Research reports

Housing and homelessness

Failure to Act: The scale of youth homelessness in the UK (Databank 2022-23)

Centrepoint · 2023

Centrepoint's Youth Homelessness Databank estimates that 135,800 young people aged 16–24 across the UK presented to their local authority as homeless or at risk of homelessness in 2022/23, a 5% increase on the previous year and the sixth consecutive annual rise. In England, only 65% of presenting young people received an initial assessment and just 33% achieved a positive outcome — the lowest level recorded. The report highlights growing disparities between rural and urban areas, a 40% rise in evictions as a cause of homelessness, and the disproportionate impact of domestic abuse on young women.

Secondary analysisSurveyUK-wide

Care experience and family

It's harder than anyone understands (Young Carer Survey 2022)

Carers Trust · 2022

This Carers Trust survey of 571 young carers and young adult carers aged 12–25 across the UK found that large proportions regularly feel worried, stressed and lonely as a result of their caring role, with more than half reporting their caring hours had increased in the past year. Around two-thirds felt their school, college or university did not fully understand their situation, and many struggled to balance caring with education and paid work. The report calls on UK and devolved governments to improve access to breaks, mental health support, financial assistance and flexible working arrangements for young carers and young adult carers.

SurveyUK-wide

Mental health and wellbeing

10,000 Voices: The views of children in care on their well-being (Selwyn & Briheim-Crookall 2022)

Coram Voice / Rees Centre Oxford / Hadley Trust / Research in Practice · 2022

Drawing on over 10,000 survey responses collected between 2015 and 2021 from children in care aged 4–18, this report explores their subjective well-being across key indicators including safety, relationships, school, and involvement in decisions. Around a third of young people reported very high well-being, while roughly one in six (aged 11–18) showed low well-being. Key findings show that trusting relationships with carers and social workers, feeling safe and settled, and liking school were central to well-being, while girls, those in residential care, and older young people faced particular challenges. The report calls on local authorities to systematically listen to children in care and co-produce service improvements with them.

SurveyEngland

Criminal justice and youth violence

Hidden in Plain Sight: A national plan of action to support vulnerable teenagers to succeed and to protect them from adversity, exploitation, and harm

Commission on Young Lives / Oasis Charitable Trust / Anne Longfield · 2022

The Commission on Young Lives presents a national plan of action to protect vulnerable teenagers in England from exploitation, serious violence, and criminal justice involvement. Drawing on evidence sessions with practitioners, experts, and young people, the report finds systemic failures across children's social care, education, mental health, and family support services that leave hundreds of thousands of young people at risk. It calls for major reform including a new "Sure Start Plus" network of hubs for teenagers, 10,000 new youth practitioners, inclusive education reform, and a £1bn mental health recovery programme, arguing these represent an invest-to-save approach to preventing harm.

Young people consultedInterviewFocus groupEngland

Digital life and online safety

Digital Wellbeing Report: Care Experienced Community

Who Cares? Scotland · 2022

Who Cares? Scotland's Digital Wellbeing Group — four care-experienced members — designed and ran a survey of 92 care-experienced people across 24 Scottish local authorities to explore online safety, digital relationships, and digital rights. The findings show that while 65–66% of respondents feel safe online, 65% had never accessed online safety training, and cyberbullying, fraud, and harassment were the main concerns. Digital connection was strongly valued for maintaining family and friendship ties, and 80% of participants were aware of their digital rights, though the group identified clear gaps and plan to create accessible resources including a podcast, information pack, and storybook to address them.

Co-producedSurveyParticipatoryScotland

Housing and homelessness

Don't Let Me Fall Through The Cracks: Homelessness Among Care Experienced Young People in Wales (EYHC Roadmap Full Report)

End Youth Homelessness Cymru / Llamau / NYAS Cymru · 2022

This review follows up on End Youth Homelessness Cymru's 2020 report on homelessness among care-experienced young people in Wales, assessing progress on the original recommendations nearly two years on. It finds that several recommendations have been partially implemented, including a review of the Care Leavers' Accommodation Framework and an extension of the Shared Accommodation Rate exemption to age 25, but significant gaps remain — particularly around mental health support, financial education, and unsuitable temporary accommodation. Care-experienced young people contributed their voices throughout, highlighting ongoing failures in housing, mental health services, and corporate parenting responsibilities.

