Dengên Zarok û Ciwanan - Rapora tevahî

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank all the children and young people who took part in this research, and those who helped to support their participation. Special thanks also go to Acumen Fieldwork, The Mix, The Exchange and the Core Participants. Thank you to Save the Children, Coram Voice, YoungMinds, Alliance for Youth Justice, UK Youth, PIMS-Hub, Long Covid Kids, Clinically Vulnerable Families, Article 39, Leaders Unlocked and Just for Kids Law, including the Children’s Rights Alliance for England, for your help during the planning and recruitment for this research. To the Children and Young People’s forum: we truly value your insights, support and challenge on our work. Your input really was instrumental in helping us shape this report.

This research report has been prepared at the request of the Inquiry’s Chair. The views expressed are those of the authors alone. The research findings arising from the fieldwork do not constitute formal recommendations by the Inquiry’s Chair and are separate from legal evidence obtained in investigations and hearings.

1. Destpêk

1.1 Background to the research

The UK Covid-19 Inquiry (“the Inquiry”) has been set up to examine the UK’s response to and impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, and learn lessons for the future. The Inquiry’s work is guided by its Mercên Referansê. The Inquiry’s investigations are organised into modules. Modula 8 will examine the impact of the pandemic on children and young people.  
The UK Covid-19 Inquiry commissioned Verian to undertake this research programme to provide a picture of children and young people’s experiences, and how they perceived the impact of the UK Covid-19 pandemic (“the pandemic”) on them. The findings of this report will be used by the Inquiry to understand how children and young people felt about and experienced the changes that took place in the pandemic and their effects. This research report is not designed to present evidence of how particular services changed during this time. The areas of children and young people’s experience explored through this research have been defined by a set of research questions, which are outlined in Appendix A. 

1.2 Research approach

The research method for this programme was depth interviews.¹ Verian carried out 600 interviews with children and young people between the ages of 9 and 22 (who were therefore between the ages of 5 and 18 during the pandemic) in the UK. Before and during the interview period, Verian also convened reference groups of children and young people to inform the design of interview guides, participant materials and child-friendly versions of findings. In addition, focus group discussions were carried out with parents and teachers before the interviews to guide the design of research materials. 
Interviews took a trauma-informed approach to ensure that participation did not inadvertently cause re-traumatisation or distress. Children aged 9-12 had a parent or caregiver present during interviews, while those aged 13+ could choose to have this option if they needed. Every child and young person interviewed was invited to complete a short optional feedback survey after their interview about their experience. More information on the research method, including the partners supporting Verian’s work, is in Appendix B.

1.3 Research sample

The 600 interviews conducted by Verian were made up of 300 interviews with a ‘general’ sample of participants broadly reflective of the UK population, and 300 with a ‘targeted’ sample of specific groups chosen based on evidence that they were especially negatively impacted by the pandemic. It should be noted that some children and young people met the participation criteria for more than one of these groups (see Figure 1 below). For example, the majority of those seeking asylum had also been in temporary or overcrowded accommodation. Most of those who had been in contact with the criminal justice system had also been in contact with mental health services and children’s social care.

Figure 1: Overlap between groups in the targeted sample

1.4 Scope of this report

This report sets out the findings from depth interviews in the Children and Young People’s Voices research programme. These findings are designed to help the Inquiry understand how children and young people felt about, and experienced, the changes that occurred during this pandemic. They will also assist in defining key areas for further analysis and consideration and supporting the Inquiry in meeting its Mercên Referansê.

The report starts by discussing the key factors identified as shaping children and young people’s experiences during the pandemic. Following this, the report turns to a detailed exploration of the experiences shared by children and young people, starting with the changes to their home environment and family relationships in this time, before moving on to the pandemic’s impacts on other aspects of their lives, including education, online behaviours, health and wellbeing. The second half of the report focuses on experiences of specific settings and services during the pandemic. 

This is not a report of the Chair of the Inquiry and its findings do not constitute those of the Chair. Interpretation of findings and discussion of implications are those of the Verian research team.

Every Story Matters is a separate listening exercise that is being undertaken by the Inquiry. The Every Story Matters record captures the experiences of children and young people through the lens of adults in their lives who provided care or support. Young people over 18 also contributed to the Every Story Matters record. It is important to note that the views of adults regarding children and young people’s experiences may differ in places from the findings of this report.

1.5 Guidance for readers

Values and limitations of qualitative research

A qualitative approach was adopted for this study in order to provide in-depth insight into the lived experience of children and young people during the pandemic and to bring their voices to life. Qualitative research is ideal for investigating the nuance of experiences; it gives participants the opportunity to share their experiences in detail and space to reflect on their motivations and emotions. Qualitative methods are valuable when exploring complex social phenomena and are designed to describe and interpret these in depth, providing richness of detail.

Qualitative methods are not designed to measure the frequency or prevalence of an experience or association. In addition, qualitative samples are designed purposively to capture the experiences of specific groups, with detailed recruitment criteria for participants. As such qualitative research is not designed to deliver statistically representative findings and cannot provide the same level of generalisation as quantitative data. In line with this, when terms such as ‘some’ are used when reporting qualitative research, these are not tied to a specific numerical value. It should also be noted that specific examples of individual experiences may not be representative. However, qualitative research can be used to offer insight into a spectrum of human experiences and perspectives in a way that quantitative methods cannot. 

Qualitative research is also a powerful tool when triangulated with quantitative data and other forms of evidence. This report does not carry out this triangulation. However, further triangulation of its findings could be particularly useful in providing context on the spectrum of experiences described qualitatively where there is supporting data or evidence on the prevalence of these. 

A note on terminology 

The term ‘children and young people’ is used throughout this report to collectively refer to those interviewed for this research. However, where relevant, we use the terms ‘children’ or ‘child’ to refer to those who were younger than 18 when interviewed. We use the terms ‘young people’ or ‘young person’ to refer to those who were 18 or older when interviewed. References to parents should be understood to also include caregivers and guardians. Quotations from children and young people include their age at the point of interview, and in certain cases (for those with special educational needs and those in specific settings during the pandemic) indicate important contextual information about their circumstances to help better understand their response. As participants were not asked to provide their date of birth it is not possible to consistently determine ages as of March 2020. Moreover, since some of the experiences described span years, connecting these accounts to their age at the start of the pandemic could be misleading. Verian asked children and young people specifically about their experiences from 2020-22, so the report uses the past tense. However, it is important to note that for some of the young people we spoke to, their conditions and the impact of Covid-19 continues into the present.

Content warning

Some of the stories and themes included in this record include descriptions of death, near death experiences, abuse, sexual assault and significant physical and psychological harm. These may be distressing. If so, readers are encouraged to seek help from colleagues, friends, family, support groups or healthcare professionals where necessary. A list of xizmetên piştgirî is also provided on the UK Covid-19 Inquiry website.

2. Factors that shaped the pandemic experience

This section introduces the factors that made the pandemic particularly challenging for some children and young people, and the protective and mitigating factors that helped some children and young people to cope and even thrive.

Across interviews, it was uncommon for children and young people’s accounts of the pandemic to be purely positive or negative. Some associated the pandemic with mixed feelings – for example, they might describe feeling relatively happy and free about not going to school initially, but later feeling frustrated and isolated. Some children and young people described challenges they faced during the pandemic, but also felt there were positive aspects to the experience or at least things that helped them to cope. As such, this research captured a wide variety of experiences and this spectrum of response is reflected throughout this report.

Drawing on this, our analysis identifies a number of factors that made the pandemic particularly hard for some as well as the factors that helped children and young people to cope during this time.

Figure 2: Factors that shaped pandemic experiences

Some of those interviewed were affected by a combination of the negative factors listed above, particularly those recruited for the targeted sample and those who met the participation criteria for more than one of the targeted groups. In some cases, their experience of the pandemic was overwhelmingly negative and having supportive relationships to draw on and ways to look after their own wellbeing was particularly important.

Below we explore in greater detail the factors that shaped experiences of the pandemic for children and young people. We have included case studies throughout to illustrate these. These are drawn from individual accounts, with names changed.  

Factors that made the pandemic challenging

Below we outline the factors that made the pandemic challenging for some children and young people. In some cases, being affected by a combination of these factors aggravated the impact of the pandemic for children and young people who experienced multiple challenges simultaneously. The difficulties they faced could also be compounded by the interaction of these factors, such as disruption to support when experiencing new or increased challenges at home. 

Children and young people in a range of circumstances could experience the challenges explored below, although a lack of resources particularly affected those in lower income households. It should be noted that some of these factors were clearly related to specific circumstances that were specified in recruitment – for example, being affected by both heightened restrictions and heightened fear due to being in a clinically vulnerable family. In some cases, those interviewed met the criteria for two or more targeted groups and as a result faced multiple challenges during the pandemic, for example having both caring and shielding responsibilities, or being in contact with both mental health services and children’s social care. 

Tension at home: tension at home made the pandemic hard for some children and young people. In some cases, this predated the pandemic and was exacerbated by lockdown, while in some cases tensions arose when everyone was stuck at home together, particularly where living space felt cramped. Children and young people described the impact of arguing with or feeling uncomfortable with their siblings or parents or witnessing tension between adults in the household. These tensions meant that for some, home was not always experienced as a safe or supportive place to be during the pandemic, which was an important factor in being able to cope with lockdown.

Feeling trapped with family Alex, aged 21, described how hard it was for her family being stuck at home together when everyone was used to having some independence and space. Relationships frayed during the intensity of lockdown. “It was a lot more stressful because we were all under the same roof twenty-four hours a day, as opposed to, you know, me and my sister would go off, I would go to college, she would go to school… getting on top of each other… It wasn’t what we wanted at the time, we had to spend time together… my mum and dad in the same house twenty-four seven, probably not great for them either… My sister didn’t get on with either of my parents and me and my sister probably didn’t get on very well.” Marriage breakdown during the pandemic Sam, aged 16, described witnessing the breakdown of her parents’ marriage during the pandemic. Her mum struggled with her mental health after this and Sam found that everything going on at home affected her own wellbeing and relationships, as she became more distanced from friends. “I think [the pandemic] was probably, like, one of the main reasons that my parents got divorced… I think they just had to spend more time with each other and I think they both realised that was not the best idea… They argued a lot more but they argued quite a bit anyway… If Covid hadn’t have happened I don’t think they would have got divorced… and then… I don’t think [my mum] would have had mental health issues… I think some of [my friends], like, got closer to their family… me not so much.”

Weight of responsibility: Some children and young people took on responsibilities at home during the pandemic. As well as carrying the load of practical tasks that needed to be done, such as looking after someone who was ill, taking care of siblings, or sanitising shopping for someone who was clinically vulnerable, some also felt the emotional weight of supporting their family through this time, particularly where people outside of the household could not come and help. Some were also affected by an awareness of the difficulties the adults were going through, including worsening mental health, worries about finances and experiences of bereavement. This exposure to adult responsibility and stress meant that some children and young people “grew up fast” during the pandemic.

No escape from caring responsibilities Robin, aged 18, described the challenges of caring for her mum, a single parent, during the pandemic. As an only child she was used to taking on this responsibility but in normal times school gave her some respite from her responsibilities at home. Being stuck at home during lockdown made it much harder for her to cope, and also meant that her mum’s mental health deteriorated. She described being “emotionally sapped” and struggling with the weight of responsibility. “I feel like if you don’t have a very good home life then school is a massive saviour for you because it means that you’re out of that environment for the whole day and you get to see your friends while you’re there… I was depressed because I had, like, no break from my home situation. And it’s like a lot of responsibility on my shoulders all the time… it’s like at school that was, like, respite from it and it was a really good distraction. So when that was gone it was such a massive hit because that was my way of coping… It made it harder to deal with my mum at home… it was like a huge emotional workload and I just usually have the ability to deal with it and cope with it but not when you’re stuck there all the time.” Exposed to adult stress Riley, aged 22, was living at home during the pandemic with their parents. This was a difficult time for the family because their mum was clinically vulnerable and their sibling, who had moved out, was struggling with an addiction. Living at such close quarters during lockdown – “like you’re in a pressure cooker” – exposed them to the stress that their parents were going through and they described starting to share in this rather than feeling like a child any more. “Everyone felt very nervous. So then having that kind of like group worrying… I feel like I kind of had to see [my parents], like, more as people rather than just, like, ‘oh my mum’s always nagging at me to do this’… Because I was, like, seeing her, like, all the time… in, like, quite vulnerable ways because of, like, how stressed everyone was. It kind of like felt like… [I was] meeting my parents as, like, an adult.”

Lack of resources: A lack of external resources made the pandemic harder to cope with for some children and young people from families with limited financial resources. Living in overcrowded accommodation created tension from feeling “on top of each other” and made it harder to cope with Covid-19 in the household or to protect clinically vulnerable family members, as well as making it difficult to find the space to do schoolwork. Not having consistent access to devices or a reliable internet connection also made home learning harder, as well as limiting opportunities to connect with others, relax or learn new things online. While children and young people without outside space largely did not raise this as an issue, those with a garden described ways to boost wellbeing and have fun that those without a garden would not have been able to experience.

Struggles with online learning Jess, aged 15, struggled to keep up with home learning during the pandemic. She shared an old computer with her sibling and had really intermittent Wi-Fi, which caused terrible buffering during online lessons and meant she could not participate properly. She brought along a photo² of herself sitting at the computer as this was such a strong memory of the pandemic for her: “[I brought this photo to the interview] because of the struggles of being online. Obviously, like, the lagging, the Wi-Fi was crazy… [My brother and I] had a shared computer. The school didn’t give us any… it was, like, glitching a lot because the Wi-Fi was bad and then, like, the computer as well was quite old… Education wasn’t good… What, like, we could implement to, like, lessen the damage?… Provide computers. Yes. Provide computers and better internet connection.” No space to work Cam, aged 15, found lockdown “a bit much” living in a flat with her parents and two siblings, who she shared a bedroom with. She was used to it feeling a bit cramped sometimes, but was not used to the challenges of trying to do home learning in a small space, which she found really tricky: “Especially because we only had one table, like a good table. So it was very hard balancing who could have a table and who could go to the floor and work. Because sometimes you didn’t need the table. It was just like a drawer on the floor or something. But it was hard balancing that.”

Heightened fear: Physically disabled children and young people and those with health conditions, or in clinically vulnerable families, described their feelings of uncertainty, fear and anxiety about the risk of catching Covid-19 and the serious – and in some cases life threatening – implications this could have for them or their loved ones. Children and young people in secure settings also felt vulnerable and afraid of catching Covid-19 when sharing common spaces with other people during the pandemic. Experiencing bereavement during the pandemic could also lead to feelings of heightened fear.

Petrified to pass on Covid-19 Lindsey, aged 15, was “petrified” that her grandma, who lived with her, would catch Covid-19. She had experienced feelings of anxiety before and felt that this became really severe during the pandemic when the risks were so frightening for her. This fear was heightened when she went back to school after the first lockdown. “It was where we had so many lockdowns going back and forth… ‘we can go back, now we can’t’, it was just like, why are we going back and forth when there could still be more of a risk out there?’… I would always get in [from school], do what they said, wash your hands, sanitise, I would sometimes change my clothes so then I could go closer to [my grandma]… I think one or two [friends] did get a bit distant and were always asking, ‘what are you doing that for?’ ‘Why are you doing this, you don’t need to’, they don’t have to worry about what I had to worry about.” Covid-19 at close quarters Ali, aged 20, was temporarily living in a hotel during the pandemic while seeking asylum. He was assigned a room with three others, which he hadn’t expected. Sharing a small room with strangers was cramped at the best of times – “not much personal space” – but the fear of catching Covid-19 from each other, or from being in the hotel’s busy communal spaces, made the experience particularly tough. “I didn’t know I was going to share like the same room… Everything you touched we would have to think about it… you would overthink everything… the same thing over and over again just messed with your head. You’ve got to go downstairs [to the cafeteria] and then I see loads of people, you’re going to wait in a queue… you might catch Covid from someone else. It was stressful… [When I had Covid I had a] temperature, headaches, just felt like my whole body’s wrecked… while I was sharing a room with three people, which was not easy at all… They didn’t put you in a different room or anything.”

Heightened restrictions: In some cases, children and young people were affected by experiencing restrictions differently from or more intensely than other people due to their circumstances. For some this was due to being physically disabled or having a health condition, especially when the closure of public toilets restricted how long they could leave the house for or how far they could go. For some, being clinically vulnerable themselves, or in a clinically vulnerable family, meant coping with heightened restrictions. For others, this was due to being in a secure setting or care setting and feeling that they had to follow rules more strictly than others. Being affected by additional restrictions was particularly emotionally challenging for some children and young people when restrictions were eased for others and they felt excluded from this.

