Social care, safeguarding, & vulnerable children
The Burden of Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse in England: Effects on Educational Attainment
This study investigates the relationship between child sexual exploitation and abuse (CSEA) and educational outcomes.
The study is being led by Dr Inga Vermeulen and is funded by by the Human Dignity Foundation.
Joint inequalities in early health, early skills and early socio-economic disadvantage across England
This study investigates the relative importance of early health, skills and disadvantage in predicting later educational attainment.
The study is being led by Christine Farquharson and is funded by ADR UK.
Health, education and social care utilisation and costs across the life course for children with additional or high needs
This study aims to understand the provision of healthcare, education, and social care services for children with additional or high needs, how much services complement each other across the child life course, and how patterns of services vary across England.
This project is led by Prof Matt Sutton and Prof Ruth Gilbert (UCL); it is funded by the Children and Families Policy Research Unit.
Completed studies.
Healthcare utilisation among children in contact with social services in England
This study examined how children's use of hospital services changes around the time they first become involved with children's social care (CSC), and whether this involvement shifts children towards more planned, rather than emergency, care.
The project was led by Dr Eliazar Luna (UCL) and completed in 2026. It was co-funded by ADR UK with Foundations: The National What Works Centre for Children and Families. The project team include Prof Lucy Griffiths (Swansea University) and Prof Karen Broadhurst (Lancaster University). Co-investigators include Prof Jenny Woodman and Prof Katie Harron (UCL), Prof Lisa Holmes (University of Sussex) and Prof Dougal Hargreaves (Imperial College London).
The impact of child-contingent cash benefits on the outcomes of vulnerable children
This study examined how the two-child limit, which limits increases to universal credit and child tax credit to the first two children, affected early child educational outcomes.
This study was led by Dr Sarah Cattan, Tom Waters and Tom Wernham (Institute for Fiscal Studies). It was funded by NESTA and was completed in 2025.
Assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on planned hospital attendances in vulnerable adolescents
This study examined changes in planned hospital care during the pandemic's first nine months. It compared planned hospital attendances in secondary school pupils recorded as receiving Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) support or children’s social care (CSC) services, with their peers.
This study is completed. It was led by Dr Louise McGrath-Lone and Prof Ruth Gilbert (UCL) and was funded by ADR UK.
Exploring a Longitudinal Birth Cohort for Children at Risk of Poor Outcomes
Children facing early adversity are largely underrepresented in the UK's renowned national longitudinal studies on child development. This project aimed to fill that crucial gap by investigating the potential for a new study that will provide valuable insights into the challenges these young people face.
This study is completed. It was led by Dr Alyce Raybould and Prof Katie Harron (UCL), with Prof Lucy Griffiths, Dr Grace Bailey and Rowena Bailey (Swansea University), and funded by ESRC.