Inquiry Newsletter – September 2025

Module 8 investigation into children and young people public hearings

The Inquiry is currently hearing evidence in relation to children and young people (Module 8). Bydd gwrandawiadau ar gyfer y modiwl hwn run from 29 September to 23 October 2025. Hearings are taking place at Tŷ Dorland, Paddington, Llundain.

These hearings will investigate the impact of the pandemic on children and young people in the following areas:

• Whether they were considered as part of preparing and planning for a pandemic.
• How far children and young people were considered in decisions about lockdowns, requirements to wear face masks and other pandemic restrictions.
• The education of, and the early years provision for, children and young people (including further and/or higher education, apprenticeships).
• Physical and mental health, wellbeing, development, family life and access to healthcare services.
• Access to and engagement with social care services and other agencies with a role in supporting the safety of children. This includes children at risk, children whose families receive support from social services, young carers, those in the care of local authorities, care and care leavers.
• Children in contact with criminal justice or immigration systems.
• Access to and use of the internet, social media and online resources.

We opened today’s hearings with an impact film. This featured adults involved in the lives of children and young people, adults who were under 18 during the pandemic and quotes from children and young people narrated by adults. The film plays an important role in setting the context for hearings by illustrating the human impact of the pandemic.

Hearings are open to members of the public to attend. There are 41 seats available in the public gallery in the hearing room, in addition to a number of seating options available throughout the Inquiry’s London hearing centre. Mae gwybodaeth am sut i gadw seddi ar gael ar ein gwefan.

Parents, carers and under 18s who are planning to attend hearings in person should note that children under the age of 14 are not allowed to attend the Inquiry’s hearing centre. This is in line with the practice of the Courts. 

Those between the ages of 14 and 18 can observe the hearings in the hearing centre only if accompanied by an adult. However, we advise against 14-18-year olds attending the hearing centre and/or observing the hearings as they may be exposed to distressing and traumatic information, protests and/or vigils and experience intense emotions, which may be unsuitable for a child or young person.

Our only exception to children under 14 being allowed in the hearing centre is breastfeeding mothers and those with infants under 26 weeks. They are welcome to follow the hearing with a 3-minute delay from the viewing room. Breastfeeding mothers can also request access to a room in which they can breastfeed in private, if they wish. Please let us know in advance if this will be the case on any particular day by emailing operations.team@covid19.public-inquiry.uk. Further information about the Inquiry’s policy on children attending the hearing centre is on the website.

The Module 8 hearings timetable will be published on our website on each Thursday for the week ahead. Please note timings are provisional and subject to change.

Bydd gwrandawiadau yn cael eu ffrydio'n fyw ar y sianel YouTube yr Ymholiad,, subject to a three-minute delay. All livestreams are available to watch later.

Rydym yn anfon diweddariadau wythnosol trwy e-bost yn ystod ein gwrandawiadau cyhoeddus, gan grynhoi pynciau allweddol a phwy a ymddangosodd fel tystion. Gallwch gofrestru ar gyfer y rhain gan y tudalen cylchlythyr y wefan.

From top to bottom: Seren from Northern Ireland, Sam from Northern England, Marium from Northern England and Numan from Northern Ireland

Every Story Matters Children and Young People record

The Inquiry has listened to thousands of people across the UK about the experiences of children and young people during the pandemic through Every Story Matters. Today we have published our fifth Every Story Matters record. This details the experience of those who shared their stories with us, including young people aged 18-25 and adults involved in the lives of children including parents and guardians, teachers and youth and social workers.

The Inquiry has examined over 54,000 stories for the Every Story Matters record about children and young people, including those submitted online, posted to us and at 38 events across the UK. The Inquiry would like to thank everyone who supported us as we gathered experiences from across the UK. 

The record has now been formally entered as evidence into Module 8 and will be referred to by Counsel to the Inquiry during hearings and will inform the findings and recommendations made by Baroness Hallett when she writes her report following the end of the hearings.