Young people consultedInterviewFocus groupWales

Care experience and family

New Belongings Programme evaluation report

Coram Voice · 2022

This evaluation assessed the New Belongings Programme, a three-year initiative delivered by Coram Voice that supported eight English local authorities to involve care leavers in service improvements through co-production. Using a pre- and post- design, the evaluation found that local authorities improved their self-assessed performance across all ten 'gold standard' leaving care areas, and staff reported significant benefits from the programme's structure and peer support. However, care leavers' own survey responses showed that wellbeing indicators largely reverted to pre-pandemic levels by 2022, with too many still reporting loneliness, anxiety, and financial hardship. The report concludes that local authorities have built meaningful commitment to co-production with care leavers, but that the wellbeing gap between care leavers and the general youth population remains a critical ongoing challenge.

SurveyInterviewEngland

Housing and homelessness

Young, Homeless and Hungry: The Impact of Food Insecurity on Vulnerable Young People

Centrepoint · 2022

This report by Centrepoint examines the scale and impact of food insecurity among homeless and housing-insecure young people aged 16–25 in England. It finds that nearly two-thirds of vulnerable young people lack regular access to safe and nutritious food, with low income, benefit system failures, debt, and inadequate cooking facilities as key drivers. Food insecurity is shown to damage physical health, mental wellbeing, and engagement in education and employment. A national poll of 2,000 young people also found high levels of food insecurity across the general youth population, with nearly half having gone to bed hungry in the past year.

SurveyInterviewEngland

Employment, skills and economic security

Just Getting By: Annual Survey 2022 (4,075 Young Women + 1,040 Young Men + 911 HR DMs)

Young Women's Trust · 2022

Young Women's Trust's 2022 annual survey of over 4,000 young women aged 18–30 in England and Wales finds they are significantly more financially vulnerable than their male peers, with rising debt, food insecurity, and cost-of-living pressures hitting hardest those with caring responsibilities. Young women continue to face barriers to employment and progression, persistent gender pay gaps, and widespread workplace discrimination on grounds of age, gender, race, and caring responsibilities. Despite this, 62% remain optimistic about reaching their career goals. The report calls on government and employers to act on flexible working rights, pay transparency, childcare investment, and stronger equality protections.

Young people consultedSurveyMixed methodsEnglandWales

Care experience and family

Adoption UK Adoption Barometer 2022

Adoption UK · 2022

This annual survey of over 2,500 adoptive parents and prospective adopters across the UK examines experiences of the adoption process, post-adoption support, education, and birth family contact. Key findings show that 22% of adopted 16–25-year-olds were NEET at the end of 2021—more than twice the national average—and that 71% of adoptive families face a continual struggle to access the help they need. A supplementary survey of 282 adopted adults focused specifically on experiences of maintaining or establishing birth family relationships, finding significant gaps in counselling and support at every stage. The report includes nation-by-nation assessments of policy and practice across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

SurveyMixed methodsUK-wide

Housing and homelessness

Beyond a Number: the scale of youth homelessness in the UK

Centrepoint · 2022

This report from Centrepoint's Youth Homelessness Databank estimates that almost 122,000 young people aged 16–24 presented to their local authority as homeless or at risk of homelessness in 2020/21 — the fifth consecutive year-on-year increase. It finds that in England only 66% of those who presented received a full assessment (down from 79% in 2018/19), and just 37% achieved a positive outcome. The report also examines regional variation, the impact of COVID-19 on access to services, and the causes of youth homelessness, with family breakdown and domestic abuse being the leading drivers.

Secondary analysisInterviewUK-wide

Mental health and wellbeing

The Impact of COVID-19 on Young People in Merton

London Borough of Merton · 2021

This youth-led peer research project, designed and conducted by Merton's Young Inspectors, explored how Covid-19 and lockdown affected young people living and studying in the London Borough of Merton. Drawing on a survey of over 2,000 young people and more than 200 interviews and focus groups, it found that the pandemic negatively impacted mental health, physical activity, education, and friendships, with care-experienced young people, young carers, disabled young people, and Black young people disproportionately affected. Young people reported feeling excluded from local decision-making, expressed mixed views of the police (strongly shaped by stop-and-search experience and ethnicity), and called for better mental health support, safer spaces, and a genuine voice in how their borough is run.

