We work with children and adults who are at risk due to vulnerability, disability or disadvantage, including poverty and deprivation, both in the UK and in international settings. We work with risk behaviours and risk taking for children and adults in a range of health settings, such as schools and colleges, health facilities, and community organisations. We work with a wide range of risk groups, such as children in institutions, teenagers with eating disorders, people with mental health problems and learning disabilities, offenders, and children and adults in the sex industry, transferring lessons about what works between different health settings.

We have gathered evidence and knowledge about needs from a range of sources and in a range of ways, including our own published research. In the UK and elsewhere, significant numbers of people continue to face threats to their health and development, which are frequently related to their lifestyle and living conditions, as well as their age, gender and ethnicity. Evidence from studies produced under the auspices of the World Health Organisation, European Union, the World Bank, as well as universities and research organisations reveal high levels of adverse risk behaviours among children and young people, as well as adults. The risk behaviours of these groups lie behind the unprecedented growth of blood-borne and sexually transmitted diseases, particularly in disadvantaged communities. Yet these are the very groups excluded from social benefits and political decision making, so we will work to promote inclusion.