About the Centre
The Centre for Childhood and Youth was established within the University of Sheffield in January 2002. It is run and managed by an Executive Board of representatives from ten university departments spread across four faculties. The Centre also has a growing number of international partners from around the globe creating opportunities for collaborative research on cross-cultural issues. The Centre has strong working relationships with research funders at the local, national and international level.
The Centre brings together a range of academics and researchers from different and diverse disciplines to explore the nature of childhood and youth in modern society. This multi-disciplinary approach brings together academics and researchers from sociology, education, criminology, law, health, social work and social policy, landscaping, management school, psychology, geography, nursing and midwifery.
The Centre is strongly committed to actively involving children and young people in the research process. Historically research on childhood and youth ignored or marginalised the voice of the child. The Centre is actively involved in exploring and developing methodological approaches that redresses this and gives 'voice' to children and young people in the research approach.
The Centre is also actively involved in trying to improve the lives of children and young people. Many of its members are involved in helping to shape and influence both national and local policy-making especially in relation to children's and young people's services. As a result the Centre is committed to working closely with policy makers, practitioners and other interest groups who are aiming to improve both the lives of children and young people and the quality of services. This involves the Centre in a programme of knowledge transfer and dissemination to a broad audience including children, young people and their families.