Restricted by the closure of public spaces Mark, aged 14, described how his health condition made it harder for him to leave the house when public spaces, including toilets, were closed and how he and his family had to adjust to planning things more carefully if they wanted to try and go out. “Obviously we’ve been able to live with [my health condition] but then, you know, new implications like social distancing, things were closing… it made it a lot different and we had to come up with different solutions and it would obviously take longer to get to places, by sometimes two, three times, but we still, we’d somehow get there and just made sure that there was, you know, no real [chance], well obviously there would be a chance, but a minor chance of an accident happening or something like that… it was a really difficult time, especially, you know, with the physical health problems that I’ve got, it doesn’t mean that I can just go into a shut place or go straight into a toilet or something… it doesn’t mean that I can go into closed places… I still had to follow the rules, just because I’m a little bit different it doesn’t mean that I can bend the rules myself.” Forgotten by others as a young shielder Casey, aged 15, has a sibling who is clinically vulnerable. Casey described how she helped to protect her sibling during the pandemic, how hard it was to keep shielding when society opened up after the first lockdown and how she felt that her needs had been completely forgotten by those around her. She felt that people didn’t seem to understand that young people were shielding too. “When we came out of [lockdown] but then we were still expected to shield… while everybody else was out and doing stuff, they seemed to have forgotten about people who were shielding, especially if they weren’t like old people… it just seemed like that they acted like everyone was back to kind of normal… or [as] if the only people that were still at home were elderly people.”

Disruption to support: Some children and young people were affected by disruption to formal support and healthcare services, particularly mental health services, during the pandemic, as well as losing school as a source of support or escape from any difficulties at home. While some adapted to the loss of in-person contact, others found phone and online contact difficult to engage with and felt less well supported. Those interviewed also described experiencing delays and inconsistency in the frequency and quality of support and thinking that services they relied on were under pressure. This disruption could make it harder to cope with the pandemic for those already in challenging circumstances. 

Absence of in-person support in a family crisis Charlie, aged 20, described how hard it was not seeing her social worker in person during the pandemic when she felt her foster care placement was breaking down. She found it hard to be open about the situation on phone calls and missed the emotional support she had received previously. “I don’t think Covid was the reason that my placement broke down but it definitely contributed… The placement was breaking down and they were so convinced we were such a strong placement. So I wanted to, like, keep that up and, like, not complain… [With my social worker] we would have phone-calls but then it’d be like my foster mum would be there. Like, we wouldn’t have any, like, one-to-one time to talk about how I’m actually feeling… [Before the pandemic] they would have taken me out for dinner or something like that… or they’d come sit in my bedroom and just check that everything’s okay or pick me up from school and stuff like that just so that you get a little bit of one-to-one time to talk… So not having that was definitely hard… [Not having] access to, like, therapists and social workers like I did before the pandemic definitely meant that I was kind of left alone with my thoughts a little bit more and just got really sad.” Struggling to engage with mental health support over the phone George, aged 20, described experiencing depression during the pandemic and getting her mum’s help to get a referral for talking therapy. She had had in-person therapy before and really struggled to connect with a new therapist over the phone. Although she got on well with her family, she didn’t feel comfortable talking from her bedroom where she could be overheard. She stopped therapy after a few sessions. “I have no qualms with telling my family stuff. But it’s like, say if I do want to open up about something I don’t necessarily want my parents to be able to walk past… and then hear me say something, drop something… I just need to have that physical, like, face-to-face connection to really feel like I can open up to people, but over the phone… it’s like there’s actually no connection, that it could be like an AI [artificial intelligence] voice.”

Experiencing bereavement: Those who were bereaved during the pandemic experienced particular difficulties where pandemic restrictions prevented them from seeing loved ones before they died, stopped them from mourning as they would have in normal times, or made it harder to see family and friends and feel supported in their grief. Some described weighing up the guilt and fear of breaking rules in order to see a loved one before they died, versus the guilt of not seeing them and fearing that they might die alone. Some of those who had a loved one who died due to Covid-19 described the additional shock of the death happening so fast, making them fearful for themselves and others.

Shocked by a sudden bereavement Amy, aged 12, experienced the death of a much-loved family friend to Covid-19 during the first lockdown. She described her shock at what had happened and how hard it was to process. “She used to come round a lot like at the weekends and she’d come for like a roast dinner, and she would always bring me gifts and like sweets and stuff, and like we were just really close, like she was literally like another grandparent to me… And then during Covid, during lockdown, she got ill with Covid-19, and like she wasn’t good at technology, she couldn’t call people, so… we didn’t even get to say goodbye to her. When we found out she’d died it was really upsetting, like that threw me off a lot… I was really young, and I tried to remember all the good memories but all I remembered was like that she died, and I won’t ever get to see her again, and we didn’t get to go to her funeral because there was like the restrictions… the last time I saw her it was just like ‘see you next week’, and then there was no next week.”

The impact of multiple factors

This research also captured experiences of being affected by multiple challenges during the pandemic in relation to the factors discussed above. Figure 3 below illustrates how a combination of circumstances during the pandemic could affect an individual – in this case living in overcrowded accommodation, shielding to protect a clinically vulnerable family member and experiencing disruption to support from children’s social care. This could result in children and young people facing a range of challenges that made life harder during the pandemic.

Figure 3: The potential impact of multiple factors on one individual

The case studies below provide some examples of where those interviewed were affected by a combination of factors and the challenges they faced as a result.

This case study reflects how one young person with caring responsibilities for her clinically vulnerable parent was affected by weight of responsibility and heightened fear during the pandemic.

Responsibility and fear looking after someone clinically vulnerable Nicky, aged 21, described the pressure she felt during the pandemic when caring for her mum, who was clinically vulnerable following a transplant, and the “crippling fear” that she would get ill with Covid-19. With her older sibling living away from home and unable to visit, the responsibility fell solely to her. She described taking on all the shopping, being unable to get a delivery slot and so taking a taxi to the supermarket and painstakingly disinfecting everything before bringing it inside. Meanwhile her mum was struggling with the loss of outside contact herself. Nicky saw herself as a resilient person in normal times but said that this was tested by the pandemic, to the point that she asked her GP for mental health support. “Obviously when it’s your mum and someone you love more than anything you just do it. It’s not a question of, oh, I can’t cope with this; I have to cope with this because she needs me to do it… it was… very conflicting because I want to take care of her but, at the same time, I did wish that I could just be, like, other people and just be enjoying lying in bed and reading lots of books and watching lots of TV and being oblivious.”

The following example shows how one young person with caring responsibilities who was in contact with social services during the pandemic was affected by tension at home and disruption to support.

Caring for the family amid family breakdown and faltering support Mo, aged 18, had caring responsibilities before the pandemic, helping to look after her two siblings with special educational needs and supporting her parents with managing the household given their health difficulties and limited English. Her parents’ relationship deteriorated and her father became abusive to the point that the family needed him to move out, but when the pandemic hit he had nowhere else to go. She described bearing the brunt of this situation. “At the time [social services] didn’t really know how to deal with it because they were like, well, they can’t really separate him from the house because there was nowhere else to take him. He couldn’t live with anyone else and he was vulnerable himself… there was a lot of arguments… I wish school understood how difficult things were at home and, you know, having an autistic kid and a younger kid with kind of behavioural issues at home together constantly… there was so much on me… I wish social care kind of understood the damages it caused by keeping my dad in the home.”

The below case study reflects how one child who was in contact with both children’s social care and mental health services during the pandemic was affected by disruption to support at the same time as facing tension at home.

Feeling the compound loss of support networks and services Jules, aged 20, had left care and moved back in with her parent just before the pandemic and was having a hard time, eventually moving out again. When the pandemic hit, she realised that not being able to meet up with friends or go to her part-time job would hit her hard, particularly as she was already struggling with her mental health. She found contact with children’s social care inconsistent during the pandemic, always being seen by different people, and felt she should have had access to better support for her mental health. “I was just thinking like I’m not going to be able to see my friends, that’s my biggest support network, it always has been and when things aren’t great at home the best thing to do is just go out and see your friends, it just really lifts up your mood… [Before the pandemic] I would have good days, I would go out and see my friends, do nice things, but I feel like the pandemic just stopped the good days… There wasn’t really any support I think throughout the whole kind of thing, like social workers or PAs³ or anything like that, they never like came to me and was like ‘I think you’d benefit from this’ or anything like that… people in and out of care like care leavers or people that are in care, are some of the most vulnerable children, people. I feel like we should have had maybe like a separate access to mental health services or, you know, had a lot more opportunity to access support because I think a lot of people would have benefited from that.”

Factors that made the pandemic easier to cope with

Below we outline the factors that made it easier for some children and young people to cope with the pandemic, deal with challenges, and even thrive during this time. 

Supportive relationships: Children and young people of all ages described how friends, family and wider communities helped them get through the pandemic. For some, being in a safe and supportive family environment was an important factor in creating positive experiences during the pandemic. Having online contact with friends was also an invaluable way to combat the boredom and isolation of lockdown and for children and young people to seek support if they were struggling. Some became part of new communities online during the pandemic, from getting to know other gamers to joining a new faith community, and found these a source of support. 

Family connection bringing comfort and company Jamie, aged 9, was living with her mum, aunt and grandparents during the pandemic. Without any friends to play with, she was grateful to have her aunt to keep her company. “At the start [of lockdown] I was like more shocked, confused and surprised. And then as it went on I was more like bored and felt safe, calm and happy… It was my aunt, like she kept me quite entertained and she didn’t really talk about what happened… if you get home schooled then you’re more lonely because you don’t really have any friends around… I didn’t have any siblings, but my aunt also worked at a school so she wasn’t that busy, so she used to entertain me and play with me… Arts and crafts, doing some role play, making, I forget what it’s called, those little tent thingies? Like inside your house you use the chairs and you put like a cloth, a den.” Close friends providing support through tough times Chris, aged 16, described how his relationship with his mum was affected during lockdown and eventually broke down. Although he was happy living with his dad, this “implosion” was unexpected and difficult to cope with and made him more conscious of looking after his mental health. He described how gaming with and talking to his friends every day during lockdown helped him to get through things and how over time he became comfortable to talk about his feelings with his friendship group. “We’d literally talk every single day… for as long as I can remember like my group of friends has been like five people who are all really really close, and you know, like then you have like mutual friends around that, but like five of us [were] just all on [our] PC constantly… so nothing really changed for us, we were still talking the same way we would in person. Just because we were all so close, it was kind of Covid was never kind of going to be able to break that like friendship or that bond that we had… [The pandemic] definitely changed like how cautious I was about like talking to people about mental health… changed the way I communicated about my own feelings, and then talking with my friends and about their feelings.”

Finding ways to support wellbeing: Children and young people of all ages described things they did at home during the pandemic to consciously protect their wellbeing and feel better when they were struggling. From getting some fresh air and exercise, to spending time with pets, to watching or reading something escapist, having the capacity to do something positive or comforting for themselves was hugely important for children and young people during the pandemic. Some also found that putting in place a routine could help them to stave off boredom and lethargy.

Finding ways to feel happy Lou, aged 10, was living with her parents and little sister during the pandemic. When she wanted to do something to make herself feel better during lockdown, she liked to watch TV, listen to music and sing. Most of all she loved putting on shows with her sister, encouraged by her mum who suggested they keep doing drama at home as part of recreating their routine of school and after-school activities. This became her favourite activity during lockdown. “Me and my sister used to do like little shows for mummy… we did like dances and we used to like make a routine… And my mum would like rate it and she’d say it was really good. And I really loved that… I felt really calm and… really happy and excited about it. Because I actually got to do what makes me actually happy… [we] entertained each other and helped each other stay positive and not like get upset.” Finding solace in a treasured book        Ari, aged 18, had a difficult home life during the pandemic and was on a waiting list for mental health support. They described how reading a favourite book was a source of comfort and escape for them and brought a picture of this with them to their interview. "It’s one that I was like reading during the pandemic, I would like read it a lot and I’d listen to it a lot as well, just like as an audio book, because it was really enlightening to me, and it gave me something to like distract my mind from like everything that was going on… the writing style was like really… lyrical and poetic… it’s something I just like to read a lot, to like keep me calm and just like soothe me and stuff like that.”

Doing something rewarding: Being able to do something rewarding during the pandemic – sometimes unexpectedly – helped children and young people to cope with boredom, take their mind off worries, and feel more motivated during what was referred to as the “empty time” of lockdown. This included developing existing skills and interests and discovering new passions and talents. This could also have exciting consequences where finding something to do inspired new hobbies or unlocked future academic or career directions.

Discovering an unexpected hobby that sparked a career  Max, aged 18, found the pandemic a stressful time, particularly because his dad was clinically vulnerable and spent some time in hospital. He had to stop playing team sport during lockdown and didn’t have any other hobbies. But with barbers being closed he was inspired to cut his own hair, then found he really enjoyed cutting other people’s hair and so unlocked a new direction for his future. “That’s how I got into barbering… I just learnt how to cut my own hair in lockdown… I cut my dad’s hair but he just wanted it bald all over [so] I was doing all designs on his head and then trimmed them after… I really needed a haircut in lockdown and obviously there was no barbers open so I just ordered a pair of clippers and I just started practising on myself… I really enjoyed it… I feel like with Covid I learnt to do a hobby… [since then] I have done my level 2 at barbering college and I’ve passed my exams… [Without Covid] I wouldn’t have that qualification now and I am really enjoying barbering, I am just looking for an apprenticeship in a shop now.” Feeling pride and satisfaction from achieving a goal Elliott, aged 12, was inspired by Captain Tom to set himself a challenge and raise some money for charity. Supported by his mum he decided to aim for completing 100 laps of walking around the block, which then became 200. Neighbours would poke their heads out to see him and it became a real community fundraising effort: “During the time we had our one hour a day I would spend that doing several laps round my block until I got to a hundred, and we raised two thousand pounds… It was just really fun, and then at the end when we had the big party thing it was just a really good memory for me and it helps me think about the good parts in Covid and less about the bad parts… [We raised money] for the NHS, I think, research towards the… like the injections, I don’t know what it’s called… the vaccinations. So it went to NHS, the Covid research… yes [I did feel proud], it was a really fun thing to keep me occupied during lockdown.”

Ability to continue learning: Children and young people described how if they were able to carry on learning during the pandemic, in spite of the widespread disruption to education and the challenges of remote learning, this allowed them to feel positive and that they could achieve what they wanted to in school, work and life. This could be due to receiving the help they needed from parents or teaching staff, being able to go to school while others were at home (for children of key workers), or enjoying a more flexible and independent approach to learning. Successful remote learning was also supported by having access to appropriate devices for learning and in some cases by following a routine at home.

Thriving through an independent learning approach Jordan, aged 13, enjoyed home learning and teaching herself more than being in school, which built her confidence in her ability and made her want to be a teacher. She felt able to ask for help from family (one parent worked from home and the other was furloughed), felt safe, and had options to contact teachers by email or phone if she needed to. She followed the same routine as she would in school but clicked on links to complete tasks on her own. “You could press on the Maths link or the English link or that science link or, like, so on. And you could, and then you just press on that lesson and do the task that was set for that lesson… At one point my mum was going to send me to school but like I didn’t really want to go because like I was good at the home learning and I [was] enjoying it… I’d do it like a school day. Like, I loved, like, I don’t know, like, I kind of want to be, like, a teacher when I’m older… So I’d like, love just, like, scheduling it out, and sometimes I pretend to be the teacher and, like, teach, like, my teddies… you could always, like, email [teachers] or ring them and, like, when I did my work, sometimes I’d, like, send pictures in and show them, and then they’d be like, ‘oh, that’s really good’.”

It is important to note that all these factors were underpinned by spending time online – from contact with friends to playing games to learning new things from online tutorials. Despite the difficulties that some had in managing the amount of time they spent online, and the risk of exposure to online harm, being online could be a valuable source of social contact, comfort, escapism and inspiration for children and young people during the pandemic.

3. How life was affected during the pandemic

3.1 Home and family

Têgihiştinî

This section explores experiences of home and family life during the pandemic, highlighting the range of challenges and responsibilities at home that made the pandemic particularly hard for some children and young people and the contribution of supportive relationships and family routines in helping children and young people to cope. We also explore how children and young people felt they were affected by disruption to contact with family members who were not living with them during the pandemic.

Chapter Summary

Supportive aspects of family life Challenges at home Disruption to family contact Concluding remarks

Family relationships Family activities and routine Family tensions Relationship breakdown at home  Living in overcrowded accommodation Covid-19 infection in the household Caring responsibilities Disruption to contact with separated parents Disruption to contact with extended family Disruption to contact with birth family for those in a care setting Disruption to contact with parents in detention settings

Supportive aspects of family life
With so much time spent at home during lockdown, being in a safe and supportive home environment was important. Children and young people described how bonding with family and having activities, routines, and celebrations together made their pandemic experience more enjoyable or easier to cope with. It is interesting to note that children and young people did not always credit their parents for putting these activities in place and making certain moments memorable, but clearly some benefitted from the efforts of the adults to make life at home more positive.

Family relationships

Spending more time together as a family was a key aspect of the pandemic experience for children and young people across ages. As explored above, for some being confined to home together led to tensions, or exacerbated tensions where they existed already. However, accounts of family life also included positive experiences, sometimes amongst the challenges. In some cases, the pandemic was said to bring family members closer and to strengthen relationships. This is important given the role that supportive relationships played in helping children and young people to cope during the pandemic. 

