About the study

Mental health and wellbeing support can sometimes be inaccessible to care leavers. Care leavers are more likely to experience mental health difficulties, yet support often decreases as they transition to adulthood. Our research aims to understand these challenges, identify gaps in services, and promote meaningful system changes to improve services for care leavers in Bedfordshire, Luton, and Milton Keynes (BLMK).

This study involves research with care leavers, health and social care professionals, and policymakers to explore how we can improve support systems and reduce inequalities.

We are exploring:

• The mental health and wellbeing needs of care leavers in BLMK.
• How services support these needs and where gaps exist.
• The role of pathway planning in identifying and addressing mental health concerns.
• Barriers and enablers to accessing services.
• System-wide actions needed to improve support and reduce inequalities.

You can read more about the study in the project summary [PDF]

You can also complete a short form to sign up to the mailing list for this study

Study activities

This study will use a mixed-methods approach to explore the mental health and wellbeing support available to care leavers in Bedfordshire, Luton, and Milton Keynes (BLMK). We will work collaboratively with care leavers, health and social care professionals, and voluntary sector representatives through a Networked Learning Community to ensure the research is relevant and impactful.

Key activities include:

• Mapping existing services – Identifying available mental health and wellbeing support and service models.
• Interviews & focus groups – Engaging care leavers, frontline practitioners, and strategic leads to understand experiences, barriers, and enablers.
• Case record reviews – Examining Pathway Plans to assess how mental health needs are recorded and addressed.
• Observations of practice – Exploring how mental health discussions take place in professional meetings.
• Developing impact activities – Sharing findings through training, toolkits, and knowledge-exchange events to support system change and practice improvement.

By bringing together lived experiences and professional insights, we aim to identify gaps, make recommendations to improve service coordination and reduce inequalities in mental health and well-being support for care leavers.

Invitation to share your professional perspectives

We are currently looking for health and social care professionals and strategic leads across Bedfordshire, Luton, and Milton Keynes (BLMK) to take part in interviews for our study. Your insights will help us map the mental health and wellbeing support available to care leavers, explore service models, and identify barriers and enablers to access.

What does participation involve?

• A one-time interview (approximately 45-60 minutes) with a researcher.
• Topics include service availability, referral pathways, models of delivery, partnership working, and access barriers/enablers.
• Interviews can be conducted online, by phone, or in person, depending on your preference.

Who can take part?

We are inviting professionals in the health, social care, and voluntary sectors, including:

• Frontline practitioners (e.g. leaving care workers)
• Strategic leads
• Mental health professionals
• Service managers

Express your interest

If you would like to take part, please complete our short expression of interest form, and a member of our research team will be in touch.

Download participant documents

• Participant Information Sheet and Consent Form [PDF]
• University Privacy Notice [PDF]

We would love to hear from you!

Have questions? Want to get involved?

For queries or more information about the project, please contact Emily Munro at Emily.Munro@beds.ac.uk or Seana Friel at Seana.Friel@beds.ac.uk

We’ll also share key insights as the research progresses. Keep an eye on this webpage for updates such as:

• Findings from interviews & focus groups
• Reports on service access & barriers
• Recommendations for system-wide improvements