Ethical challenges confronted in non-clinical, public health research with young people in England

Abstract

This opinion piece emerged from a collaboration of mental health researchers working on the National Institute of Health Research 3-schools mental health programme in underserved communities. The aim is to encourage debate and reflection on the challenges encountered with university research ethics committees when undertaking qualitative research with vulnerable young people. We explore the tension between principles of safeguarding and protection of research participants, on the one hand, and the potential for this oversight to become obstructive and thus to effectively stifle the voices and experiences of an already marginalised population, on the other hand.