The Lambeth area that the team serves is characterized by high unemployment, low incomes, a large population of ethnic minorities, and population losses. In addition, its crime rate in 1983 was the third highest in London. To respond to local needs the probation service decided to establish a new team in the small but available premises in central Brixton. The team members spent 4 weeks together to determine its philosophy before becoming fully operational. The team agreed that offending should be viewed as a product of social and environmental problems as well as a symptom of individual pathology. Thus, the team works with both individuals and groups in its office and in the community. It uses a "patch" system in which each of the five team members focused on a single geographical area and developed interventions and styles of work to match the needs of the individual "patch." Team members regard this system as a useful model for working in a densely populated inner city.