Urban Childhoods: Growing Up in Inequality and Hope

A guide to supporting children’s wellbeing in cities, through their own perspectives.

Bringing together insights from critical childhood studies, urban studies, and child public health, Urban Childhoods examines the distinct experiences of children growing up in English cities with an emphasis on centering the voices of children and their families. The volume explores how to prioritize children’s wellbeing in urban planning, focusing primarily on children’s definitions of what they need to thrive: stable relationships, access to engaging activities, and having a voice in decisions that affect their lives. Alongside the more theoretical literature on urban childhood, authors regularly reference strategies from a major prevention program conducted in two English cities between 2019 and 2025.

Claire Cameron is professor of social pedagogy in the Thomas Coram Research Unit at University College London, and a leading researcher on children’s services, disadvantaged families, care, and education. She is the coeditor of Social Research for Our Times.