Taking part

You’ll help us make an impact!

Growing Up in the 2020s is an exciting opportunity for you to help with a national study following 8,500 young people in England, as well as their families, teachers, and schools. We have selected a group of young people who are currently in Year 8 to represent young people in their age group and help us understand what it’s like to grow up in England in the 2020s. By following young people and their families over time we are able to gain unique insights into how experiences shape young people’s lives, and how they get on both while they’re at school and after they leave school. By contacting teachers and schools, we are able to gain a better understanding of young person’s educational environment. Specifically, it will give us a holistic picture of young person’s engagement in school, their behaviour, the support currently accessible to them, and their overall wellbeing.

Please use the links below to access the different online surveys that make up this study:

Read on below for a few examples of what other similar studies have found.

Our Future (Longitudinal Study of Young People in England 2)

One of the largest longitudinal studies carried out in England, ‘Our Future’, has helped reveal issues affecting young people and provided information to help develop new policies that reach the youth. For example, looking at experiences of bullying, Our Future found a noticeable drop in the proportion of year 10 students who experienced bullying between 2005 and 2014. Our Future has also shown a link between being bullied in school and being more likely to play truant. You can read more on the study website.

Children of the 90s (Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children)

The Children of the 90s study, a large study following parents and children born in the Bristol area in the 1990s, found that anxiety levels doubled in young people following COVID-19 lockdown. This helped researchers understand more about the impact of the pandemic on young people’s experiences. You can read more on the study website.

Millennium Cohort Study (Child of the New Century)

This longitudinal study follows around 19,000 young people across the UK who were born at the turn of the millennium. The study findings have been used in a range of different contexts. The study has shown, for example, links between children’s experiences at home (such as their bedtimes, and relationships with their parents) and their wider wellbeing and development. You can find out more on their website.