Dr Rachel Larkin

Small Group Project 2025-26

Girlhood in Migration: New Directions in Inter-Disciplinary Research

This project brings together inter-disciplinary scholars from a newly formed Girlhood in Migration Network to develop a comprehensive and coordinated interdisciplinary, international research agenda on girlhood in migration. Although available research explores gendered migration for adults, few academics address girlhood in this context and several theoretical, methodological and ethical questions remain underexplored.  Further, migration research has largely been discipline-specific resulting in missed opportunities for integrated knowledge and practice development.  Key unanswered interdisciplinary questions include:  How should we study girlhood in migration and its intersections with age, racialisation, sexuality and other identity positions? What are commonalities in responses to girls in forced migration and how do they differ? How can we ethically bring together scholars from the Global North and Global South to identify tensions and commonalities and develop new knowledge? What methodologies would best promote ethical participation of migrant girls in the production of knowledge?

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Biography

Dr Rachel Larkin is Assistant Professor in Social Work. Her research explores state responses to children and young people in forced migration and how this relates to professional frameworks and commitments to social justice and human rights. She has a particular interest in girlhood and how gender and sexuality impact the experiences of young migrants in social work services 

Rachel has held frontline and leadership roles in social work, in statutory, voluntary and health settings. She has rich experience of statutory safeguarding services and children who are 'looked after' in state care, including unaccompanied minors claiming asylum and families affected by immigration processes. Her research knowledge and 28 years of practice experience make her ideally placed to help social work agencies, and related professionals, consider and develop their responses to child and youth migration.

Biographical details correct as of 24.06.25

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