Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

This is a qualitative data collection. The aim of the project was to undertake a participatory research programme to identify key issues in children and young people’s experiences and agency in relation to flooding and the flood recovery process, and to assess the lessons for policy worlds. One of the objectives of the study was to contribute to the archive being generated by the adult Hull Flood study to enable future research. The project design used participatory techniques to ensure the research was carried out ‘with’, rather than ‘on’, the children taking part. The methodology that was employed built on the growing body of work that uses interactive mixed-method research to generate rich data about issues in children’s own lives. The intention was not only to develop greater understanding of children’s perspectives on floods and flood recovery but, in the process, to explore with flood-affected children the best ways (for them) of recording and reflecting upon their experiences. In total 46 flood-affected children took part in the project; some of the children were flooded at school but not at home and others were flooded both at school and at home. We worked in two schools that were badly affected by the floods; both schools were evacuated on the day and then closed for strip-out and refurbishment. The school children totalled 42, comprising 25 pupils from the primary school and 17 pupils from the secondary school. The research project used storyboards (where participants drew pictures or used creative writing to tell their stories), followed-up by short one-to-one interviews and group discussions with the school children. The project also conducted telephone interviews with four flood-affected young people, accessed through the youth team in Hull. Finally, the project worked with 18 adults, involving interviews with key service providers and front line workers, together with stakeholder engagement through a project steering group.

Purposive selection/case studies

Face-to-face interview

Telephone interview

Storyboards of their ‘flood journeys’ drawn by the primary and secondary school pupils