“Now I know like it’s important to bond with your family… [during lockdown] we were probably bonding a lot faster, more and because like we were doing more activities and stuff together.” (Aged 9) “I did love just being in the house and being around my mum and dad and siblings. I thought it was nice.” (Aged 16) “I think as a family we were all close [before the pandemic], but we are even closer now; I think we have lockdown to thank for that.” (Aged 16)

Some of those interviewed in their late teens or twenties now reflected that they were grateful for the company of their family and that it was a special time together.

“I think it definitely made me appreciate just being at home more and enjoying time at home with my parents. Just doing simple things. Not always being busy.” (Aged 16) “I was probably going through that stage like in S24 where I don’t want to hang out with my family. But because you don’t really have much choice I’d go [for] walks with them and stuff. I think yes it made us a lot closer as a family.” (Aged 17) “I definitely bonded with my mum more than I usually do, because I was kind of forced to, so it was a good thing.” (Aged 18) “With my sister and mum it was more of an excuse to do more things together and just yes sit in the garden and talk for hours because that’s all we could do… it definitely strengthened our relationships because I feel like again like we [normally] take it for granted that we get to see them every day but you don’t really have quality time together.” (Aged 21) “I think, like, we definitely would, like, have dinner together a lot more. Because that’s not something we ever really did apart from when me and my brother were quite young… So that was quite nice in that regard to, like, spend time all together as a four of us because it hadn’t really been like that for a long time because I was at uni at that point and then just before I went to uni my brother was at uni. So it had been a long time since we’d all been together.” (Aged 22)

Even where there was friction between siblings, some children and young people recalled that they still enjoyed spending more time with each other and finding ways to combat boredom together.

"I think it actually was quite good for us because like although we started arguments; it’s almost like bonded us together because we were doing stuff.” (Aged 12) “Me and my sister – we got really into chess. This is how bored we got. We had a chess board and we just started playing game after game after game.” (Aged 15) “We started bingeing stuff, completing games. And it was just really like, again, I felt like [my brother] was my friend now.” (Aged 18) “Me and my older sister, we started being a bit more close and… being nice to each other. Because we always used to argue but when we was at home we realised… we had to speak to each other and play games.” (Aged 18) “It’s good to have siblings and I wouldn’t want to go through that without them…  someone’s in the house that you can have craic with and have fun with.” (Aged 16)

Seeing more of parents who were working from home or furloughed was mentioned by some as a positive aspect of lockdown (which children of key workers did not experience).

"I feel like during lockdown [my dad who worked away a lot and I] spent a lot more time together so that was, like, sort of, being, like, a bit closer during that time because, like, obviously we were spending, like, all day with each other.” (Aged 14) “[My dad being at home] kind of gave me an opportunity to kind of link with or make a bond – a bigger bond with my dad.” (Aged 18) “We just in general spent a lot more time together because mum and dad are at work quite a lot, so it was quite nice to have everyone like there all the time… We used to go on walks like every single day and like played board games and stuff. And then we always had like a TV programme to watch.” (Aged 16) “Your parents, if they were essential workers like mine, they were always doing their jobs. There was not really a lot of time that we spent together. We spent dinner and breakfast and lunch but that’s about it. I remember sitting there one day… I had finished all my work for school and I was just sitting there with the ball throwing it and catching it over and over again until my mum got home.” (Aged 12)

Family activities and routines

Children and young people, but particularly those who were primary school-aged during the pandemic, recalled family activities as a key memory of the pandemic. These were experienced across income brackets and included playing board games, having movie nights, doing arts and crafts, cooking, baking, and doing Joe Wicks workouts as well as eating meals together. Going on walks as a family was also a strong memory for some. This included walking round the neighbourhood to look at pictures of rainbows that people stuck to their windows during the pandemic as a symbol of hope and support for the National Health Service (NHS). 

"We did quite a few different things and we used, like, Foam Clay to, like, put it on these, like, clay, like, pots and things and make our own, like, shapes and stuff and then sometimes we would, like, bake or cook or something in the afternoon and there was, like, a lot of arts and crafts and stuff.” (Aged 14) “I’m thinking about like ‘oh, I’ve got quite good memories’… one that just came to mind about quite good encouragement from my mum was like we did online PE… Joe Wicks…  I remember on the decking my mum was like ‘come on, you can do it, come on’.” (11 salî) “Sometimes in Covid we would do this thing where like each week we would, this person would pick what design of food they want and then they would make with my mum or dad… and then we would like pick a country, you know, like my sister did Italy… [On some nights] everyone would pick a movie. We would put it into a hat and then we’d pick one out.” (Aged 11) “A couple of times we like, moved the sofa in my like garden and we would like bring the TV and put it on to like this bench and then we’d have like an outdoor movie night.”  (Aged 12) “We’d all go on walks, that was what we did as a family. We’d literally walk like on a three-hour walk, that’s probably what we did most… we watched lots of films, do Joe Wicks… We had like meals together and normally we wouldn’t… We saw a lot more of each other and spent a lot more time together definitely.” (Aged 14) “We always used to go on the rainbow walks and see all the rainbows and we would always like make new rainbows every day and like fill up our whole window. Because in our old house we used to have like a massive window at the front and we would just fill it up with all the different rainbows then watch people come past and spot them.” (Aged 11)

Older children and young people also recalled family activities such as going on walks, watching films, and eating meals as a family. However, they would also spend time separately, especially if they had their own screens. Some felt that their interactions with family members were actually quite limited given they were all at home together.

"I felt like we were all just doing our own thing, even though it was me, my brother, and my dad under one roof. We were all on different schedules. We really only saw each other for dinner.” (Aged 20)  “During the pandemic, other than realistically, walking downstairs for stuff, we didn’t really interact very much.” (Aged 13)

For families with a garden, this sometimes became a focus for family activities during the first lockdown. Outdoor activities described by children and young people included playing and exercising, growing their own fruit and vegetables, sunbathing, and eating outside with their families. Some appreciated that they were lucky to have this space outside.

"My mum got us a netball post… just because it was just something we could have in the garden. It was something to get [my sister and I] outside. And I think it was, like, I kind of really enjoyed it. And I was like, this is really fun… I was really lucky to have the garden.” (Aged 13) “When we didn’t have Covid we would [have] barbecues in our garden and we would also… play cricket and football and basketball in our garden.” (Aged 10) “I was lucky, I had a nice house with a garden, surrounded by fields, that I had access to.” (Aged 18)

It should be noted that those interviewed also included children and young people who did not have access to a garden, who tended to be in an urban or suburban setting and in a lower income household. In some instances, the lack of a garden was described as making the pandemic harder. For example, one child described moving in with her grandparent to have access to a garden, when her mother felt guilty that they were “stuck in a flat”. However, this largely went unmentioned by those without a garden and they tended not to talk about missing out – even though they did not experience the positive aspects described by those with gardens.

"We lived in a very high flat… it was quite challenging because we didn’t have any fresh air. If we wanted fresh air we’d just stick our head out of a window and just breathe in… it was not nice… not having a garden.” (Aged 13) “Maybe I wish I’d had a garden but it didn’t really – I don’t think it really affected us too much really.” (Aged 21)

Finally, accounts highlighted how some children benefitted from efforts made to mark special occasions at home when pandemic restrictions stopped them from going out. Some children and young people recalled enjoying alternative ways of celebrating as a family and appreciating these.  

"Since we couldn’t go out like for my dad’s birthday we made him like this Mexican day where we got him like a poncho and a hat and did him Mexican food for his birthday.” (Aged 12)  “[On my birthday my dad] did, like, a disco on our decking and it was, like, really loud so all the street was, like, dancing in their homes and stuff… It was really fun, though, because it was, like, I still got to see my friends [who came to the bottom of the garden] but they were just a distance away.” (Aged 12) “I normally have a party [for my birthday] but that year like my mum she like, we went on a walk and loads of cars were at the end of the road and it was like all my friends and family and they were all saying happy birthday… It was really nice. Like cos I hadn’t seen anyone in a month and I was like really happy to see everyone.” (Aged 14) “The wider family we couldn’t really see often… And there were, like, celebrations like Eid that we couldn’t really celebrate as much and properly because of the safety precautions. So we sent food to each other’s houses.” (Aged 15)

Challenges at home

Below we detail the range of challenges at home that affected some children and young people during the pandemic. We explore family tensions, and how these could be exacerbated by the additional challenge of living in overcrowded accommodation.⁵ We also explore how children and young people felt they were affected when someone in the household caught Covid-19 and the additional challenges at home for those with caring responsibilities.

Family tensions

Even for families who got on well, being stuck inside together during lockdown was recalled as being a source of tension. Children and young people described feeling “confined”, “claustrophobic”, and “on top of each other”. This was especially true for those with siblings, and even where they enjoyed each other’s company the constant physical proximity could lead to arguments. 

“Well, I appreciated the time I got to spend with them. But it was very stressful.” (17 salî) “Living with your sibling all the time, like, being stuck in one place, like, it definitely led to a lot of, like, a lot more fighting than we used to have.” (Aged 17) “[My sister and I] just butted heads so much. Like, we didn’t get along at all. It’s a bit better now but our whole life we didn’t get along. So when we were together all the time, like, at home, it was a bit too much.” (Aged 19)  “You can be literally best buds with them, tensions build, and some days it just snaps and the whole house hates each other.” (Aged 16)  “It sort of became like a bit more stressful [at home] because my younger sister at the time, she was like, sort of a little bit like naughty in that like sort of like she was like misbehaving in school and stuff like that. And then she sort of brought it home, like during in like lockdown when she wasn’t allowed to like even go to school or go out and stuff like that. So, she was like just sort of taking it out in the house and stuff like just arguing or shouting and just like ignoring like what she was told and stuff… it stressed my mum, and it stressed her because she couldn’t do nothing either like, and then my other sister… like you could tell like it was bothering her, but she just wouldn’t say nothing either. So, I think it just sort of like depressed the house really, but everyone was just sort of like taking it out on each other and then trying to stay out of each other’s way afterwards.” (Aged 22) “People were too much in people’s space, I think, for too long.” (Aged 21)

Some of those interviewed felt that a lack of space at home may have made things harder for them, particularly where siblings were sharing bedrooms or there was a lack of space to play, complete schoolwork, or have time alone. Those in their teens during the pandemic felt particularly strongly about not having their own space.

"We spent a lot of the time together, getting on each other’s nerves.” (Aged 12) “We were all sort of under the same house, we haven’t got a massive, big house, so we were all you know trying to work, do university, well schoolwork from home, and obviously both on Zoom, and both like, ‘shut up!’” (Aged 21) “I think we bickered a lot more and we just like argued just because being close in quarters with everyone’s just kind of like, oh, you need your space sometimes.” (Aged 19) “There was nowhere to sit, like, if somebody was ****ing you off, you still could hear them breathing from the other room.” (Aged 21) “A lot of people said they had too much time to like think [during lockdown]. But because there was like young kids in my house, I had less time because I was always like, I had never really had silence to think in my head because it was always someone was talking.” (Aged 18)

In these circumstances, finding ways to carve out some space was important. Some children and young people described being in each other’s space physically, but creating some separation by being online, or by using noise-cancelling headphones to indicate that they wanted to be left alone and not spoken to.

"I don’t think I spoke to my parents that much because we were all in the same house, a small house, but everyone’s in a horrible mood… [my mum and I] barely spoke to each other, only to bring like food to me and stuff, to talk about school, but because I was mostly on online calls and like attached to my iPad, I didn’t speak to her.” (Aged 18) “We’d spent a lot of time in the same room with each other but we didn’t really converse with each other very much because we were both online as well, like in our own sort of little bubbles.” (Aged 20)

Some children and young people, particularly those who were secondary school-aged during the pandemic, felt that they argued with parents more during lockdown. This was sometimes caused by parents placing rules and restrictions on them, for example introducing rotas for the use of games consoles by siblings or limiting the amount of time spent on screens. Arguments also centred on routines and how much schoolwork was being done. Children and young people also recalled arguments where parents placed restrictions on who they could see out of the house or whether they could go out at all, even if national restrictions allowed them to do so.

"I probably got more angry at [my parents] for not letting me do like certain things… I was so bored… they wouldn’t let me do some of the stuff that I wanted to do… like get an Xbox, which I have now but I couldn’t then because they just wouldn’t let me.” (Aged 13) “We did get quite a few arguments, specifically just me and my mum about school and me getting out of bed.” (Aged 19) “It caused a lot of, like, a lot more fights with my mum too because we would spend a lot more time together. Like, at least before she got, like, respite and I got respite when I was at school or out or doing whatever. But, like, we kind of were just at each other’s necks a lot more… I was just, like, very messy, very disorganised, would, like, leave things everywhere and that, like, really got under my mum’s skin… I was just constantly fighting with my mum over, like, really silly things.” (Aged 18) “Now [me and my mum] are fine but like, before and during the pandemic was always just always like, friction, friction, friction, friction, friction.” (Aged 21) “I remember my mum was really annoyed because for the first bit she was really paranoid about the pandemic I think and me and my dad we went out for a walk… and she was like, ‘oh my God how can you do that’?” (Aged 21)

Some children and young people were aware of tensions between the adults in their household. Young people in their teens at the time were more likely to notice if the pandemic had caused a strain on their parents’ relationship. This was related to job loss, financial worries, and existing relationship challenges, as well as working from home and having to share space with family. This could cause worry, stress, and uncertainty for the children and young people involved.

“[The atmosphere in the house was] very tense. Very, very tense… because nobody wanted to talk to each other… because [my mum and her partner] had a really shattered relationship, stressed with everything and we never talked to each other.” (Aged 14)

This research also captured experiences of tension at home from those in specific circumstances. Some young people shared difficulties they faced during the pandemic where their families were not supportive of them being LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and other). This ranged from experiences of not being able to express themselves or talk openly with their families, to their family being hostile towards them. These young people were particularly impacted by lockdown because they were not able to escape their home environment and could not fully be themselves or express themselves in the way they wanted to.

"When I came out to [my mum] it was really a hostile environment to sit in.” (Aged 20)  “I could like express myself more at school because I was like away from my parents who weren’t like accepting of that, so at school I was like away from them for like eight hours so I could express myself more, but obviously since I was like with them all the time now it was just like really put a damper on how I could like really express like how I felt about myself.” (Aged 19)  “My family situation wasn’t great… so I didn’t have anyone to talk to inside my house… I was just stuck in my room with like a family that I didn’t really like for like just a year with no one to talk to at all, and that just made my mental health like crumble as well… the pandemic just made like me really aware of how much I really didn’t like my family and where I was living at the time.” (Aged 19)  “My friends I knew in uni, they were like, cool, but at home it was like, not cool, you know what I mean… don’t get it twisted, like home is fine, but like it’s a bit restraining, do you know what I mean because again, or especially with identity, coming from like a religious conservative background and identity, it doesn’t really match together, so I just have to close that door until I can go back to uni and open it back up again.” (Aged 22)

This research also explored the experiences of children and young people who were in a care setting during the pandemic, who sometimes described experiencing tensions with those they lived with. One child reflected that he felt trapped at home with his foster family and felt he had no escape from that environment, particularly because he did not have a phone at the start of lockdown to connect with others.

"I did not have a phone then, so it was really hard to communicate with friends… I think [the pandemic] was pretty big and influential on me because not really being able to speak or communicate with people… I was unable to go to school, so it was yes very trapped in the house… Tensions just kept building and being stuck with [my foster carers] was making it a whole lot worse because I couldn’t really avoid them or whatever. So just being there all the time wasn’t the best.” (Aged 17)

Some young people interviewed who were in children’s homes during the pandemic also described experiencing tensions with the others they were living with during lockdown, particularly due to everyone feeling bored and frustrated at the situation. One young person also described how strictly pandemic regulations were enforced in her home and her feelings of frustration at not being able to leave the grounds at all.

“[There were] quite a lot of interpersonal, like, conflicts as well in that home. And I think a major part of that is because of Covid. People didn’t have anything to do so it just created loads of boredom, which then would be projected onto other people. And then try and start things that would just fill their time because they had nothing better to be doing.” (Aged 19)  “[I was] definitely bored many times. It was fine but then we, like, even the house I lived in, the residential with the kids, with other girls, like, we’d get bored and then we’d start, like, ripping each other’s hair out.” (Aged 20)  “Because I live in a residential home we had to follow the rules a lot stricter than anybody else would have had to because again residential homes guidelines were ‘go with the government guidelines’ and they will not go against what the government kind of says… Even though everybody else was allowed on a 10-minute walk, we wasn’t… Residential homes are very strict stuff.” (Aged 20)

Relationship breakdown at home

In some cases where children and young people experienced difficulties at home during the pandemic, this was described as leading to relationships breaking down between them and adults in the household. One young person in foster care described how being stuck inside with her foster family exacerbated existing tensions and the placement broke down. She was then supported by children’s social care to move on to semi-independent living but described finding it tough staying in her foster home while waiting for this.

"It definitely, like, just, like, rubbed us the wrong way, I guess, and just kind of like the straw that broke the camel’s back. I think we were already heading that way but I think if we weren’t stuck in the house together all of the time it probably… wouldn’t have… might have ended differently if Covid wasn’t a thing… It was a long process [moving out]… like, when I think about it, two months living with people where, like, you’re not – like, they are your family but you’re not family anymore is quite sad and traumatic… I have, like, talked to social services about going to therapy not because I’m sad but because I feel like when you’ve been through so many traumatic things your brain locks them away and I’d really like to unlock those things.” (Aged 20)

Another child described how the pandemic affected his relationship with his mum and stepdad in various ways, including disagreements over Covid-19 misinformation, leading him to eventually break off contact.

