Grown up? New evidence on young people’s journeys to adulthood

About the event

What does growing up today mean – and how does policy, practice and society develop a new social contract with young people to support their journeys to adulthood? 

Over the past two years, the Nuffield Foundation’s Grown up? Journeys to adulthood programme has explored how today’s young people (aged 14-24) are navigating increasingly complex transitions into adult life. Bringing together research, data, expert analysis and young people’s experiences, the programme has examined the opportunities and challenges facing young people across three interconnected themes: education to work, digital lives, and mental health and wellbeing.

This event marks the culmination of the programme to date. It will bring together policymakers, researchers, practitioners, civil society organisations and young people to share the key findings and explore what they mean for the future.

As governments, employers, educators and communities respond to changing patterns of work, technology and wellbeing, the event will consider how evidence can help inform more effective policy and practice to better support young people’s journeys to adulthood.

Event highlights

During the afternoon we:

• Shared key findings from Grown up? across education to work, digital lives and mental health and wellbeing.
• Explored new evidence from the Ada Lovelace Institute’s I love it, but I hate it peer research into young people’s experiences of growing up in a digital world.
• Heard perspectives from leading experts alongside reflections from young people who contributed to the programme.

Attendees also had the opportunity to explore a creative exhibition showcasing films and other outputs from the programme’s youth engagement activities, highlighting young people’s experiences in their own words.