Samenvatting

In this contribution, a comparison is drawn between the origins of the cellular system in the 19th century and the system of closed youth care in the 21st century. The comparison then focuses on the alarming signals from closed youth care practice and how these are dealt with. The author argues that shortages in the provision of regular youth care have led to situations in which young people are unnecessarily placed in closed youth care institutions. By focusing on eliminating this deficit closed youth care can be gradually phased out and reduced to a minimum.