"So during the pandemic it was like me and my dad [living together], and then like split custody between me and my dad, me and my mum, but things got slightly strange with my mum… There was a massive fracture caused between me, my mum, and my stepdad, because of Covid… We disagreed on a lot of things in terms of Covid… You’re spending so much time with family members you kind of start to realise the things you don’t like about them, and I definitely came to a big realisation of like how much I preferred living with my dad over living with my mum… During Covid like just [my stepdad] was just believing so many conspiracy theories… then he would like try to say that your opinion was wrong, because his politicians had said x, y, and z, it was just like, at that point he felt like his opinion was more valid or correct than, you know, my opinion… So like while me and my dad kind of bonded more, me and my mum slowly began to fade, which actually ended up continuing on after Covid… I haven’t seen her in two years… I think there was just so much frustration being like trapped indoors, it, you know, hurting family members.” (Aged 17)

Some of those interviewed experienced their parents splitting up during the pandemic. Those in their teens at the time were sometimes aware of the pandemic circumstances contributing to their separation. Lockdown could also make it harder for their parents to live separately despite the relationship breakdown, which was particularly challenging in smaller living spaces or overcrowded accommodation. This reflects that tensions within households during the pandemic, in some cases, did lead to long-term changes in households, families, and dynamics.

My parents were going through like separation at that time… so that was quite upsetting… [In terms of changes to family relationships, there were not any] positive ones… just like my family situation getting worse for my parents.” (Aged 21) “So at the time my mum and dad were living in the same house… But they were separated, so that was a really, really hard time… in separate rooms and things… they’re in the same house, but they just didn’t speak.” (Aged 22)“So at the time my mum and dad were living in the same house… But they were separated, so that was a really, really hard time… in separate rooms and things… they’re in the same house, but they just didn’t speak.” (Aged 22)

Living in overcrowded accommodation

This research included interviews with children and young people living in overcrowded accommodation during the pandemic. Those interviewed in overcrowded accommodation included children and young people eligible for free school meals, in contact with children’s social care and in contact with mental health services. In addition, some children and young people living in overcrowded accommodation were care leavers or asylum seekers. 

Individual experiences varied depending on specific circumstances but it should be noted that the challenges of overcrowded accommodation were often experienced alongside other difficulties during the pandemic. These included the challenges already described, as well as coping with illness, bereavement, or shielding. Being confined to an overcrowded household during lockdown also intensified existing tensions or stresses within the household and made the new challenges of the pandemic harder to cope with for this group. This reflects the compound impact of experiencing multiple challenges at once.

“I would say [lockdown and living in a crowded space with family] definitely impacted my relationships with my family… [without it] if I was in somewhere separate from my family there wouldn’t have been that kind of pressure on our relationship.” (Aged 20)

Children and young people highlighted the value of having their own room, even if the household was overcrowded. They felt that it helped to have a space they could retreat to in order to decompress and have privacy. Those who did not have their own room explained that they felt they would have found it easier to cope with the pandemic, and their life circumstances in general, if they had had a private space.

“Before [living where I was living during the pandemic] I actually did have, like, I generally had my own room… I’d come in from whether it was school or a job or something, you know? Come in and just kind of relax, kind of have that time to think… I didn’t have my own real space.” (Aged 22)

Those living with family in overcrowded conditions during the pandemic described tensions at home between family members as being more acute when children and young people or their parents were already under stress, or the home did not feel like a safe or relaxing place. One young person spoke about the challenges of multiple family members sharing bedrooms and the way that this overcrowded living situation exacerbated other challenges, including stress about finances. The situation was further made challenging because domestic abuse between parents was taking place within an overcrowded household. This young person explained that social care had been alerted to her father’s behaviour at the start of the pandemic, but had nowhere else to house him, so both parents continued to live in the same house together.⁶

“The largest room, [is where] my mum and my two brothers [slept], usually. [And then things got worse at home] I think because [my parents] were just forced to always stay [in]. I think my dad was so used to going out. … He didn’t really want to follow the rules because he was like, you know, he was so sick of staying at home. … [My parents] were at each other’s neck constantly. Things like bills going up and trying to manage that. And also trying to apply for things like, you know, furlough… There was a lot of arguments about, you know, money and stuff.” (Aged 18)

Overcrowded conditions were directly linked to a decline in wellbeing and mental health during the pandemic by some children and young people, who struggled with the lack of space and privacy, alongside not being able to see friends or do activities that they enjoyed. 

“I’d say at some points I was probably depressed as well… I definitely was just depressed and, like, just feeling down… being in a, you know, really, like, small space, claustrophobic space.” (Aged 22) “Sometimes I felt like claustrophobic.” (Aged 12) “[I was] frustrated because I didn’t have any space of my own. I couldn’t go out and see my friends, I didn’t know what I was doing with my life.” (Aged 22)

In some instances those interviewed were sharing spaces with people who were not family and had to adjust to pandemic restrictions in this context. One care leaver who moved into accommodation for semi-independent living during the pandemic described her difficulty navigating strict rules about how and when she could use shared facilities.

“To use the kitchen we had to ring down and [if] someone were using it you couldn’t use the kitchen. And same with laundry if you need to do your washing and someone’s got theirs in. And you’d have to wait for them to be finished.” (Aged 20)

Where children and young people were in overcrowded accommodation and had additional difficult circumstances to deal with, such as conflict between parents, financial hardships, family illnesses, or bereavement, the impact on wellbeing was seemingly even more acute. Those interviewed described feelings of anxiety, anger, or frustration, intensified by a lack of personal space.

“That was, like, very difficult having my mum, my auntie, my uncle; my brother was there as well and my cousin. So it was a very crowded place. It was also very, like, emotionally draining with kind of like family stuff. So I did end up, like, developing anxiety… I was very sad a lot of the time… Making sure, like, the room was clean that we shared, making sure we didn’t argue. It was just, like – I was used to that before Covid but at least before Covid I could actually leave the house a little bit. During Covid I couldn’t leave at all.” (Aged 19)

It should be noted, however, that there were also select instances where children and young people felt that the experience of cohabiting and sharing overcrowded living spaces was not especially difficult for them and had even brought the family closer together. 

“It’s quite cramped, I guess you could say. So lockdown was a bit much… I share a room with both of [my siblings]. We’ve always had this house. So I guess it’s what we’re used to… It is cramped, but we don’t know anything else… I’ve shared a room with them my entire life.” (Aged 15) “I remember feeling very cramped… it was bittersweet because it meant that, during Covid, I got very close to my siblings because obviously we were all sharing one room… on the other hand, it was very frustrating, because any argument that we would have, there was no space to like defuse it, like no one had any privacy… living on top of each other… Thankful because I actually got to spend it with my family and even though there were obviously points which lead to like frustration being overwhelmed, it was still a good time… We had dinner together every day, we had lunch together every day, we had breakfast, we had all the meals together everyday kind of thing, we just got very close as a family.” (Aged 22)

Covid-19 infection in the household

Covid-19 in the household also affected home life for children and young people (experiences of this are also explored in Clinically vulnerable families, and experiences of being ill with Covid-19 and of post-viral conditions are explored in Health and wellbeing. Experiences of bereavement are also covered separately in Şînî.)

Children and young people’s experiences of Covid-19 in the household were mentioned in interviews in relation to family life largely in instances where the experience was worrying or frightening. Children and young people described feeling scared about the impact of the illness on household members, especially when these members were vulnerable or when they experienced someone at home feeling very unwell with Covid-19. This fear was in addition to feeling worried about catching Covid-19 themselves. One child shared how upset he was when his dad was in hospital with Covid-19.

“I was getting really stressed… I didn’t really think [my dad] was going to come out [of hospital] for a long time and then he didn’t really come out for a long time so then that made me sad because then I thought it would take a lot of years. And then maybe what if he passed away?” (Aged 11)

Children who were primary school-aged during the pandemic particularly recalled worrying about having to self-isolate and feeling sad and confused about not being able to interact with other household members. These experiences were more difficult when household members needed to isolate, but had to use shared spaces (one bathroom, for example).

“My whole family had Covid, but I didn’t… I kind of separated from them because I was the only one who didn’t have Covid and they had Covid so we had to mainly be in our rooms… It wasn’t nice because you couldn’t really speak to anyone that much really… you had to literally just call them or text them just to speak to them.” (Aged 10)  “It was [difficult to isolate with six in the house], like, my sister caught it and we didn’t catch it and then she got rid of it and then the rest of us caught it… like, going back and forth with us… We couldn’t [isolate] because it was too much to do. But we always, like, had, like [a bottle of] something that’s there for, like, cleaning and all that. So if we’d been in the toilet we’d clean the toilet and just open the windows all the time.” (Aged 19)

Covid-19 in the household had a specific impact on children and young people when the primary caregiver got sick. As well as causing worry about them being ill, this also had an even greater impact on day to day life and existing routines. Some of those interviewed mentioned having to take on caring responsibilities and chores when this happened.

For those in overcrowded accommodation, the lack of space made it difficult to manage the recommended self-isolation measures when someone caught Covid-19. Some recalled people using rooms at separate times or moving bedrooms (e.g. the well sibling sleeping in their parents’ room) so that the sick person was away from others. However, there were situations where this separation was not possible. This was particularly stressful when a family member was clinically vulnerable, and the lack of space made it harder to protect them from the person who was ill.

“At one point my father caught Covid, so like he would sleep in one room and then my mother and my brother would sleep in the same room as me, which was like awful just because I was like a teenager, and then I had like my mother and like my, I think it was seven-year-old brother at the time just living in the same room as me and it was awful.” (Aged 19) “I had Covid a couple of times… it was bad, I couldn’t go near him, so we would have to be in a separate room. If I was going downstairs, [my five-year-old brother with leukaemia] would have to go in a different room, so it was hard.” (Aged 16)

Caring responsibilities

This research included interviews with children and young people who had caring responsibilities during the pandemic. Some had existing caring responsibilities prior to the pandemic and shared how these could be affected by lockdown and shielding, increasing the weight of responsibility felt by some children and young people. Some took on new caring responsibilities during the pandemic. This was because adults were unwell and they looked after that adult and/or other family members while they were ill. Some children and young people also took on caring responsibilities for younger siblings when parents had to work.

Children and young people’s pre-existing caring responsibilities included supporting parents, grandparents, and siblings. Those interviewed described how they felt these responsibilities were affected by pandemic restrictions and lockdown in different ways. In some cases, the routine changed and the amount of time spent caring for siblings increased with everyone at home during the week. One child described taking on an additional responsibility for helping her mum to attend online medical appointments for her sibling, as her mum was not confident doing video calls herself.

“I did a lot more caring than I did before during the pandemic… I had to take care of [my brother] a lot more and just like keep him distracted and everything. It was nice because I got to spend time with him, but it was also draining.” (Aged 14)

Family members outside of the household being unable to visit led to instances of children and young people having to do more. For example, one child recalled spending more time than usual with her grandmother because her uncles were unable to come over, while another young person described being affected when her older brother could not come back home to help look after their mum.

“[My mum] had depression and anxiety since I was a very young child. My brother would handle most of the care and responsibilities when I was younger, obviously, because he’s eight years older than me. But because he wasn’t living at home when Covid restrictions started he couldn’t legally come home. So it kind of fell to me… I think the biggest change [during the pandemic] probably was just my brother not being able to come home every weekend and not being able to kind of take some of the burden off of me.” (Aged 21)

Being responsible for household shopping required particular effort during lockdown. Children and young people recalled the additional time this took, particularly if they had to visit different shops to find supplies or if they also had to disinfect the shopping to protect a family member who was shielding.

“Before I could get around with, you know, going on a bus to Asda and getting home … you’d have to travel, like, so far on a bus [for toilet roll]… it was really hard.” (Aged 18) “It was me doing all the shopping. It was so hard to get food delivery slots. I remember. Because that’s the first thing you think of. You’re like, well, I’ll get it delivered. But then everybody’s had the same idea so you literally can’t get a slot booked in. So I would end up getting a taxi to the supermarket, Tesco or wherever, and bring the shopping back and then literally disinfecting everything outside, bringing it into the house.” (Aged 21)

Some described the impact of this extra time spent on caring in terms of having less time to themselves; including time to follow lessons or do schoolwork, although they did not see themselves as being behind their peers because of caring responsibilities. This highlights the difference in their pandemic experience versus other children and young people who found themselves bored and facing “empty time” with little to do during lockdown.

“I didn’t have as much freedom, not that there was much freedom to have but, all the time I had to be doing something for someone or helping out here or doing something there… [I felt] restricted and a bit tired.” (Aged 22)  “And that [caring responsibility] kind of meant that I didn’t really have like time to just like chill out.” (Aged 14)

A key theme among those with ongoing caring responsibilities was the additional emotional impact of caring for loved ones during the period of the pandemic. Some were already used to caring for a family member who was clinically vulnerable, but now had to cope not only with that responsibility but also the fear that their loved one would become critically ill with Covid-19. This is further explored in Clinically vulnerable families.

“[What changed during the pandemic was] realising that okay, there actually is a threat to my sister’s life.” (Aged 20) “I was definitely scared for [my mum]. I was scared for everyone.” (Aged 18)

Some of those interviewed described feeling a greater weight of responsibility than before when caring for family members who had mental health difficulties. Where it was harder for them to access support during the pandemic (both from mental health services and from seeing friends and family), this placed additional strain on the child or young person as the responsibility was not shared. Some also felt that the experience of lockdown affected their loved one’s mental health, which added to feelings of stress for these children and young people.

“I know [my mum’s] mental health really struggled… I think it was harder as well because… like, when she’s struggling with her mental health and I’m having to get her to make a GP phone appointment and she’s not getting that face-to-face care and can’t read body language. It doesn’t feel like she’s connecting with anybody… I feel like I took a lot of her parental responsibility off of her because I felt like it would give her more room to deal with her own mental health.” (Aged 21)  “I reckon if the pandemic weren’t the case and [my brother] wasn’t stuck… it was like he was by himself as in like with his phone, he’s very obsessed with technology… now he’s doing clubs, he’s got lots of different things to do, but he wasn’t able to do those anymore, so it proper messed with his routine [which affected his mental health].”  (Aged 12)

Given this added stress, some of those interviewed described missing the relief normally provided by school, and the opportunity to do something other than caring. This underlines the importance of school not only as a place to learn, but also as a source of support and respite. While some still found time to do hobbies at home, or to at least spend time on their own to relax, others felt that even this was hard.

“I have, like, for basically the majority of my life have been, like, the caregiver… So when I was at school it was like a massive break from that. Because I can’t really switch that off at home in any way, shape, or form.” (Aged 18) “School was my time to get hobbies. I would get into almost every single afterschool club because I was like, get me out of home. Anything that gets me out of the house.” (Aged 18)

Children and young people who were previously providing support for a family member who did not live with them were also affected by the pandemic restrictions. Some stopped visiting their relative during lockdown, or could only deliver shopping for them. As well as missing their relative, some recalled feeling worried about them. Some families continued to support a relative in a different household – one young person described still going to her grandmother’s house to help her in between carers’ shifts and thinking about what she would say if the police stopped her. 

“I’m very close to my grandma. She’s got Parkinson’s. It was very hard not seeing her every single day. Funniest thing is she only lives a door away… We always make that conscious effort to, you know, go and see her, dress her, bathe her, if she needs any food and things like that. So that was hard not seeing her.” (Aged 21)  “We still had to care for my nan… if anyone, if police pulled me over I would have had to say ‘I’m not going home because I’ve got to go and care for my nan, sorry’.” (Aged 20)

Children and young people took on new caring responsibilities during the pandemic when adults in the household were unwell (including with Covid-19) and they had to look after them. Some also played a role in looking after the rest of the household when the main caregiver was unwell, such as cooking, cleaning, taking care of younger siblings, and helping younger siblings to attend online lessons or do schoolwork. Some children and young people described feeling the weight of this new responsibility, particularly those in a single-parent household, and experiencing worry and feelings of anxiety.

“As soon as I got better [from Covid] I had to start caring for my grandma. And then as soon as my grandma got better and my mum started feeling unwell so I had to care for her… like a constant circle of, like, I got to make sure everyone’s okay.” (Aged 20)  “I had to do most of the cooking, the cleaning, and I would have to physically carry [my mum] to the shower to help her out and everything and sit her down… it was quite time-consuming. And also, like mentally draining, you know.” (Aged 18) “I guess what was the hardest about Covid was after my mum came back from hospital… because she had all the effects of Covid. We had taken a lot of her responsibilities in the house and because she was just so tired, like it was quite like… taxing on us at home. Obviously I’m not blaming her, but as a viewpoint of me, it was very hard seeing her going through that and then us having to pick up where she was doing the stuff.” (15 salî)

Stepping in to look after younger siblings when parents had to work during lockdown was also a factor in children and young people assuming new caring responsibilities. This included those with parents who were key workers and going out during the day, as well as those with parents who were busy working from home. Children and young people described it being challenging trying to support younger siblings with home schooling.

