of programmes. In addition, it analyses the impact of music-making on young people’s wellbeing, the criminalisation of minoritized groups of young people and subcultures, and the evaluation of informal education and creative education. Amid ubiquitous music-making and sharing by young people globally, these essays provide a practical resource with particular relevance for educators and cultural policymakers.
Chapter 10 is available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.

Product details

• Assisted by: Simon Glenister (Editor), Frances Howard (Editor), Brian McShane (Editor)
• Publisher: Springer International Publishing
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Release: 24.11.2025
• EAN: 9783031993626
• ISBN: 978-3-031-99362-6
• Illustrations: Approx. 260 p.
• Series: New Directions in Cultural Policy Research
• Subjects: Social sciences, law, business > Media, communication > Communication science; Kulturwissenschaften, Altersgruppen: Jugendliche, Kinder- und Jugendhilfe, Identity, Youth Culture, Media Industries, Children and Youth Work, cultural and creative industries, measurement techniques, musical genres, youth-oriented practice