Child of the North
The vision for Child of the North is to create a platform for collaboration, high-quality research and policy engagement that will improve the lives of children living in the North of England
The universities that make up the N8 Research Partnership, and the North more broadly, are home to a wealth of expertise, innovative initiatives and collaborations, and cutting edge infrastructure to support research about children and childhood. By combining our strengths and working collaboratively, we can leverage this unique infrastructure for the benefit of children growing up in the region and beyond.
Child of the North is a joint collaboration between the N8 and Health Equity North, which forms part of the Northern Health Science Alliance. By acting together and with other regional partners, our aim is to create as a new focal point for the harnessing of research evidence to achieve transformative impact for children living in the North and beyond. This includes by connecting to policy makers and stakeholders to encourage the uptake of evidence into policy by government and other organisations, to break down the barriers to opportunity for many of our young people.
To date Child of the North has produced a range of reports which cover a host of issues that impact the lives of children and young people growing up in the North and across the rest of the UK. The initiative’s first report threw a spotlight on how the COVID-19 pandemic created or exacerbated a number of challenges and inequalities facing children, with many of these impacts being felt disproportionately across the North of England.
The Child of the North All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) was established to take our mission directly into the heart of government. It brings together key sector organisations and MPs from across the political spectrum. The APPG holds regular meetings with its members to discuss issues regarding children in the North – and to hear from young people directly about their experiences – and works to develop policy solutions that will create lasting change.
And in 2024, Child of the North embarked on a campaign with the Centre for Young Lives to encourage the new government to rethink how it organises and prioritises its work to focus on improving every aspect of childhood. The campaign’s call for a ‘Children First Government’ is centred around a major new report series, which sets out practical, evidence-informed ways in which government can reset its vision for children and young people, with role of schools and other education settings at its heart.
A total of twelve reports will be delivered over the year, each focusing on a different topic identified by external stakeholders as the greatest challenges we face in supporting our children and young people. The solutions-focused approach looks at how physical and mental health, digital skills, school attendance, and assessment crises for SEND and autism can be addressed, amongst other challenges. The series demonstrates the capacity of universities and research institutions to provide evidence-based recommendations and suggest actions that could and should be taken by every part of the system to create the changes so desperately needed throughout the UK.