“I was in charge of, like, getting my brother and sister to their lessons on time… making sure they wake up on time… he sleeps a lot so that was a struggle.” (Aged 18)  “It was just draining and tiring having to monitor [my younger brother] all the time… trying to commit to him, especially as I wanted to do other things. I just wanted to not have to exert myself and put all of that energy into… trying to convince him to study.” (Aged 16)

It should be noted that despite the challenges of these new responsibilities, accounts of taking on caring responsibilities were not wholly negative. Some of those interviewed felt that there were positive aspects of the experience, such as learning new skills and avoiding boredom. This reflects the finding that accounts of the pandemic were rarely wholeheartedly positive or negative, and also echoes how finding something rewarding to do could help some children and young people to cope better during the pandemic.

“I learnt a lot as well from having to like care for my sisters a lot… just things that I didn’t know how to do… my friends are like, where did you learn how to do that.” (Aged 14)  “I think it was good because it sort of took my mind off, you know, what was actually going on… I wasn’t really that bored during, you know, during the week. Because, you know, I wake up, I have to either do school, do homework, or watch my sister or do this and do that. So [looking after younger siblings] kept me on my toes.” (Aged 19)

Disruption to family contact

Below we detail how children and young people felt they were affected by disruption to family contact during the pandemic. This covers disruption to the usual contact with separated parents, with extended family, and with birth family for those in a care setting. We also share experiences of how contact was affected for children and young people with a parent in a detention setting. 

Disruption to contact with separated parents

Some children and young people whose parents were already separated at the onset of the pandemic described seeing less of one parent during lockdown and missing this contact. This was particularly so in cases where there were existing joint custody arrangements or where children were used to regular visits with a parent and/or siblings who lived in a separate household. Some recognised that this situation put more strain on the parent with whom they were living. 

Although the government provided an express exception⁷ to the “stay at home” rules which allowed children (aged under 18) to move between their parents’ homes, responses in this research suggest that movement and contact was still impacted in practice. Those interviewed generally reported seeing less of their non-cohabiting parent for periods of time; some missed their parent, while others were less concerned about the arrangement or enjoyed staying put in one home. In this context, video calls became an important communication tool.

“I‘d say my mum I got to see less because she lived at her house. But then again, I could go to and from. I don’t think I could at the start of the pandemic. I believe we got told to literally stay put at one household or something.” (Aged 20)  “My mum and dad have been split for years. Yes. So, I couldn’t really see my dad neither through it because obviously households weren’t allowed to mingle neither. So, I had to wait for a good few months before I could see my dad.” (Aged 22) “Every so often, [my dad] would come, because he lived like eight miles away… so he would come and he would give me a bit of sweets. But then I really appreciated it, just like he came all that way just to give me some like sweets or something and just so he could just see me… It made me a bit upset, just not being able to see him.” (Aged 12) “This broke my heart, in fact, I still get emotional, his dad having to stand at the doorway… Not being able to hug him… kiss him… it was hard for them. It was definitely hard for his dad.” (Parent of child above aged 12) “I missed out on seeing my daddy for ages because he lives in [a different UK nation] so I wasn’t able to go… [for] well over two years. I hadn’t seen my daddy in ages… It was a long time… [we talked] over FaceTime.” (Aged 19)  “So I used to go to my dad’s every other weekend, me and my sister, then when Covid came my mum was like, ‘but you don’t have to do it anymore’, that was good.” (Aged 21)

Disruption to contact with extended family

Spending less time with family outside the immediate household was almost always experienced negatively, with children and young people describing feeling frustrated, worried, and a sense of loss. Negative experiences included missing grandparents, missing seeing family members grow up (such as cousins, or in some cases, siblings in a different household), and not being able to come together to mark family occasions.

“I remember really, really, really missing my family… One day I was in the corner of my room hugging mummy just snuggled up saying, ‘I want it to be over’.” (Aged 9) “I felt awful with obviously my grandparents, I did really want to see them every single day because I was really missing them, but obviously I couldn’t because I don’t want to spread something.” (Aged 19)“I’m probably closer with my cousins, and probably closer with all my family really we just like missed each other so much over the pandemic.” (Aged 13)“I had a baby nephew who we couldn’t see. So that was quite hard. Like, watching him grow up through photos and videos: that was hard… We did miss a big chunk of him growing up.” (Aged 16)“When lockdown ended and I started seeing them [relatives] again, I felt like they’d missed a year and a half of my life.” (Aged 13)“When Boris said grandparents can go and see people my gran [came to stay and] jumped into the bed, me and my sister started crying with happiness and she also slept with us like one or two nights.” (Aged 9)

Technology became an important tool for maintaining family relationships. Children and young people recalled using Skype, Zoom, and FaceTime to speak with relatives where possible. Where family members were located in other countries, they were already used to being in touch virtually/remotely. However, some described feeling worried about being unable to help their family members or feeling uncertain about when they would next be able to see them.

“I‘d say my mum I got to see less because she lived at her house. But then again, I could go to and from. I don’t think I could at the start of the pandemic. I believe we got told to literally stay put at one household or something.” (Aged 20)  “My mum and dad have been split for years. Yes. So, I couldn’t really see my dad neither through it because obviously households weren’t allowed to mingle neither. So, I had to wait for a good few months before I could see my dad.” (Aged 22) “Every so often, [my dad] would come, because he lived like eight miles away… so he would come and he would give me a bit of sweets. But then I really appreciated it, just like he came all that way just to give me some like sweets or something and just so he could just see me… It made me a bit upset, just not being able to see him.” (Aged 12) “This broke my heart, in fact, I still get emotional, his dad having to stand at the doorway… Not being able to hug him… kiss him… it was hard for them. It was definitely hard for his dad.” (Parent of child above aged 12) “I missed out on seeing my daddy for ages because he lives in [a different UK nation] so I wasn’t able to go… [for] well over two years. I hadn’t seen my daddy in ages… It was a long time… [we talked] over FaceTime.” (Aged 19)  “So I used to go to my dad’s every other weekend, me and my sister, then when Covid came my mum was like, ‘but you don’t have to do it anymore’, that was good.” (Aged 21)

Disruption to contact with extended family

Spending less time with family outside the immediate household was almost always experienced negatively, with children and young people describing feeling frustrated, worried, and a sense of loss. Negative experiences included missing grandparents, missing seeing family members grow up (such as cousins, or in some cases, siblings in a different household), and not being able to come together to mark family occasions.

“[I felt] sad because I couldn’t see any of my family, my loved ones. Frustrated, angry as at home and only had video calls.” (Aged 10) “I couldn’t see my grandparents for half a year, it was making us miss them. I only ever got to see them through photos or on a video call. So I couldn’t see them physically.” (Aged 11)“We did some [Joe Wicks online workouts] together, just me, my mum and my sister did them, and we would have my auntie and my cousins doing it as well and we would FaceTime… or quizzes, that was quite a big one… all four [of us] against my uncles, aunties, and cousins, take it weeks in turns being quizmaster.” (Aged 21)

Some children and young people in their teens and with elderly relatives living locally described shopping and delivering groceries for them during the pandemic, as well as standing outside their homes and speaking with them, or meeting in the garden. These activities helped them to cope with their sadness about not being able to spend time together.

"We tried to stay distanced… so my gran would come over with some shopping and we would sit in the garden with, like, separate glasses of juice where she’d bring her own cup and my mum would be over here. It was very distanced. But I just didn’t want my gran to be very isolated. I was quite worried about that so we tried to keep my gran with us as well.” (Aged 22)

Disruption to contact with birth family for those in a care setting

For children and young people in foster care or children’s homes who were in contact with their birth family, being unable to visit them⁸ due to Covid-19 restrictions was felt to be one of the biggest impacts of the pandemic. Accounts of this highlighted both short-term and lasting effects. Some reflected that this had a long-term impact on their relationship with their birth family as they were kept apart during such a significant time and felt less close afterwards.

"I used to have contact with my mum and my brothers and my nana but that just all stopped because of Covid… It would have been difficult because you’d be in the same room [at the contact centre] and the room is probably about half the size of this [room where the interview is taking place]. But there’s like furniture all around and if you’re touching the same door… it meant like you could catch Covid or something.” (Aged 14) “The only thing is that we probably couldn’t like see our own biological family because of the restrictions and stuff… [I would normally have seen them] every like two months, but you couldn’t because it wasn’t like essential.” (Aged 20) “Probably contact [was what changed the most]. So contact is when you have, like, scheduled time to see your family with another kind of staff member. So that kind of stopped in Covid… I probably, like, called [my mum]… But seeing her in person, no.” (Aged 20) “Just being away from people like my family members, that was really tough, such as my mum. That was really difficult because I didn’t, like I struggled to have much contact with her anyway on the phone but obviously my only way with getting in contact with her was seeing her. And obviously we weren’t able to do that, so I didn’t have contact with them for quite a few months, which really, really hurt… I felt isolated but then sometimes I get that hope… [that] eventually I’d be able to reunite with my mum basically.” (Aged 16) “People kept to themselves [during the pandemic] and in my case my old family kept to themselves. And I imagine that again created their own even stronger bubble and I’d say for me, for an outsider, I’d say it was even harder to then create that bond again with people in that family.” (Aged 17) “So as part of being a looked-after child you have family time, so [name] would see his birth family, so that was one of the negative things of the pandemic that it became almost impossible to continue that family time… you can’t isolate with the people that are your birth family because you don’t live with them.” (Foster carer of child above aged 17)

In some cases, children and young people kept in touch with family members by phone, but found this hard, as phone calls could feel inadequate and awkward. One young person, then in foster care, whose sibling moved into a children’s home at the start of the pandemic, described not being able to contact him initially and then having to make do with phone calls, which he found very difficult given how close they were. Another child, then in foster care, described not enjoying phone calls with his dad and feeling distanced from him during the pandemic.

“They didn’t really let [me and my brother] have contact that much. I think we did anyway. We did sort of just on the Xbox and stuff… But I think during the end of the pandemic they started arranging, like, ten-minute phone calls and stuff… I guess it helps but we grew up together so I think we still need more than that.” (Aged 19)  “Those calls I hated… there was like phone calls with my father, I don’t really like those calls. Like seeing him in person I don’t really mind, but… I didn’t like calling him… Just didn’t feel right to be honest, like I don’t get to see much of him and then even the calls aren’t the same as going and seeing him in person… distanced somehow.” (Aged 17)

Disruption to contact with parents in detention settings

Children and young people with a parent in prison during the pandemic were also interviewed in order to explore their perceptions of how contact was affected and their experiences of visiting restrictions. It should be noted that the aspects of the pandemic that affected these children and young people day to day, including not going to school, spending time at home, and feeling worried about catching Covid-19, were more salient when discussing feelings about the pandemic than the impact of visiting restrictions. However, those interviewed did share their perceptions of changes in contact due to the pandemic and their feelings about these, which are explored below. 

Children and young people recalled in-person visits being stopped and having to rely on phone calls or not being able to be in touch at all. 

“[My dad and I could communicate] on the phone; he would phone the house phone. Every day, basically. But I just didn’t get to see him.” (Aged 14)  “It was quite hard going in to see [my dad]. And at the end of it we were all wanting to go and see him.” (Aged 13) “We used to go up every week. Like, every week to visit. And that was for five years we went up. And then Covid hit; nothing. Like, nothing. Because even they struggled to get – couldn’t even get the phone calls… They were trying to get them out into the hall. But there was that many of them trying to get the phone calls out. And they’ve got the phones in their cells now but during Covid it was nothing.” (Parent of child aged 13)

One young person recalled that she stopped receiving letters from her mother and felt that this was due to the risk of spreading infection.

Accounts also varied as to how long children were unable to visit a parent in person. One child described not being able to visit for over a year due to her dad being in prison in an area with longer periods of lockdown. Another child described being given access to video calls after two and a half years of not being able to visit in person.

“We didn’t get to see [my dad] for over a year… whenever we were off lockdown he might have been on it but whenever we’re on it he was off.” (Aged 14)  “It was a whole two and a half years when we couldn’t see him; we can only speak to him over the phone; and then they introduced purple visit, which is like a FaceTime call through the prisons.” (Aged 15)

Once in-person visits resumed, children and young people described being affected by social distancing measures for prison visitors, including wearing masks, sitting apart, and not being able to touch.

“At first we had to wear a mask and it was proper stuffy in there. So wearing the mask was hard. So I applied for a mask, like, exemption thing. I got it. So I was surprised. But I got to visit [my dad] without a mask then… We couldn’t hug him for a while… we couldn’t even touch him… It was just weird. Like, someone being there, you can’t even interact with them… You couldn’t move the chair any closer.” (Aged 18)  “Obviously because of lockdown we couldn’t go and see [my dad] at all, and at the end of it we could see him but there was no physical touch, no going up and hugging him or anything like that, so it was basically you sat in the room on your chairs and spoke and then left. That was all we could do.” (Aged 15) “We were just [sitting] that far away. It was as if he was miles away… the way they had it set up. And that’s defeating the purpose for the kids. The kids should be able to cuddle and things like that. And eventually it did – they did allow your kids to go and cuddle but they weren’t allowed to take their masks off and stuff like that.” (Parent of child aged 13)

One child described having to take turns with her sister to see their parent when the number of visitors permitted was restricted, with her sister then struggling to adjust when visits became more frequent again.

"There were so many restrictions; you were only allowed one visit in a month. We’ve got an older sister, so it was like one month she would see him, one month we would see him… It made her and dad actually have an argument [when things went back to normal], because she had got that used to not being able to see him she just thought, well, it’s my normal routine now not being able to see him. She had a bit of a struggle.” (Aged 15)

Apart from this instance, those interviewed were unsure as to how the disruption to visiting had affected them and their relationship with their parent and felt that things went “back to normal” in the end. However, one child acknowledged that her dad may have missed out by not seeing her.

"I don’t know [about the impact] really just… I grew up a lot and [my dad] didn’t get to see it.” (Aged 14)

Concluding remarks

These findings highlight how, across those interviewed, tension at home was one of the key factors that made the pandemic harder to cope with for children and young people, particularly where relationships broke down. In some cases this was created by the circumstances of the pandemic and the restrictions of lockdown, and in some cases it was exacerbated by them. Household tensions could also be intensified by a lack of living space, making the pandemic particularly challenging for those in overcrowded accommodation. The impact of tension at home is also a key theme when looking at wellbeing and mental health during the pandemic and how strained family relationships and exposure to adult stress were felt to affect this. 

This research also illustrates how responsibilities at home could be challenging for children and young people during the pandemic, particularly those who were caring for family members (and in some cases also shielding, as will be explored in the chapter on Clinically vulnerable families). As well as the practical tasks taken on by children and young people, these responsibilities could also weigh heavily emotionally given the lack of support from outside the household, the loss of respite from home life provided by school, and the ongoing fear that a loved one could become seriously ill with Covid-19. This weight of responsibility and exposure to adult stress meant that some children and young people “grew up fast” during the pandemic. 

Accounts from children and young people in a range of circumstances highlight the impact of missing members of their family who were not living with them during the pandemic. Not being able to see extended family could in general be a source of sadness and worry, but the disruption created by pandemic restrictions was particularly acute for those in a care setting whose contact arrangements with birth family were affected and for those with parents in a detention setting who were unable to visit them. Accounts from children and young people with separated parents also highlight how they experienced breaks in contact with the parent they did not live with during lockdown, which could have a negative impact on family life and relationships.

As well as reflecting on the challenges, it is important to note how a supportive family environment could help children and young people to cope and feel happier during the pandemic. This research highlights how having the company of family and doing things together was a positive aspect of the pandemic experience for some, especially those who were primary school-aged during the pandemic and likely to be more reliant on family than friends. Accounts suggest how parents played a role in instigating activities and creating memorable moments, even where these were experienced alongside other challenges. Given the challenges of boredom and loneliness discussed by children and young people in relation to mental health, being in a supportive family environment during the pandemic is likely to have been an important factor in protecting wellbeing, albeit one that children and young people were not necessarily conscious of.  

3.2 Bereavement

Têgihiştinî

This section explores experiences of bereavement during the pandemic. This includes bereavement due to Covid-19 as well as from other causes. The findings draw on accounts from those whose parent or primary caregiver died, as well as those who had friends, cousins, grandparents, and others in their life who died during the pandemic. This section highlights how pandemic restrictions made it more difficult to cope with serious illness and bereavement, both emotionally and practically.

Chapter Summary
Experiences of bereavement during the pandemic Reflections on being bereaved during the pandemic Concluding remarks	Experiencing the death of a primary caregiver Seeing loved ones before they died Experiences of hospitals and visiting restrictions Experiences of funerals and mourning Witnessing the grief of others

Experiences of bereavement during the pandemic

Below we detail children and young people’s experiences of bereavement during the pandemic, including experiencing the death of a primary caregiver. We also share accounts of seeing loved ones before they died, hospitals and visiting restrictions, funerals and mourning, and being affected by the grief of others.

Experiencing the death of a primary caregiver

In all cases in this research, where children and young people had a parent or primary caregiver who died during the pandemic, the parent or primary caregiver was also living with the young person when they became sick and died. Some of those interviewed did not wish to discuss these experiences in detail, but some described specific aspects of pandemic restrictions which affected them and their family.  