We heard many diverse experiences, for example:

• Some children and young people were catapulted into new responsibilities with many having to care for siblings and manage home learning. Young carers, in particular, were thrust into more intense 24/7 caring roles, often with no support.
• Lockdowns removed normal social interactions, leaving many children feeling intensely lonely and cut off from friends. Those moving to new areas or seeking to build friendships, including asylum seeking children, were especially isolated. 
• The shift to online life brought both respite and risk. While some children escaped in-person bullying, many others were exposed to heightened dangers including cyberbullying, grooming and harmful online content.
• Health and wellbeing were profoundly affected. Anxiety soared for many young people, including in relation to fears about Covid-19, future pandemics and death. 
• Delays in Special Educational Needs or Additional Learning Needs assessments and missed diagnoses of serious illnesses such as diabetes, asthma and cancer had devastating consequences for children and their families.
• Incidents of domestic abuse meant that safety within the home was not guaranteed, leaving children and young people exposed to harm in what should have been their place of safety. 

The Inquiry has published a partnership toolkit which is available on the Inquiry’s website. This resource includes a number of suggestions for social media posts that you can share about Module 8 and Children and Young People’s Voices. 

Gallwch ddarllen mwy am y Every Story Matters Children and Young People record in this news story on our website.

Inquiry publishes major research report into impact of the pandemic on children and young people

Hundreds of children and young people from across the four nations of the UK have told us about their experiences of the pandemic as part of our Children and Young People’s Voices project. Their voices helped us understand what life was really like for them during this difficult time. We published their stories and findings in a major report on 15 September.

We heard directly from 600 children and young people aged between 9-22 (5-18 during the pandemic) in an age-appropriate and trauma-informed way. Half of the participants were reflective of the general UK population of children and young people, while the other half was made up of groups that were disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, such as disabled children, those with special education needs or additional learning needs, and those who were bereaved during the pandemic. The Inquiry  has heard from seldom-heard and highly vulnerable groups who are usually excluded from research including children in detention or with parents in detention, asylum seekers and children in care. The report will feed into the M8 investigation. 

Common themes were identified but also highlighted the diverse experiences and perspectives of children and young people on how life changed throughout the pandemic. The research has shone a light on the hugely varied experiences of children and young people. Many told us about how challenging they found lockdowns, learning from home, and worrying about the pandemic, while others revealed the remarkable resilience and adaptability of young people to cope through this difficult time. 

Themes explored included: 

• Cartref a theulu 
• Galar
• Cyswllt a chysylltiad cymdeithasol
• Addysg a dysgu
• Ymddygiadau ar-lein
• Iechyd a lles
• Datblygiad a hunaniaeth
• Profiadau o systemau a gwasanaethau yn ystod y pandemig

Gallwch ddarllen mwy am y Children and Young People’s Voices research report in this news story on our website. 

Core UK decision making and political governance – Module 2 report publication

The UK Covid-19 Inquiry will publish its second report and set of recommendations at 4pm on Thursday 20 November 2025. This report will detail the findings and recommendations made by the Chair of the Inquiry, Baroness Hallett, in relation to Core decision-making and political governance across the UK during the pandemic. 

This report will include findings and recommendations in relation to all four nations of the UK, following public hearings for Modules 2, 2A, 2B a 2C being held in London, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast respectively. 

An ‘In Brief’ summary of the Module 2 report will be made available in a variety of accessible formats including English, Welsh, English Easy Read, video (including British Sign Language) and audio.

The Inquiry’s first report, detailing Baroness Hallett’s findings and recommendations in relation to pre-pandemic preparedness and resilience (Module 1) was published in July 2024. You can access this report on our website.

The Inquiry has also announced the report publication schedule for its investigations into Gofal Iechyd (Modiwl 3), Brechlynnau a Therapiwteg (Modiwl 4) a Caffael (Modiwl 5). Further information is provided in the stori newyddion ar ein gwefan.