Adult attitudes towards children and young people in the UK are characterised by fear and negativity - and we have some of the poorest attitudes internationally. Yet evidence suggests that attitudes to young people - and the likelihood of adults geting involved with children and young people in their local area - are important to children and young people's success. This research will be looking at adult attitudes to children and young people, how these vary across the UK and how they are linked to notions of collective efficacy and children’s outcomes.

It will look at what underpins the willingness of adults to engage with children and young people in their local area in various ways, and to create cultural and behavioural norms and monitor behaviour. We will be supplementing this with new statistical analysis of local authority-based data on attitudes towards children and young people, and deliberative workshops in several case study areas to tease out what underpins attitudes towards children and young people and potential interventions in this area.

We are currently seeking funding for this project. For more information, contact sonia.sodha@demos.co.uk.