Young people's future health inquiry Aiming to build the policy, research and place-based agenda to improve the future health of today’s young people

Latest from the inquiry: the action phase
We have now launched the action phase of the Young people’s future health inquiry, which aims to build the policy, research and place-based agenda so that it recognises the ages of 12-24 as significant for health in the long term.
In 2020 and 2021, we will be be scoping a new research programme to understand the emotional support that families provide to this age group, and the influences of wider factors on this.
Between 2020 and 2023 the Health Foundation is funding five policy posts across a range of organisations to build the policy agenda and amplify the voices of young people. Each post will explore one of the important topics that emerged in the listening phase of the inquiry.
The policy posts will work within their organisations to develop and test policy ideas, along with working with stakeholders in their sector. The Health Foundation will also be supporting the group to work with each other, sharing their ideas and what they have learnt to strengthen the policy agenda further.
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Watch: How has the pandemic impacted young people in the UK?
Six young people share their experiences of how they've been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Article
Young people's future health: five policy posts
We're funding five policy posts across a range of organisations to build the policy agenda and...
Final report
Report
A healthy foundation for the future
The final report from the Young people's future health inquiry, bringing together all of the...
Blogs and long reads
Long read
Generation COVID-19
About 13 mins to read
The pandemic has highlighted existing inequalities and new challenges for young people. Our analysis...
Newsletter blog
Who would want to be 20 in 2020?
Our Director of Health, Jo Bibby, looks at the experience of coronavirus through the eyes of young...
External link
Why we can't let COVID-19 compromise young people's future health
Martina Kane writes for Children & Young People Now.
Press releases
Press release
Losing work at an early career stage can have damaging ramifications for lifetime incomes and long-term health
Health Foundation response to ONS UK labour market data.
Press release
We cannot let young people down by failing to give them essential building blocks for a healthy future
Health Foundation response to the Social Mobility Commission report about the government's social...
Press release
COVID-19 could have worrying ramifications for young people’s longer-term health outcomes
Health Foundation response to Resolution Foundation findings that younger workers are more likely to...
The inquiry so far
The Health Foundation commissioned Kantar Public, an independent social research agency, which partnered with Livity, a youth engagement specialist, to conduct an engagement exercise with young people living in the UK aged 22–26. The aim was to discover the factors that helped or hindered them in their transition to adulthood.
We went to five UK towns and cities and listened to the perspectives of young people and youth organisations about access to the assets needed for a healthy transition into adulthood. Our visits uncovered common themes and a strong sense of place, shaping the young people’s identity and how they described themselves.
Our final report brings together all of the learnings from the Inquiry, exploring the factors that are putting the UK’s 12-24 year-olds at risk of ill-health later in life, and introducing the policy analysis that has taken place. As part of this, we also commissioned nine expert partner organisations to publish their recommendations for young people’s needs to be put at the centre of government policy making, focusing in seven policy areas.
We commissioned with the Association of Young People’s Health and UCL’s Institute of Child Health to carry out research that would inform the Inquiry’s analysis. We published four working papers:
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