About the CHiLL Project

What is the research about?

The project focuses on understanding young people’s experiences of their local neighbourhood, where and how children spend their free time and factors influencing that, how they value and use local spaces, their sense of place belonging, and the significance of local places (families, communities, local environment) in affecting children’s wellbeing, life chances and their developing sense of active citizenship.

Research Questions

What role does place (the physical and social environment, virtual and trans-local factors) play in affecting young people’s well-being and life chances?
How do young people perceive and use the local environment and its affordances for their social, emotional, and physical wellbeing?
What is the impact of wider macro socio-economic and trans-local factors, including digital technology, on young people’s leisure, social connectivity, sense of place and aspirations; and how have these changed over time?
How do young people perceive and engage with opportunities to be included and contribute to, decisions that affect their lives at local, national, and global levels; and how can place-based social capital be harnessed to enable that?

What are we looking to understand?

We want to understand:

How social change impacts and shapes young people’s everyday lives growing up in these places, the influences on their experiences and how young people respond to these influences.
Change and continuity in cultures of childhood and their relationship with and use of local places.
The influence of place on young people’s lives now and in the future.
The extent to which young people feel they have the opportunity to develop their own sense of active citizenship in shaping their lives and contributing to community and local developments.

Overall, we are seeking to engage young people as research partners in exploring and communicating their experiences and perspectives on their own lives.