Define delivered secondary analysis for Liverpool City Council to support a wider programme focused on understanding the factors that place children and young people on trajectories linked to lower achievement and poorer outcomes in adulthood.
The project strengthened understanding of how these trajectories develop over time, and how they might be influenced to support better outcomes. It drew on existing behavioural insight studies with families, children and young people, which had explored issues, needs and motivations at different developmental stages and in relation to the services designed to support them. The studies included stakeholders from frontline services, who provided insight into the local population, specific groups and observations gathered over time.
Together, these studies enabled us to examine the factors driving poorer outcomes, alongside the varied experiences, needs and support journeys of children, young people and families. They showed not only the outcomes people experienced, but how they arrived there, and which support, challenges and turning points shaped their journey.
The findings showed how risks can emerge and accumulate across childhood, shaped by interconnected family, educational, social and environmental factors. They also identified examples where individuals recognised a need for support, were open to change, or benefited from timely interventions and protective relationships that helped alter their trajectory.
To bring these journeys to life, we developed pen portraits illustrating longer-term pathways from childhood to early adulthood. These stories showed the varied routes people take, the cumulative impact of challenges and opportunities, and the role of support services, families and communities in shaping outcomes.
The work identified risk indicators beyond RONI, protective factors and opportunities for intervention, helping Liverpool City Council understand how trajectories develop and where support can have the greatest impact.
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