A key theme from these children and young people’s accounts was their feelings of helplessness during the final months of their parents’ lives, which may have been exacerbated by the circumstances of the pandemic and the impact of restrictions. One young person shared how he felt helpless to support his mum during the final months of her life, and how sad he felt because they had not been able to do the things that they wanted with the time they had left. He also felt that restrictions made it difficult to come together and grieve as a family once his mum died, which made him more distraught. Another young person described how upsetting it was that family members his mum was close to had not been able to visit her before she died.

“I couldn’t really do much about it… my mum passed away during lockdown. And, like, she became ill… You want to, like, help her as much as possible or, like, do as much stuff with her as possible but you couldn’t, really, because you just had to stay in your little bubble or stay indoors… We had to be careful just in case she caught Covid then it could have been worse.” (Aged 21) “My mum’s family live… like a three hour drive away, and I remember, so she was really close to her sister and I’m really close to her as well, and she wanted to come and see mum and I remember dad saying no because of like, ‘oh what if she got Covid’, which in hindsight is a bit stupid because she like died three weeks later… but it was just like such a big thing to ask, like the thought of getting Covid then was just like unimaginable.” (Aged 19)

Pandemic restrictions also had a particular impact in the aftermath of bereavement. As well as not being able to see friends and family freely, one young person explained how he found it hard to be at home in lockdown in the house where his mum had died.

“It would have been nice I guess to have been able to [leave the house] because I guess it’s difficult when it’s like death’s just in your house, so I guess it would have been nice to be able to leave the house a bit more… [with] one of my friends we’d go for like socially distanced walks, so I still had that in a way, not as much as I would have done.”(19 salî)

In these instances, those interviewed were aware that their parent was very ill during lockdown. However, one young person whose dad died very suddenly due to Covid-19 described his shock and disbelief at this, as well as his appreciation for the support he later received from family, friends and school. Shock at the speed of deaths from Covid-19 was also expressed by others who were bereaved during the pandemic, explored below.

“[My dad] got Covid and then he was recovering. Yeah, he got Covid, recovered, and then, yes, I don’t know what happened. It just was on a Sunday night. We just finished what we usually do on a Sunday, eat together… he just started shaking, convulsing and yes, just… he died in my arms.” (Aged 21)

Seeing loved ones before they died

Pandemic restrictions on travel, lockdown measures, and social distancing meant that when loved ones outside of the household became ill, children and young people had often not seen them for some time already. Not being able to see loved ones, even before they became ill, as well as when they were sick, could lead to feelings of guilt, anger, sadness, detachment, and confusion about what had happened when they died. 

“We hadn’t seen him for months before this [he passed away] so we only really found out, you know, the week before it happened.” (Aged 20)

Some children and young people also felt that the events happened really quickly, with many expressing shock, confusion, guilt, and disbelief. In particular, some referred to deaths from Covid-19 happening fast, with loved ones being “fine one week and gone the next”. They described this experience as being “surreal” and that they “couldn’t believe what had happened”.

“She ended up passing away within like the space of two or three weeks. It was very fast… I was still fairly young and so I really just did not understand what was happening. I was like, how has this happened in the space of what three weeks.” (Aged 22)  “I felt guilty because obviously we couldn’t go and see her before she passed away so it was like, it was a shock and [before that] I just felt lonely because I couldn’t go and see her… And obviously she passed away… It didn’t feel real. It still felt like she was here but we just couldn’t see her.” (Aged 16)

A notable impact of the pandemic context was that some children and young people described worrying about the moral implications of breaking lockdown rules and the impact these could have on people around them. Some travelled to see a loved one before they died because they felt this was more important – whereas some decided not to visit loved ones in order to “keep them safe” or were not able to visit at all. Those interviewed shared similar feelings of “not being able to say goodbye” to loved ones in the way they would have wanted.

“When grandad died, that was when we weren’t allowed to visit [the care home] and I remember we did go once and just, you know, we just handed him something through the window. We broke the rules. You know when you’re just, like… the Prime Minister is doing it, why can’t we?” (Aged 16)  “During lockdown, [grandma] got ill with Covid-19, and like she wasn’t good at technology, she couldn’t call people… we didn’t even get to say goodbye to her. When we found out she’d died [in the care home] it was really upsetting… It was during the first lockdown and I was really young… She died, and I won’t ever get to see her again… The last time I saw her it was just like ‘see you next week’, and then there was no next week.” (Aged 17)

Experiences of hospitals and visiting restrictions

Those interviewed spoke about not being able to visit loved ones in hospital and how hard they found this. Some described feeling worried and sad thinking about their loved ones being alone. 

“Normally if someone’s in hospital you go and see them every day and see how they’re doing, but nobody could do that.” (Aged 14)  “Because it was Covid, [my uncle’s wife and children] didn’t even get the chance to, you know, see him in hospital or anything like that… We never got to say anything to my uncle at all. And, you know, neither did they, really. They had to stay at home and just, you know, hope for the best.” (Aged 20)

Where children and young people were aware that their parents or other family members were struggling to get information from hospitals, this was felt to make the death harder to come to terms with and left them with lots of unresolved questions. 

“We couldn’t actually go see [grandma in hospital] just because we weren’t allowed to… No one really understood what was happening, and I don’t think we were getting told properly what was actually wrong with her. And then the next thing you know, we’ve got a call, and she’s passed away… It was very difficult to come to terms with… it was all up in the air like no one really knew what happened.” (Aged 22)

Some children and young people spoke about a loved one going into hospital for a non-Covid-19 health condition and contracting Covid-19 in the hospital before they died. One young person explained that her loved one was scared to go into hospital for cancer treatment but was told to go by their doctor – but sadly then caught Covid-19 and died. In these cases, they struggled with the death because they felt it could have been avoided.

“My uncle… had an illness before Covid and then when he went to the hospital, he caught Covid, and then unfortunately, he died because of it.” (Aged 12)

Experiences of funerals and mourning

Children and young people felt that the pandemic had a huge impact on their grieving process and experience of funerals, in particular not being able to celebrate a loved one’s life in the way they would have wanted to and not being able to comfort each other.  

Those interviewed recalled not being able to attend funerals for various reasons. Some had family who had died overseas so were not allowed to travel; others lived in different cities in the UK and could not travel between places due to lockdown restrictions. Restrictions on the size of gatherings were also mentioned, where parents or older family members attended a funeral, but not the children or young people in the family. It is worth noting that some younger children felt that, while they were unsure whether they wanted to go to a funeral, they would have liked to have had the choice to be able to.

Those who attended a funeral for loved ones spoke about how strange it felt with the restrictions in place, often highlighting that it did not “feel right” or did not help the process of grieving.

“A few people went [to grandma’s funeral], they were like having to like stand on opposite sides of the room and like it was very sort of like closed off and it was hardly anything, like [people] said a few things and that was it really. It wasn’t very, like it didn’t feel right in a way like, I don’t think anyone gained any sort of closure from her passing.” (Aged 22)

This sense of strangeness around funerals was sometimes exacerbated by conflict in families about funerals and restrictions: who should come and whether they should stay socially distanced. One young person, whose young cousin died due to heart failure during the pandemic, explained that her grandparent hugged her at the funeral and that this meant a lot to her. Conversely, one young person whose parent had died described other family members being “standoffish” at his mum’s funeral. In this case, the restrictions caused conflict and further pain to the young person, who just wanted family to comfort him. Another recalled her family being strict about social distancing at her great-grandmother’s funeral and feeling that this was wrong.

“The one thing I do remember though is my nan, who must have been eighty at the time, literally came up to me and said ‘I don’t care about Covid, give me a hug’, and I think in that time a lot of people in that… in my family kind of went ‘you know what, getting Covid isn’t as bad as just wanting to provide that support’… The funeral directors literally just turned away; they did not care that we were breaking social distancing. They were actually like actually, yes, fair enough.” (Aged 18)  “They were still very, like, cautious about it. And it wasn’t very nice… we were sort of there, like, you could, like, put your, like, worries to the side and, like, at least give us a hug or something. But they were very, like, standoffish and didn’t really want, like, any contact… and so it made, like, that whole period a bit harder.” (Aged 21)  “[The funeral] was at a synagogue… Only about 20 people were allowed to turn up. It was quite a big hall, about 20 people turned up. And like I was a few seats away from my mum and nan. Even it got to a point where my aunt, my mum and that were so upset like people just didn’t care about the social distance… Why on earth do you expect someone to be sat apart from a loved one who’s clearly distraught… In my opinion, like me personally, I don’t care if someone’s got Covid, if they’re like distraught and that, I’m gonna go over to them, hug them, tell them everything’s okay, and sympathise with them.” (Aged 21)

Where children and young people were not able to attend funerals or ceremonies, they described examples of trying to make space to process grief in alternative ways. Examples included visiting a grave and leaving flowers once restrictions had lifted or scattering a loved one’s ashes even if they were not able to attend a cremation ceremony.

“I couldn’t attend the funeral myself… Restrictions meant that they only allowed one person from each family. And even then everyone had to be really distanced… We only got to visit at the graveyard… a year after everything had happened.” (Aged 20)

“Zoom funerals” were also experienced by some of those interviewed. Watching a funeral on Zoom was described as being a strange and “dystopian” experience.

“Going to a digital funeral is not at all like going to a real-life funeral… There’s usually a routine, you usually go to the funeral, you cry with other people… It just wasn’t the same, I like didn’t do any of the things I usually would have done… No rituals and like I didn’t see any of the family members I usually would have seen… I don’t think I ever really managed to properly mourn… it was so surreal and detached.” (Aged 20)  “I just, I didn’t believe that my uncle actually passed away. So, the fact that there was no [in-person] funeral still made me have that mindset that, oh he’s actually fine, he’s just in the hospital, being taken care of.” (Aged 19)

One young person explained that his mum’s funeral only had eight people, all of whom had to socially distance, and that others watched the service on Zoom. In this case, the young person felt that it was a blessing in disguise because he did not want to have to deal with large groups of people, although he felt sad for those who could not attend. 

Witnessing the grief of others

Witnessing the grief of others around them during the pandemic could also affect children and young people. Some children and young people recalled others around them being affected by bereavement and described seeing their parents struggling, both with bereavement and the pandemic experience more generally, and worrying about them. Some noted that caregivers “slept in later” or “were more snappy” with them or seemed “depressed”. 

Those interviewed also gave examples of stepping in and taking on responsibilities at home when parents were struggling to cope and others could not visit to help. This was described by those who were struggling themselves as well as those who recognised that their parents were more deeply affected than they were. As well as carrying out practical tasks, children and young people also took on the task of comforting others.

“My mum was more upset [about a close family friend dying] because she was closer to her. I just remember it happening… not that I wasn’t upset but I wasn’t, like – like, it didn’t take over me if that makes sense.” (Aged 12) “Being one of the younger people in the house, I kind of had to step up now both my parents were kind of incapacitated… There was no space and no time and no real ability to mourn in any of the ways that I had done previously.” (Aged 20)

Some children and young people also expressed guilt about not being able to give support to grieving relatives and friends in the way that they would have liked.

“I wanted to support [my bereaved friend] but it was hard because again, like, you know, we couldn’t see anyone as well… It was just little gestures. Just, like, dropping, like, food over. Like, phone calls with all of us.” (Aged 22)  “When Covid hit [my next-door neighbour and family friend], he just wasn’t strong enough to handle it, we weren’t able to go in and see him or anything because of Covid, so it was quite hard… We were able to visit the grave a few months later… We brought flowers so that was nice… It wasn’t the same as maybe going to the funeral but… it’s something. We were close with his wife as well… We tried to help her, but she did seem a little bit sadder.” (Aged 14)

Reflections on being bereaved during the pandemic

For some, experiencing the death of a loved one during the pandemic was their first experience of bereavement. Some said that they felt they were too young to properly understand what was happening at the time but looking back could see that it was hard for them. For children and young people who were already struggling with their mental health, being bereaved in such exceptional circumstances felt like a particularly difficult thing to cope with. 

“I was quite young as well. If it happened now I think I’d understand it a bit more but I didn’t really know what Covid was because obviously I just got told you got ill and then I just got told people were dying… And then it was my grandparents that died… I didn’t cope with it at all. I didn’t know what to do.” (Aged 16)

For some, the death of a loved one reframed how they viewed the pandemic. It was a moment where they realised how serious Covid-19 could be, whereas previously they had thought it was not very worrying. Some felt more concerned or anxious about contracting Covid-19, as well as more fearful in general.

“Mutual friends and people that we were aware [of]… we would see them at one point kind of through a window and wave at them or whatever and then three weeks later they were dead… You couldn’t rationalise it… I do remember being scared. Just scared about the state of the world. I thought, is it always going to be like this? I think a lot of [young people] did.” (Aged 19)  “My friend, she passed away… When I was speaking to her she actually sounded like she was fine and she was getting better… All of a sudden it was just like, oh she’s passed away. It led to me being really anxious… I was scared to lose other people… I was just like really scared, trying to make sure I like never got [Covid], because I didn’t, obviously I didn’t want to die and I didn’t want the people around me to die… And I just didn’t want it to happen to like any of my other relatives, like my mum and my dad and my brothers.” (Aged 17)

Not being able to see friends also meant that children and young people felt less supported in their grief, although keeping in touch online, or in person (once restrictions started to lift) or through school (once open to that individual) mitigated this somewhat.

“I had no one really to be there for me physically and even if like I had friends and family and loved ones and my girlfriend at the time, you know, even though we… confided in each other, it still just wasn’t the same.” (Aged 20) “I wanted to support [my friend who lost her dad to a sudden heart attack] but it was hard because again, like, you know, we couldn’t see anyone… when we started to, like, slowly come outside… [we started] having picnics and just… going on walks… There wasn’t a lot we could do but we just kind of worked with what we had.” (Aged 22) “I remember at the time that [I had just lost my uncle and] I went into school and, like, obviously my friends could tell… They were there for me the whole day and that whole week as well. You know?… I’m really thankful that they were there for me. Because that was a super-emotional time… I hadn’t really experienced any sort of grief before that… and I didn’t expect it to, like, hit me that hard… I think the [pandemic] situation that it was in probably, like, compounded that and made it a lot worse as well.” (Aged 20)

Where children and young people had experienced a traumatic loss or death in their family or social network, this was sometimes associated with feeling anger at the government. Some felt angry about rule breaking from “people higher up” and referenced Partygate⁹. Those interviewed also expressed anger directed at “Covid-deniers” and “anti-vaxxers”, who they felt were perpetuating lies and did not understand the severity of what they had been through, and the real risk involved.

“[It] genuinely made me feel disgusted by the people that were running our country. That they could blatantly lie in the faces of, you know, the people that they’re meant to protect and look out for us at the end of the day.” (Aged 22) “I was bit angry at the fact that I couldn’t go [to my grandmother’s funeral] because, like, I didn’t get to see her whilst, like, lockdown restrictions. And I just felt angry that, like, I didn’t get to say goodbye the way I wanted to… [I felt] angry mostly because I didn’t get to see her while she was sick and [people in government] were all [having parties] and I just – I didn’t get to have, like, final talks with her. Like, I could have had talks. But I didn’t… And you just felt, like, angry at the fact that they was doing that but guilty at the fact that you couldn’t go and see someone – so you felt guilty but they could go and do stuff like [having parties]. So we just felt angry.” (Aged 16) “I’d say I felt angry and frustrated… in October of 2021 I lost my uncle through Covid. At that time I became very, like, resentful towards… people with, like, no empathy towards Covid, you know, Covid deniers, for example, or, like, anti-vaxxers… to read that online, you know, creates a lot of resentment.” (Aged 20)

Concluding remarks

These findings illustrate the life-changing impact of the pandemic for some children and young people and the difficulties faced by those who were bereaved during this time. They underline how experiencing bereavement was a key factor that made the pandemic harder for children and young people. In particular, these findings highlight how children and young people felt giving and receiving support was limited when unable to see people in person or where physical contact was restricted at funerals. Supportive relationships with friends were particularly important in this context. Accounts of supporting others in their grief during the pandemic also reflect the weight of responsibility taken on by some children, practically and emotionally.   

It is also notable that the pandemic context created a dilemma for some of those interviewed – weighing up the guilt and fear of breaking rules in order to see a loved one, versus the guilt of not seeing them and fearing that they might die alone. Related to this, feeling angry – at others in society, and at the government – emerges as a key theme.

3.3 Social contact and connection

Têgihiştinî

This section explores how social contact and connection was affected during the pandemic and what children and young people did to preserve this. We highlight how lockdown disrupted contact with friends and how children and young people managed to stay in touch with each other online and find new communities to be part of. We also explore how children and young people could experience worries about socialising once restrictions eased and the impact of this for them.

Chapter Summary
Disruption to friendships and relationships  Maintaining social contact and connection Worries about socialising when restrictions eased Concluding remarks	The impact of lockdown Experiences of disruption to friendships and relationships Staying in touch with friends  Finding new communities online  Positive reflections on friendships

Disruption to friendships and relationships

Below we explore children and young people’s recollections of the impact of lockdown on social contact, their experiences of disruption to friendships and relationships, and how the pandemic led to worries about socialising for some. 

