Adultification

What is adultification?

"The concept of adultification is where notions of innocence and vulnerability are not afforded to certain children. This is determined by people and institutions who hold power over children and young people. When adultification occurs outside of the home it is always founded within discrimination and bias. There are various contexts of adultification, all relate to a child’s personal characteristics, socio-economic influences and lived experiences. Regardless of the context in which adultification takes place, the impact results in children’s rights being either diminished or overlooked.” (Listen Up, 2020)

What is the ‘Adultification aware’ campaign?

Following a research presentation about the adultification of Black girls for Oxfordshire Youth Justice Management Partnership Board’s Away Day in June 2024, the staff at Oxfordshire County Council explored steps that could potentially be taken to address this issue.

Since that session, Oxfordshire Country Council have collaborated with Sylvia Ikomi to produce and distribute awareness materials for organisations and individuals about the adultification of Black girls. The campaign and materials below are the result of this collaboration.

Key messages

The adultification of Black girls in state/local authority care is an under-explored research area and has severe consequences for Black girls. Adultification can be a contributory factor in young Black girls entering state/local authority care.

It can also result in social workers, teachers, foster parents and staff in children’s homes not giving these young girls the pastoral care they need, and lead to their placement in lower-quality foster care homes. To find out more, read our adultification aware brochure below.

Download the resources

The poster and brochure have been designed for you to read, download and share with your organisation, colleagues and carers that you work with to help understand and raise awareness about the adultification of Black children in state/local authority care, more specifically Black girls.

Discussion points

This document has been developed following a Black Workers Practice Forum meeting that took place on 4 April 2025, where the group were invited to provide their input upon engaging with the Adultification aware materials co-produced by Oxfordshire County Council and Sylvia Ikomi (Researcher and CPD presenter). The discussion points capture the concerns and key issues shared by social work professionals present at the meeting. The materials sparked a rich discussion, which we hope will help prompt learning and reflection in other organisations and settings.

Read more

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Related reading

Burton, L. (2007). Childhood Adultification in Economically Disadvantaged Families: A Conceptual Model. Family Relations. 56 (4).

Edwards, T., Chowdhury, R., Laylor, A., Parada, H. and King, B., 2023. ‘‘Pushed, Dropped, or Fleeing from Care: The Narratives and Adultification of Black Youth Who Have Aged out of Ontario’s Child Welfare System’’. Child & Youth Services.

Epstein, R., Blake, J., & González, T. (2017). Girlhood interrupted: the erasure of Black girls’ childhood. (R Epstein, J Blake, and T González)

The Adultification of Black Girls in State Care: Perspectives. (Sylvia Ikomi)

Adultification bias within child protection and safeguarding (HM Inspectorate of Probation)

“It’s Silent”: Race, racism and safeguarding children (The Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel)

Local Child Safeguarding Practice Review - Child Q - March 2022 (CHSCP)

Pushing Forward Report (Listen Up)