In their 2016 article, Sammons et al summarise the recommendations of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics report, Children and Clinical Research: the Ethical Issues.1 We welcome the article’s important message that researchers look beyond age when considering ethical and participatory issues and respond as critical friends (more friends rather than critical) to the six issues they identify. We provide additional material on the history and wider context, including child public health, education and social care research, bearing in mind that the service context for children has tended to be more multiprofessional than for adults. Social science and social care have a sustained history to offer on participation and how to research with and not on children and young people. . To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details.