In many Western societies there is concern that children from less advantaged social backgrounds have limited aspirations, and are disproportionately unlikely to go to university. Children's Lives, Children's Futures explores how children in their first year of secondary school feel about school, its place in their lives and its role in their futures. The authors use child voice to look at the ways in which children are active constructors of their lives, and the implications this has for the alignment between education and ambition.

The authors explore the nature of children's engagement with education, the choices and constraints they experience and the reasons some young people fail to take advantage of educational opportunities.