Youth-ledSurveyInterviewLondon

Mental health and wellbeing

Research Study into Resilience in Young People (Bristol)

Creative Youth Network / Bristol City Council / University of Bristol · 2021

This mixed-methods study explored the factors that build or undermine resilience in young people receiving one-to-one Targeted Youth Services (TYS) from Creative Youth Network in Bristol. Drawing on 60 qualitative interviews with 21 young people and 47 surveys, the research found that resilience is shaped by a complex interplay of individual, relational, community, environmental and educational factors — not by personal character alone. Targeted youth worker support was found to help young people develop new coping strategies, improve confidence and reduce maladaptive behaviours such as drug use. However, many resilience-shaping factors — including unsafe neighbourhoods, unstable family environments and limited local resources — remain outside both the individual's and the service's direct control.

InterviewSurveySouth West

Mental health and wellbeing

The Mental Health Needs of Homeless Young People (analysis of 3,452 Centrepoint service user records across 5 regions)

Centrepoint · 2021

This report analyses Centrepoint's service records for 3,452 homeless young people aged 16–25 who accessed support in 2019 across London, Manchester, Sunderland, Bradford and Barnsley. It finds that over half (54.1%) experienced mental health issues and nearly a third had a formal diagnosis, with rates significantly higher among those with experience of rough sleeping. The report also highlights regional disparities in mental health need and calls for better integration of health services into homelessness provision and commissioning.

Secondary analysisInterviewLondonNorth WestNorth EastYorkshire & the Humber

Criminal justice and youth violence

Co-creation and Participation in the Youth Justice System

Peer Power Youth · 2021

This report investigates the extent and nature of participatory and co-creative practices across Youth Justice Services (YJS) in England and Wales, drawing on a survey of 75 YJS and a series of Deep Dive sessions with practitioners, managers, and children. Key findings show that while most YJS use participatory approaches at the individual level, strategic co-creation is rare, definitions of co-creation are widely misunderstood, and fewer than one in five services have a resourced participation lead. The report makes practical recommendations for YJS around relationship-building, strengths-based approaches, incentivising children's involvement, and embedding a whole-service culture of co-production, supported by a resource pack developed with young people with lived experience of the justice system.

Co-producedSurveyInterviewEnglandWales

Employment, skills and economic security

Breaking Down Barriers Working Towards Birmingham’s Future Supporting Younger People Into Employment

Birmingham City Council / Birmingham Employment Taskforce · 2021

This report by Birmingham City Council investigates the barriers facing young people aged 16–24 in accessing employment and work experience in Birmingham, with a particular focus on the impact of Covid-19. Based on surveys and interviews with nearly 2,000 young people, 300 businesses, and education stakeholders, it finds that the pandemic did not create new barriers but exposed and worsened pre-existing inequalities linked to socioeconomic status, ethnicity, care experience, and mental health. Youth unemployment in Birmingham stood at approximately 20% at the time of publication, substantially above the national average. The report makes ten practical recommendations including improving public transport access, supporting mental health, developing a city-wide mentoring scheme, and creating a 'one stop shop' online hub for employment opportunities.

SurveyInterviewWest Midlands

Housing and homelessness

Lgbtq+ Youth Homelessness Report

akt / Albert Kennedy Trust / YouGov / Homeless Link · 2021

This report by akt examines the experiences of LGBTQ+ young people who have faced homelessness in the UK, including the abuse they experienced from family members and romantic partners, the impact of homelessness on their mental and physical health, and their awareness of and access to support services. Key findings include that 92% of respondents said homelessness had a negative impact on their mental health, only 13% felt supported by parents while homeless, and over half had faced discrimination when accessing services. The report makes recommendations to government, local authorities, and the housing sector to improve monitoring, prevention, and inclusive service delivery for LGBTQ+ young people facing homelessness.

SurveyInterviewUK-wide

Housing and homelessness

Families Living in Temporary Accommodation

M·E·L Research Ltd · 2021

This report, commissioned by the West Midlands Combined Authority Homelessness Taskforce, examines the experiences of families with dependent children living in temporary accommodation (TA) across the seven WMCA constituent local authorities. It finds that over 3,500 families (around 14,000 people including 8,240 children) were in TA on 1 March 2021, with Birmingham accounting for 84% of cases and average stays of nearly 1.5 years. Key drivers of homelessness include private rented sector failures, domestic abuse, debt, and asylum/refugee status, while families report serious impacts on mental health, children's education, and wellbeing. The report identifies good practice across the region and makes recommendations around prevention, faster move-on, better support, and increased affordable housing supply.

