New research reveals that adolescents who have spent time in out-of-home care face significantly greater risks of serious mental health challenges than their peers without care experience.

The study, published by the UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies (CLS) and part of the UK-wide Millennium Cohort Study, found that around one in four 17-year-olds who had lived in foster or residential care reported attempting to take their own life, compared with about one in 14 of those without care experience.

Analysis also showed much higher rates of self-harm, depression and longstanding illness among care-experienced teenagers. These disparities extended into early adulthood, with elevated psychological distress persisting at ages 20–21.

Researchers emphasised that socioeconomic factors such as education, housing and familial wellbeing contribute to these outcomes. They called for sustained, family-focused support and consideration of care experience as a protected characteristic to help address long-standing inequalities.

Co-author of the study, Professor Ingrid Schoon, UCL Social Research Institute, said: ‘The findings are significant because they reveal the enduring impact of care experience across generations, highlighting a cycle of disadvantage that is often overlooked. While it may seem obvious that early adversity can have long-term effects, our study provides hard evidence of how deeply this disadvantage persists across generations. These realities call for a family-focused approach, ensuring support remains available throughout a young person’s life. The current “cliff edge” where support abruptly ends must be removed.’