The impact of lockdown

Suddenly being unable to see friends and peers when lockdown began was a strong memory for children and young people. This was recalled as feeling particularly dramatic for those who were set to leave their school in the summer of 2020, such as those going from primary to secondary school, moving on to sixth form or college, or leaving school, who realised they might not see some of their classmates again.

“I noticed that everyone was going like ‘bye, see you in a few months or a few weeks or something’ and I was like ‘what is going on?’… It took a couple of weeks for me to realise that I wasn’t going to go back for a few months or weeks… I was like it’s okay, but like I was a bit sad because I didn’t get to see my friends every day.” (Aged 9) "You couldn’t really do anything about it because obviously [seeing your friends] was like against the law and stuff. But for it to happen so quickly as well, it was really irritating… the rules were there so fast so, like, you had to, like, adapt to it and, like, really quickly as well.” (Aged 12) "I missed it… seeing my friends, mostly. I was really close with a girl in my primary school. Like, really close. And then I didn’t see her for ages. And being really sad on the last day. Drawing pictures for each other. I was like, I’ll remember you.” (Aged 11) “I just felt like we never really got to say goodbye to everybody, really. It was just so quick.” (Aged 22)  “I never got to say goodbye to some of, like, the most important people in my life at that time. I haven’t seen them again and I never got to say goodbye.” (Aged 20)

For some children and young people, initial happiness about being off school changed to frustration when they realised how much they missed seeing friends during the school day – reflecting the importance of school as a place for social interactions as well as learning.

“I didn’t enjoy school so at the start I was pretty happy… At the end of Covid I just wanted to see my friends again.” (Aged 10) “I didn’t like that at lunch time or break time, I couldn’t play with my friends, I was just stuck at home. If I was at school I would have played with my friends, but I was just at home.” (Aged 9) “I’m a bit more, like, thankful and grateful that school [is in-person now] – because, like, I remember being in Covid just sitting there being so bored. So now I think I’m a lot more, like, thankful and grateful. And, like, before Covid was a thing I didn’t really enjoy going to school… it was like a chore… But now I’ve, like, because I have, like, a lot of friends I just go in there and actually enjoy myself. And, like, it’s fun.” (Aged 14)

In this context, some of those interviewed who were able to attend in-person schools¹⁰ described being grateful for the social contact even if they were still apart from their closest friends. 

“There was one boy that was in my actual class who went to key worker school with me and I feel like my friendship with him got a lot, lot, like, closer. Because I was always friends with him but not as close. We started talking a lot, lot more than we probably would have.” (Aged 14) “I mean a lot of my friends weren’t there because their parents weren’t key workers, so that was a bit upsetting. But I mean it gave me a chance, especially like in primary school… to like socialise with people that I don’t normally talk to, and make friends outside of like who I’d usually talk to. So that was quite nice.” (Aged 14)

Notably, some of those interviewed reflected that certain teachers found ways to help students interact more with each other online, even while they were physically apart. Examples of this included extended online lessons or breakout groups, which helped to mitigate the effects of reduced socialising in school.

“The only bad, sad thing about home school is not seeing my friends… [But] friendships didn’t affect me that much… because we would see each other… once an hour because of the calls we did.” (Aged 10)  “His school teacher was really good because, when they did start the home schooling, she would say like this session’s finished I’ll be back in an hour and she would leave them online to talk. So they were allowed to chat amongst themselves for a little bit, which was nice.” (Parent of child above, aged 10)

The cancellation of organised activities that took place out of school, including sports clubs and youth organisations such as Brownies and Scouts, also affected social contact. Children and young people described missing friends that they were used to seeing in these settings, and some missed the connection of doing an activity with others and the camaraderie of being in a team.

“I was part of a Sunday team and during the pandemic they had to stop all like football training. You weren’t allowed to go to matches. It just fully stopped. The whole league stopped, and I just remember thinking how am I going to get past how important it is like to play football and to go and play football with other people and against other people.” (Aged 17) “I couldn’t play football with any of my friends and my football team… I couldn’t talk to any of my friends in Taekwondo.” (Aged 10)

Experiences of disruption to friendships and relationships

Reflections on experiencing this disruption to friendships and relationships varied by age. Children who were in primary school at the onset of the pandemic reflected that the biggest impact on them was an inability to see their friends and play with them during lockdowns. However, as many of this group were unable to communicate much with any of their peers, and did not all have their own phone, they did not feel as though they were comparatively missing out. As such, when returning to school, it was often said that friendships returned to how they were pre-pandemic. While they missed their friends at the time, they were not aware of any lasting impact.

“I think the people in my year have all been affected by it, like equally as much as I have. So, I think we all find it quite easy to make friends.” (Aged 11)  “No one had Snapchat. Because we didn’t have phones… I don’t think I stopped being friends with anyone; it’s just that we never got to see each other.” (Aged 14) “At the time we didn’t really have phones, but whenever we like saw each other through like Zoom classes and stuff it was so much fun.” (Aged 12)

For older children and young people, particularly those who were secondary school-aged during the pandemic, having access to a phone was an important factor in coping with the disruption of lockdown. Not having access to a phone when other peers did was said to be tough, making it hard to stay in touch with friends and keep up with what they were doing, leading to feelings of missing out. In some cases, those without a phone also lacked the devices and/or Wi-Fi to access online lessons, so were doubly affected in relation to social contact.

“I didn’t have a phone. And when you’re in Year 7, that’s when you’re supposed to make all your friends and keep them. So while everyone was texting their friends and everything, I was just there, stuck.” (Aged 15) “I lost a couple [of friends] probably because I never really kept in contact with them… I used to text here and there but… I never really had a phone so I couldn’t really text them.” (Aged 19) “I was overwhelmed, anxious, and just was constantly worried about what other people were thinking of me because I’d gone through like this whole time of not seeing anyone, and then everyone had changed [when we went back to school]. I didn’t have any, a phone or any social media at that time, so I didn’t keep up with all like the trends and all that. So, they all came back and all this new stuff and [it was] completely different and I didn’t understand any of it. I felt like an old person.” (Aged 18) “With my friendships, I lost contact with my friends for, like, a long time, like a few months, like there was no way I could contact them or see them so I felt quite alone… Didn’t have a phone back then… All of a sudden we had to stop going to school, and we had to start doing online learning, but I couldn’t do online learning because I didn’t have the right tools to access it.” (Aged 13)

In some instances, children and young people also described feeling left out despite having a phone, where peers did not include them in chats on social media. As a result, they were conscious of missing out on conversations and felt excluded from friendships.

“I FaceTimed [friends] but I felt really left out a lot. They used to make group chats, so they’d have one with all four girls, one with three girls, one with a different three girls… It would be really strange like that. And it would be like the one you’re not in was the best one and stuff like that. It’s not very nice. They would plan to hang out without me and they would be like willing to break the bubbles for some people and wouldn’t with me.” (Aged 14)

The disruption to social contact and reliance on phone contact was also described as being tough for children and young people who did not have an established friendship group to keep in contact with during lockdown, including those who were new to their school.

“Not having friends going into lockdown, I wasn’t able to get, I wasn’t able to access other people’s phone numbers… I mean, sometimes I’d be added to all these groups just as a joke and people would have my phone number and start like prank calling me and stuff, which quite upset me really because I was, I was like, if you’re not going to bother wanting to be my friend, don’t phone me.” (Aged 16)

Reflections on the impact of this disruption also varied with age. Children and young people who were secondary school-aged during the pandemic were more conscious of lasting impacts than those who had been at primary school. Some reflected that their friendship groups shrank over the pandemic when they could not see friends in person, resulting in smaller but stronger friendships emerging post-pandemic. These children and young people recalled losing more peripheral friends while creating much closer links to the friends they would talk to every day. Although some reflected that this might have happened without the pandemic, it was also felt that the pandemic may have accelerated changes to friendship groups.

“Some [friendships] strengthened; some weakened – there’s only two friends I speak to now that I spoke to in the pandemic. There was probably about a group of six of us and there’s only two of them I speak to now. We went from seeing each other every day, sharing everything with each other, to not. But I think it could have been personal growth as well as [the] pandemic. So, us growing as people and kind of outgrowing each other as well.” (Aged 21) “I think it definitely strengthened some friendships. But you see who puts in effort with you when, like, things are difficult.” (Aged 22)

Looking back at the experience, some children and young people also reflected that it was harder to maintain friendships and be supportive to each other when people were kept apart while going through a difficult time. 

“Friendships could kind of carry on but they were just weird because everyone was living their own lives, and everyone was doing their own thing, and no one had anything in common other than the fact we were all not allowed to go out.” (Aged 21)  “I think because everybody was so hyper fixated on their own problems, it was very difficult to try and, you know, acknowledge somebody else’s problems and try and be there for them. And depending on the severity of how much someone was, you know, in their personal bubble, what they were really going through, it would definitely be even more difficult for that person to try and keep in contact with a lot of other people.” (Aged 22)

Adhering to pandemic restrictions in different ways was also said to affect friendships. Some children and young people recalled pandemic restrictions leading to them feeling left out when other friends were in a bubble together, or where their parents were stricter on following restrictions than others (but not necessarily shielding). 

“It upset me later on in lockdown when we had bubbles, because two people could hang out at once and it left me feeling quite left out because they would just hang out and I couldn’t join in.” (Aged 14) “[My friends] used to like want to go out all the time they’d be like ‘oh you’re social distanced’ and my mum never trusted us and she never let me out.” (Aged 19)

Maintaining social contact and connection

Below we describe how children and young people stayed in touch with friends and went about finding new communities online during the pandemic. We also share reflections from children and young people on what they learned about friendship during this time.

Staying in touch with friends

Online contact, including through video calls, messaging, social media, and gaming, was seen as critical for keeping in touch with friends. Those interviewed described finding new ways of staying in touch, or increasing their use of online contact established before the pandemic. 

One of the main ways that children and young people stayed in touch was through gaming. This was especially true for boys – aged as young as eight during the pandemic – and involved live calls and messaging while playing a video game together. This method of communication gave children and young people something fun and stimulating to do during the pandemic, and allowed them to still interact with their friends regularly. Having the same games console as their friends was important as friendships tended to revolve around a specific game and platform over lockdown. Children and young people created strong connections with those they gamed with and in some cases lost touch with those who did not play with them. 

“I asked for my birthday like a headset with a microphone because it was literally the only way I could talk to any of my friends, because they all had a microphone, so we would just log on to the games and play for like the odd hour a day… I think it really helped me, if I’m really honest, because I like… back then I had really limited like options of how I could like talk to my friends.” (Aged 12) “It just made my friendships better, to be honest… Like just being able to play with my friends all the time… Because Covid hit… [I] just started playing online [on PlayStation]… and then just built on those friendships… because we, because we were like a friend group, it was all just like together really.” (Aged 12) “With mates obviously we’re on our game every single day, so I think we were the closest we could ever be during the lockdown, that’s the one thing. I think our friendship made us a lot stronger during that [time]… I was speaking to them every single day, like everything that happens, a new game update, ‘oh my God did you see that?’… and then we were just connecting, because obviously every single night we played until like about four in the morning.” (Aged 19) “We all used to play Xbox loads. There was a game that year it came out: Warzone. It was massive. Felt like everyone was playing that. So it wasn’t so bad… obviously I wasn’t with them but I didn’t feel like, ‘oh, I haven’t spoken to them in ages’ because we were speaking to each other every night.” (Aged 18) “A lot of other people within sort of the friend group it was just like you didn’t… really just speak to them and they sort of had different consoles for playing on like online games… so it’s like I didn’t even play with them like that… [I had a PS4 and] if you had an Xbox it was different… And then when I got back to school… everybody had changed so much and I just hadn’t kept in contact with them, so it was just like completely different people I went back to school with.” (Aged 18)

Children and young people also used video calls, messaging, and social media to stay in touch with friends and with boyfriends and girlfriends and appreciated being able to have regular contact with them. Girls in particular liked to keep in touch through online group calls, FaceTime and Zoom.

“I also think [screentime] was a source of like, not happiness, like speaking to my friends, so yes happiness… We’d call quite a lot because I think they all had pretty, well very different, but also kind of similar experiences to me because they’re all only children… so they didn’t really have a source of entertainment.” (Aged 11) “If I didn’t have that computer and I couldn’t be able to speak to [my friends] then I don’t know what I would have done. Because I feel like that’s so important to stay connected with your friends and things.” (Aged 18) “With friendships I feel like I got close to my friends because I got to speak to them more online, if that makes sense. It was like I had a better relationship with them because I’d basically talk to them even more, like, outside of school.” (Aged 18) “I’d say the whole friend group has stuck together since Covid, and I think Covid actually made us stronger as a group because we all stayed in contact more with each other, checking up on each other.” (Aged 18) “[My boyfriend and I] said to each other ‘I know we can’t see each other and we want to keep this working… please let’s try and make sure we promise each other let’s talk everyday whether that’s a call, video call, change it up. Just make sure this works.’ And I think obviously you text a bit more when you’re bored… we made sure to go ‘well, how was your day? What did you do with your day? What did you learn today?’ We made sure we had that… it probably made us stronger.” (Aged 22)

In some cases the organised activities that children and young people took part in, such as dance classes and youth organisations, also moved online but these interactions were less successful. Some recalled hoping to be able to see friends this way, but finding the experience frustrating, feeling disappointed, not being able to interact with other people, and finding Zoom groups “glitchy”.

“I didn’t get to go to dance [during lockdown]… I done online dance classes… I didn’t get to see my friends and I didn’t get to actually interact with people, or like see my dance teachers. Also, Zoom was a bit glitchy, because when there was so many to go on it, it just kind of like glitched.” (Aged 11) “[With Brownies on Zoom] some of the times I didn’t really know what I was doing ’cause they were either glitching or I couldn’t understand what they were saying.” (Aged 13)

Finding new communities online

Online platforms also provided opportunities for social connection beyond existing friendship groups. Children and young people in their teens during the pandemic described enjoying social connection through platforms such as House Party, Discord, and Yubo – although some also recognised this put them at risk of online harms, which is explored in Online behaviours. Some appreciated being able to become part of a wider community online, from meeting others through gaming to joining a faith group.

“Obviously you are not supposed to talk to strangers on the internet but going into games where you play as a squad was lots of fun, and even if it’s people you don’t know… It just helps you with that little bit socially, makes you feel included you know in the world around you.” (Aged 16) “I feel like [the pandemic is] when I got in contact with, in touch with my culture… I feel like I wasn’t really in tuned in my culture as much then, during Covid I just met so many people that were from the same ethnic background as me, like online… I feel like I wasn’t really a part of like a community prior to the pandemic and it’s kind of weird because people would think it’s, you know, the opposite because obviously, the churches were shut down and things like that. But I feel like… being a young person… when you’re put in that situation, you take advantage of, like, the internet and, you know, virtual things… I met somebody on Instagram that… was kind of running like a group at the time… They asked me like, ‘oh, would you like to join’ because they knew that I was also a Christian as well. I was like, ‘yes, I’ll join’. So, when I joined and they were like you know, we have like Zoom meetings, you know, just kind of talking about studies, things like that, you know, and then through that is how I met people.” (Aged 20)

Positive reflections on friendships

Some of the older age groups interviewed, aged 14-18 at the onset of the pandemic, reflected that the pandemic had ultimately had a positive impact on friendships. Due to the lack of distractions, some children and young people felt they were able to reflect on the importance of friendship and what they valued in people. This led to them being able to focus on positive relationships rather than spending their time with people they felt did not share their values or who made them feel bad about themselves. Some believed they had matured a lot through the lockdowns and now approached friendships differently, making better decisions than they had done before.

“It’s changed all my friendship groups – I am not friends with anyone I used to be friends with because it showed people’s true colours… I’ve just got closer friends now. It showed actually who was close friends and who wasn’t.” (Aged 22)  “I think it makes you value the people that you actually really, really, like and get on with really well.” (Aged 21) “I think it’s definitely made me, like, more conscious of how to make friends… I actually feel like I’ve become a lot more extroverted. And, like, I would actually, like, start the conversation first if another person is shy… I’m a lot more eager to make friends because now I know what it feels like to be so isolated in a way.” (Aged 17)

The reliance on online communication during the pandemic also led some secondary school-aged children and young people to recognise that it was now more important to be able to see each other in person. 

“I think it made us appreciate each other more, because then once the lockdown rules were kind of loosened and we were allowed to see each other, social distanced, we would go for a lot of walks and bike rides which we wouldn’t normally have thought to do. So I think it did make us kind of do things we wouldn’t do. And so that was nice.”  (16 salî)

Worries about socialising when restrictions eased

Disruption to friendships and to social contact more generally during lockdowns could create worries for children and young people of all ages when returning to school and some felt “overwhelmed” by this. Some described feeling socially isolated during lockdown and finding it difficult to make friends or resume friendships afterwards. This was especially the case for those in periods of educational transition, such as moving from primary to secondary school. 