InterviewSecondary analysisWest Midlands

Care experience and family

Out of Harm's Way: A New Care System to Protect Vulnerable Teenagers

Commission on Young Lives · 2021

This report from the Commission on Young Lives examines why the children's social care system is failing vulnerable teenagers in England, particularly those at risk of criminal and sexual exploitation. It finds that teenagers are the fastest-growing cohort in care, yet the system — designed for younger children — is ill-equipped to meet their needs, with chronic shortages of appropriate placements, overuse of unregulated accommodation, and frequent out-of-area moves that increase exposure to exploitation. The report makes nine recommendations, including a cross-departmental ministerial taskforce, a new Teenager at Risk helpline, an end to unregulated placements for under-18s, and new models of specialist foster and residential care.

Young people consultedInterviewOtherEngland

Mental health and wellbeing

Mental Health Act

YoungMinds · 2021

This report presents findings from workshops and one-to-one calls with 19 young people aged 16–25 who had lived experience of the Mental Health Act, conducted by YoungMinds on behalf of Rethink Mental Illness as part of the public consultation on proposed MHA reforms. The overarching finding was that young people did not feel listened to or meaningfully involved in their care and treatment. Key themes included the need for individualised, person-centred care; clearer communication of rights; better access to advocacy; and improved support during transitions from CAMHS to adult mental health services. The report makes recommendations on advocacy access, autonomy, consistency of care, neurodiversity awareness, and staff communication.

Young people consultedFocus groupInterviewUK-wide

Employment, skills and economic security

Picking Up the Pieces: Young Women's Experiences of 2020

Young Women's Trust · 2020

This report by Young Women's Trust explores how the coronavirus pandemic affected young women aged 18–30 across England and Wales in 2020. It finds that young women faced disproportionate impacts including job and income loss, increased unpaid caring responsibilities, financial hardship, and worsening mental health. Women of colour, disabled young women, single mothers, and those experiencing economic abuse were among the hardest hit. The report combines a large representative survey with peer-led in-depth interviews, and concludes with recommendations from young women themselves covering safe work, financial support, mental health services, and digital access.

Co-producedSurveyInterviewEnglandWales

Mental health and wellbeing

Coronavirus and Me (national survey of children and young people in Wales)

Children's Commissioner for Wales · 2020

This report presents findings from the 'Coronavirus and Me' survey, focusing specifically on 4,417 young people aged 15–18 in Wales who responded during May 2020. It explores how COVID-19 restrictions affected their mental health and wellbeing, education, social lives, and future prospects, including the cancellation of exams. Key findings include that 71% cited not seeing friends as the biggest impact, 51% felt unmotivated to study at home, and many reported worsening emotional wellbeing and anxiety about their futures. The report makes recommendations to Welsh Government and educational settings on supporting young people's rights to information, education, wellbeing, and family life.

SurveySecondary analysisWales

Mental health and wellbeing

Out of Sight? Vulnerable Young People: COVID-19 Response

National Youth Agency · 2020

This report from the National Youth Agency maps the scale and nature of vulnerabilities among young people in England that have been amplified or triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Drawing on data from the Children's Commissioner for England and a review of sector reports, it estimates that over one million young people have known needs exacerbated by the crisis, with a further two million facing emerging needs. The report identifies seven key vulnerability profiles — including poor mental health, homelessness, domestic abuse, and digital exclusion — and calls for government to classify youth services as an essential key service, deploy youth workers alongside schools and police, and invest in training and up-skilling to meet escalating need.

Secondary analysisOtherEngland

Mental health and wellbeing

What Makes Life Good? Care Leavers' Views on Their Well-being

Coram Voice / Rees Centre (University of Oxford) · 2020

This report presents findings from 1,804 care leavers aged 16–25 across 21 English local authorities, examining their subjective well-being through the 'Your Life Beyond Care' survey. Around 30% of care leavers had low well-being — far higher than the general population — with key risk factors including loneliness, financial difficulties, lack of good friends, and feeling unsafe at home. The report highlights a steep decline in well-being after leaving care, significant variation between local authorities, and the positive role that stable leaving care workers play in supporting young people's lives.

Co-producedSurveyFocus groupEngland

Results