Children and young people

The Social Policy and Criminology discipline at The Open University has interests in this field and is engaged in a number of lived experience, social policy and welfare-related research projects. We are part of the OU’s Children and Young People Research Network, the Innovation, Knowledge and Development (IKD) research centre, and the Harm and Evidence Research Collaborative (HERC). Our substantive areas of interest include:

• meanings and practices of couple relationships 
• parenting, kinship and intergenerational relationships
• intimacy and sexualities in personal lives
• children’s rights, participation and agency
• changing service provision for young people
• young people, welfare (un)employment and crime.

We have an international reputation for methodological innovation, with particular strengths in qualitative mixed methods research, biographical and life story research, discourse analysis and historical methods.

Research students connected to this area are encouraged to participate in the supportive and collegial research culture in the discipline.

Entry requirements

Minimum 2:1 undergraduate degree (or equivalent). If you are not a UK citizen, you may need to prove your knowledge of English. 

Potential projects

We are open to receiving proposals on a wide range of research projects on this broad topic.

Potential supervisors

• Professor Jacqui Gabb
• Dr Rossana Perez del Aguila Coda
• Professor Nicola Yeates

Fees and funding

Some of our research students are funded via The Grand Union Doctoral Training Partnership; others are self-funded.

For detailed information about fees and funding, visit Fees and studentships.

To see current funded studentship vacancies across all research areas, see Current studentships.

Links

• Social Policy and Criminology at The Open University
• Harm and Evidence Research Collaborative
• Innovation, Knowledge and Development research centre