Fifty-five invited participants in the colloquium were drawn from probation services, criminal justice and voluntary organizations, government departments, the judiciary and universities. Individual sessions were devoted to discussions of: (1) The Social and Political Context -- changes in social and economic conditions, in patterns of crime and criminality, and in attitudes to offending and offenders; (2) Roles and Identity -- the role of the probation service, obstacles, need for change; (3) Practice and Methods -- criteria for effectiveness in supervising offenders; (4) Probation in the Community -- how probation services might work more systematically and more effectively as part of their communities; (5) Probation as a Profession -- standards, qualifying procedures, training, career patterns; (6) An Agenda for Research; and (7) Concluding Comments. References, figures, table, notes