"Two years ago when hostels were still a novelty in the evacuation scheme many men and women who had long wanted to work with children had their chance. Whether they are still at the work is hard to say but there seems to have been a subtle change of spirit since those early days. My impression is that in spite of the muddle and lack of equipment, the most courageous experiments were then made; e.g. many refusing to rely on punishments, others combining this with the use of self-government, etc. Indeed although this is but a personal impression of a nation sized movement, I think of that time as one in which a hostel run on "institutional" lines was a rarity. This impression is supported by the views expressed by a lecturer at a course for Hostel Wardens who had lectured in previous years and was therefore able to compare, and by others who have been working in evacuation since the beginning. Gradually this experimenting seems to have ceased, and in many ways it is a good thing that it has, for human beings cannot be discarded if an experiment of which they are the subject fails, and the experimenting was largely in inexperienced hands. But in ceasing it has taken a lot of the sincerity and awareness of difficulty out of this new branch of service. The time has surely come to replace some of it so that the experience of the war years can be effectively applied to the mal-adjusted youth that well be revealed by peace."