A PROJECT that will look at the lives of 30,000 adolescents in Bradford has been deemed “the most important health research study in a generation.”

A spin off of the groundbreaking Born in Bradford project, Age of Wonder is a seven year project that will begin later this month.

And it has just been awarded a £7 million grant from the Wellcome Trust - a global charity.

The Bradford Institute for Health Research, based at the city’s Royal Infirmary, is behind the project, which will link, and add an extra dimension, to the successful Born in Bradford programme that has been running in the District for nearly 15 years.

Launched in 2007 and now one of the biggest health research studies in the world, more than 13,000 children are already taking part in Born in Bradford.

The study will see the Age of Wonder research team work alongside young people aged 13 – 19 to explore topics such as physical and mental wellbeing and health and social inequalities.

It will collect measurements and biological samples from students in Year 9 to give an insight into the physical health of young people in the district, and shape service improvements to tackle health issues such as diabetes and obesity.

It will also collaborate with almost 40 secondary schools to embed the research into the curriculum, and to inspire more young people into science, technology, engineering and mathematics subjects, digital technologies and the arts.

Director of BIHR, Professor John Wright, said: “Young people across Bradford will have this unique opportunity to be part of the most important study of their generation.

Born in Bradford works with pupils to monitor air pollution

“They will help us create a detailed picture of every aspect of what it’s like to grow up in Bradford, the youngest city in the UK with almost a third of people aged under 20.

“As they move into adolescence and then adulthood, young people will experience many changes to their bodies their emotions and their social lives. They also enter this period at a time of unparalleled disruption amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

“As we follow these young people from age 13 to 21, our research will give us a window into their world like never before - and our findings will help to shape new ways of improving their physical and mental health.”

Working in partnership with Bradford Council and its Education and Skills team, researchers will begin contacting teachers in the coming weeks to share more information about the project.

They will start collecting data –which will be protected by the very highest levels of confidentiality - from later this month.

Evidence from BiB has already helped to uncover the harm of air pollution, the impact of people’s diet and exercise, how the urban environment affects health, and the early causes of diabetes and heart disease.

It has also been used to develop new treatments and polices to protect children’s health, and raise much-needed, multi-million pound investment into the district.

Age of Wonder will build on this work and share its findings widely, particularly with Bradford Council and the Department for Education, to improve young people’s health and life chances.

Kersten England, Chief Executive of Bradford Council, said: “The research and findings produced so far by Born in Bradford have been ground-breaking.

“We welcome the launch of the Age of Wonder project which will see BiB work in collaboration alongside the Council and our schools and colleges to focus on adolescence.

“It will allow schools, services and policy makers to better understand young people’s perspectives, measure recovery from the pandemic, and design new targeted interventions to improve the life chances of young people in our district.”