The Good Childhood Inquiry was commissioned by The Children's Society and launched in September 2006 as the UK's first independent national inquiry into childhood. Its aims were to renew society's understanding of modern childhood and to inform, improve and inspire all our relationships with children.
With the launch of the report A Good Childhood: Searching for Values in a Competitive Age on 5 February 2009, we have collected together the evidence used to inform the report, the recommendations and summaries of the themes discussed in the report, as well as our response.
The Good Childhood® is a registered trademark of The Children's Society.
The official launch live - hear from the authors
Watch videos of the launch chaired by Mark Easton, the BBC Home Editor, and hear from the authors of the book, Richard Layard and Judy Dunn.
Introduction from Bob Reitemeier - Chief Executive of The Children's Society
In this video, Bob Reitemeier talks about the idea behind the inquiry.
Report summary and The Children's Society's response
Read the summaries of each theme as discussed in the report. The themes are family, friends, lifestyle, values, schooling, mental health and inequalities.
Recommendations from The Good Childhood Inquiry
The report makes a series of recommendations to address the barriers to a good childhood.
See, read and hear the evidence
The Children's Society launched The Good Childhood Inquiry in 2006, with a 'call for evidence' and a commitment to actively seek and listen to the views and experiences of children.
How we make childhood better
The Children's Society is committed to making childhood better for all children in the UK. Find out how we are doing that.
The Good Childhood Forum 
A Good Childhood 
Our response 
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