What is the Young Life and Times Survey?


All too often the opinions of young people are ignored when decisions are made about many of the issues involving them.

However, the Young Life and Times (YLT) Survey collects the views of young people and provides them with an opportunity to share their experiences of school, their views on politics and sectarianism in Northern Ireland, and many other social and personal issues that affect their lives.  The range of topics varies from year to year.

By inviting respondents to suggest topics for the next year's survey, we make sure that the issues covered in YLT are relevant to the lives of young people in Northern Ireland today.

From 1998 to 2000, YLT sought the views of all 12 to 17 year olds living in the same household as a respondent to the Northern Ireland Life and Times Survey.  However, in 2003, the YLT Survey relaunched, focusing on a separate sample of 16 year olds.

Governance

The survey receives ethical approval from the School Ethics Committee of School of Social Sciences, Education and Social Work, Queen's University Belfast

Click here to view the Privacy Notice for the 2023 YLT Survey.

YLT is a freely available resource for anyone interested in attitudes of people in Northern Ireland. There is no charge to use the statistics or data available on this website. However, we are always interested in how the findings are used, and so would be very grateful if you would let us know how you have used them.

Our contact details are available in the Contact us section.