“[The idea of being back at school was] a bit overwhelming – I wasn’t really expecting it to happen so soon. I thought they would take their time with it but they didn’t.” (Aged 12) “I really struggled with friendships. I just didn’t have any friends. So, that was another reason why I absolutely didn’t want to go to school. And how I loved lockdown. I mean, at the beginning like I would message some people but then, when we, when we’d gone back [to school], you could see who had really been talking to each other through lockdown and you could see which friendships were still strong… whereas I was jumping from friendship group to friendship group.” (Aged 16)

In some cases, children and young people had enjoyed the time alone during lockdown but were conscious that others might not understand this and that their friendships had been affected. 

“It was just nice for me [during lockdown] to just have a refresh from socialisation. After a while I did miss just going out and messing around with my friends, but most of it, this was good, I needed it. I need a detox from people.” (Aged 20) “There was kind of some tension because I’m the type of person who… I didn’t really speak to a lot of people, so a lot of people took it personally… but it wasn’t… personal, I just wanted to be by myself.” (Aged 15) “Just having people round me again I didn’t like it at all, I liked it being calm and peaceful at home.” (Aged 13)

Some children and young people, aged as young as seven during the pandemic, recalled feeling worried about the switch from online interactions back to in-person communication. Some described feeling less confident in social situations and that they had lost their social skills. 

“Because you’re used to spending lots of time talking to your friends online; you just think it’s easier than actually talking in person. Because you’re used to it.” (Aged 11) “I remember I used to do Beavers on video chat [during the pandemic]… video chat was basically the first Beavers I really did. So I remember when I properly started it I was worried what it was going to be like and if – what if I don’t like it. Because I only did it on video chat and this was, like, real life… Like, I’ve never actually met the other people that went there.” (Aged 9) “I was a bit nervous because I hadn’t actually, like, really talked to [new friends] in person. So there was a bit like an awkward thing. So I was like, ooh, I don’t know if I should say this… because you know how texting and, like, speaking. Like, sometimes people texting is very different from how they speak. So it kind of got a bit of getting used to.” (Aged 17) “I feel like [the pandemic] made me feel like very dependent on being able to socialise online, that when it came to going back in person again it was… my social skills had pretty much gone out the window and had completely disappeared. And it was very hard to socialise in person with people again, and meet new people in person as opposed to online.” (Aged 16)

In some cases, these worries were felt to have persisted beyond the pandemic. Children and young people also talked about what they described as feelings of social anxiety that affected them longer term or feeling that they had become more introverted.

“I know this is going to sound so backwards but because of the way I was feeling I didn’t even want to speak to anyone. So you know the times I did actually have the opportunity to speak to people and see people? I just didn’t want to. So I feel like they thought I was just not interested in being friends with them anymore. So I lost a lot of friendships just from just losing the courage to go outside.” (Aged 22) “I feel like there’s a barrier that Covid created and it like refrains me from speaking to people as freely as I used to be able to. It’s made me more self-conscious about a lot of things.” (Aged 17) “When we came back after lockdown, it was like my personality had kind of flipped, all of the people that I had hung around with back then, that everybody knew, I kind of gradually just fell off, and you know started doing my own thing… And it took me a good couple of months to actually rebuild proper friendships with people who fit the new, I don’t want to say new personality but the new me, yes… lockdown affected me socially… so, I went from being, well I think extroverted, to being very introverted, which meant all of these people that I would normally be able to laugh around with and joke around with and do most things, I found it quite hard to do… Because I felt that I wasn’t the same person that became friends with them… So, I had to find new people who fit the new me.” (Aged 16) “I’ve always been, when I was younger, I always used to be quite, like, a social person. I wouldn’t mind meeting new people. That’s fine. But after Covid it was a little bit – it did change a little bit… because I wasn’t even used to going outside, let alone meeting new people.” (Aged 18)

Some of those interviewed who were set to go to university during or following the pandemic described how the loss of in-person socialising affected their confidence about socialising and making new friends at university. One young person described how she chose to go to university closer to home as she was worried about being far away and not making any friends at university. She felt this was in part due to the worries about socialising brought on by the pandemic, as well as other factors. 

“I think the fact that I went to university after pretty much two years of not socialising, I’d kind of forgotten how to socialise, so that was quite difficult.” (Aged 20)

Concluding remarks

These findings illustrate how universally disruptive lockdown was for children and young people in terms of seeing friends, not only those they saw every day at school but also team-mates and others that they were used to seeing during organised activities. They highlight the importance of school as a place for social interaction as well as learning and also demonstrate the contribution of sports clubs, youth groups, and other organised activities in giving children and young people opportunities to connect with others in normal times. 

In the face of this disruption, being able to maintain relationships with friends was an important source of support amid the challenges of the pandemic. Children and young people’s accounts of this highlight how important online contact was during the pandemic, enabling them to stay in touch with friends, preserve these friendships and make new ones, including through gaming as well as through messaging, video calls, and on social media. Those who did not have the same devices as other peers their age could struggle with being left out, particularly those in secondary school during the pandemic who did not have a phone and were conscious of missing out on interactions and feeling apart from their friendship group. 

While some friendships did not resume after a break in contact, it was felt that some of these might have not lasted in any case. Longer lasting impacts of the pandemic were characterised less in terms of specific friendships being affected and more in relation to children and young people losing confidence in their ability to interact with others or make new friends. Accounts highlight how some children and young people struggled with the prospect of seeing friends and peers after lockdown, including where those who had managed to maintain a relationship online could still feel daunted at the prospect of interacting in person. This created particular worries around the return to school, particularly for those making educational transitions. In some cases, children and young people felt worried about social contact more broadly, affecting their confidence to be with others, and saw this as a direct result of their pandemic experience.  

3.4 Education and learning

Têgihiştinî

This section explores children and young people’s experiences of disrupted education during the pandemic. The section also highlights factors that helped reduce disruption to allow some children and young people to continue and to progress in learning. The experiences of children and young people in education across the different devolved administrations in the UK were broadly the same. However, we have highlighted, where relevant, examples where differences emerged from interviews.¹¹ 

This section also discusses the experiences of children and young people with different special educational needs (SEN)¹². The challenges that these individuals faced often appeared to be heightened versions of the difficulties experienced by their peers without special educational needs. However, we also explore distinct aspects of disruption they faced (for example around SEN support) and other additional challenges specific to individuals’ learning needs.

Children and young people with SEN had a large variety of different needs and characteristics. This group consisted of children and young people with a range of communication and interaction needs as well as cognition and learning needs. Some received support through SEN Support and others through statutory support plans¹³. Others received no formal support. Children and young people in this group attended a range of different school types. Most attended mainstream school, whilst some attended special schools or were in Alternative Provision¹⁴. 

This group consisted of both children and young people with a diagnosis and those without, including children and young people who received a diagnosis after the pandemic. Examples of the diagnoses reported by children and young people or their parents included autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyslexia, dyspraxia and global development delay.¹⁵ It is important to note the role that parents played during the interviews with children and young people with SEN. Findings relating to these individuals draw more on parental insight than in other sections in this report and therefore include more quotes from parents. In some cases, this is because parents spoke more during the interview where children and young people had communication difficulties. In other cases, children and young people were unable to comment on their SEN provision but their parent contributed detail on this.

Chapter Summary

Pandemic learning experiences Challenges to learning Enabling learning during the pandemic Adjusting to new norms Concluding remarks

Disruption to school and learning New learning approaches   Learning from home Experiences of online teaching and learning Learning challenges due to limited resources Learning challenges due to specific needs and circumstances Individual learning support In-person teaching Independent learning Adapting to restrictions at school Experiences of learning at school Disruption to exams Disruption to higher and further education

Pandemic learning experiences

Below we explore the ways in which children and young people’s education was disrupted during the pandemic. We discuss how those interviewed experienced not going to school due to UK lockdowns. We then examine experiences of learning from home, and of online lessons for those who attended them. 

Disruption to school and learning

The Covid-19 pandemic caused unprecedented disruption to UK schools, forcing shifts to alternative learning modes. Some children and young people linked their educational disruptions to specific lockdowns or transitions, such as moving schools or preparing for exams, with these events often making their memories more vivid. Others recalled their experiences more generally, without tying them to a particular period.

The first UK lockdown and school disruptions meant that the majority of children and young people spent most of the early pandemic period at home rather than at school or sixth form college.^{16 17} Those interviewed shared challenges resulting from this disruption, including a loss of in-person social contact with peers and teachers and not being able to participate in typical school experiences and milestones. Children and young people described similar challenges recurring in subsequent lockdowns. Their later experiences were also shaped by other factors including their school year and workload. 

¹⁶ By 20 March, all schools in the UK were disrupted, meaning they had closed for all in-person teaching, except for children of key workers and children considered vulnerable. With children at home, teaching took place remotely. School-aged children and young people went from spending five to six hours learning in a school environment, with homework, to spending that time at home instead. Learning during the pandemic: review of research from England – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
¹⁷ The experiences of those in higher and further education in the pandemic are explored separately below.

Responses indicate that this break from school and schoolwork was welcomed by children and young people in the early stages of the first lockdown. Those interviewed described some positive effects from not being in a school environment in this period, including feeling more relaxed and better rested.

“Being at home was fun and it just felt like a free holiday so I would just go on my phone or like do the things I wanted to do.” (Aged 15) “[I preferred] that I could [do home learning] whenever I pleased in a day and not just in a set time and when I didn’t want to do learning I’d just do it the night before and then I’d have the next day free.” (Aged 13)

Children and young people of all ages described reduced social contact with peers as the first major impact of pandemic school restrictions. This made some disengaged from education and affected friendship dynamics. Primary school aged children and their parents also described the loss of regular opportunities for play. 

“I didn’t like that at lunch time or break time, I couldn’t play with my friends, I was just stuck at home. If I was at school I would have played with my friends, but I was just at home.” (Aged 9)

The second main aspect of disrupted education discussed by those interviewed was the lack of day-to-day in-person support and feedback from teachers. As discussed below, children and young people were more reliant on parents to help them with their learning as a result. Responses indicate that there was a wide variation in the extent to which schools and teachers checked in with pupils during the initial lockdown. For example, this could range from no support, to regular phone calls with parents to check in, to teachers dropping off materials at homes.

“Our tutors from our classes would phone us and ask if we were okay, if everything in our family was fine. Just check on our mental health and physical health… That was really good because it showed, like, obviously they cared.” (Aged 15) “Except for a couple of Zoom meetings [I didn’t have any contact with my teacher].” (Aged 10)  “It was a good while in before we finally got any contact… I was a bit concerned that the school, I thought, you know, surely they’ve got a duty of care, they don’t know what home he lives in, there was no sort of check up on him and considering he wasn’t attending the classes. Because I contacted them in the end, I said, just to let you know [my son is] fine, he’s okay, we’re doing our own, but they didn’t seem interested like I think maybe they should have” (Parent of child above, aged 10) “I was sitting there with no school, playing Animal Crossing for like six months. I had literally had no work for six months and no teacher ever called me. I just got to do what I wanted.” (Aged 13)

Some of those interviewed believed this lack of monitoring affected their progress. For example, some described feeling especially unsupported during remote and online learning. These children and young people said they found it hard to tell or demonstrate whether they had successfully learned what they needed to.

“Like [the teachers] could have at least tried to call you and ask how you are doing… I think they [would] just look [to see] if you did it because you had to like attach something to email.” (Aged 12) “The online school… It ended up making me fall behind extremely when it came to that, like there was no support online to be honest… [and] because of the fact that we didn’t have much help during the online school, pretty much myself and a couple of friends we would just play Roblox 24/7. I remember like looking at my screen time and it was seventeen hours.” (Aged 17)

The final major aspect of disruption discussed by children and young people was the loss of key school experiences, rites of passage, and social events. Those moving from primary to secondary education or waiting to celebrate completing major exams described this period as especially difficult. Missed activities, such as sports days, school trips, leaving assemblies, and post-exam celebrations could make children and young people feel frustrated and deprived of meaningful memories. 

“It was a bit frustrating because I wanted to do my year six play. Because everyone would always look forward to that… I think lots of primary schools did them, but my primary school did, like, lots of, like, events for the year sixes in the last term, because, you know, they’re leaving the school. And there was lots of, you know, goodbye parties for the other – for, like, previous years. And some of them had, like, limos, went bowling or whatever. But mine didn’t have any of that.” (Aged 15)  “I feel like I missed out on so many opportunities, so much fun, so many activities I could have done in year six and I think I missed out on my crucial years, which is like year seven, the start of high school like we couldn’t, we didn’t really start high school normally like. Starting with wearing masks and not even be able to go next to each other at the start of year seven, is so scary. First of all, going to high school. Second of all, going like with a mask and also two metres apart, it’s just very scary and you could only go with your class. That’s even more scary.” (Aged 15)    “I just felt like we never really got to say goodbye to everybody [at the end of school], really. It was just so quick. And some of the teachers had been off because they were shielding before the schools even closed… There were some teachers that just were told to shield and never came back.” (Aged 15)

The aspects of disrupted education discussed by children and young people varied depending on their age during the pandemic. Interviews highlighted three important transitional stages that were disrupted: from primary to secondary school, secondary school into a period of formal assessment, and the end of secondary school, with specific themes in how children and young people of these ages were affected.

New learning approaches

Children and young people explained that, after the announcement of the first lockdown in 2020, the time they spent on schoolwork decreased dramatically while schools adjusted to hybrid teaching and online lessons. Across schools, approaches to lockdown learning¹⁸ discussed by young people varied widely and were said to change over time due to lockdown context and as these approaches were adapted.

Responses from those interviewed indicate three main ways in which schools structured remote learning (see Figure 4 below) throughout this period. Most children and young people experienced some combination of these approaches, and schools appeared to move between the three over the lockdowns and for different year groups. The use of these different structures may have been linked to schools’ resources, and their ability to set up remote learning approaches. 

In general, children and young people reported a pattern of receiving little structured provision early in the first lockdown. This improved over time, although some children reported minimal provision until autumn 2020. Schools were said to have initially shared learning materials to support continued learning, such as ad hoc assignments and work packets and resources for parents to deliver lessons. Over the course of the first lockdown, experiences of online learning platforms, such as Google Classroom, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom and applications such as Seesaw, Showbie and Show My Homework to complete homework and join lessons appeared to become increasingly common.

Figure 4: Children and young people’s accounts of how schools structured remote learning

In reduced or flexible schedules, schools generally set tasks for the week or day and children could choose how and when to complete them. There were much fewer scheduled lessons or check ins than before the pandemic. Children and young people described these as most common at the start of the first lockdown.

“In year six at my primary school and in year seven in my secondary school they did online school and online lessons and things… But there was less work and there [were] less lessons going on. So there was just quite a lot of sleeping and playing video games… Especially in the first pandemic.” (Aged 15)

In school-scheduled days, students appeared to follow their regular school timetable, with lessons starting at around 9am and finishing around 3pm, with shorter online live lessons and more independent work. These appeared to be more prominent from the end of the first lockdown onwards and then in subsequent lockdowns, particularly for secondary school students and where schools were said to have access to learning platforms and resources to host online teaching. This experience was especially prominent among children and young people interviewed who attended independent schools.

“You’d have Zoom meetings, Google meetings, all of that kind of stuff. And my teachers would do, like, lessons and stuff online all day.” (Aged 15)

Finally, children and young people described independent or self-guided study, where schools set assignments and students were expected to complete them independently. Responses from children and young people suggested that some felt this approach was necessary for their schools at the beginning due to lack of preparedness. Responses also indicate that schools that followed this also may have done so due to having limited access to platforms or resources to host online teaching. Young people preparing for end-of-secondary exams – such as A-levels or National Qualifications in Scotland – also described this, noting that independent learning practices (for example around revision) were already in place before the pandemic.

“No engagement from teachers, really. Primary or secondary school. Yes. They’d just set the work and then you just get on with it on your own”. (Aged 15)

How children and young people felt about new learning approaches appeared to be highly influenced by their education stage (such as primary or secondary, recognising that terminology and school structures vary across the UK) and their schools’ expectations of how much work and of what type they should be completing in this period.

For some primary school aged children learning with their parents, spending time together, feeling close, and receiving support were clear positives. However, others at this age described finding it difficult to stay motivated without the school structure and reminders. 

“In year six… we literally just had like the book and on Google Classroom they would like say complete these pages and then like you would just mark them yourself and then, so there wasn’t really a lot of contact with the teachers obviously and so, it was more just like practicing what I’d already done.” (Aged 14)

Some of those interviewed who were at primary and early secondary stage during the pandemic saw their schoolwork as “something to do” set by their school, rather than feeling like they were really learning something. This was said to be especially the case at the start of the first lockdown. These children described how the simple worksheets or online tasks did not feel connected to previous lessons and were usually not marked. Some children and their parents found that the volume of worksheets to print, complete and return pictures of, could feel “overwhelming” and “pointless”. Others interviewed felt that schools were offering them the bare minimum: for example, one child discussed how he was provided with just one single worksheet a week. 

“The worksheets were really boring, really long, they felt longer than normal I think” (Aged 10) “I think like you got a booklet so you would have to go and you would have to pick up this booklet from outside the door and it had the name on and it just wasn’t, it just wasn’t clear [what they had to do]. A lot of parents had trouble with it, it was a well-known thing that it was, it was just horrible.” (Parent of child aged 11) “We didn’t have… teaching or anything, we’d just be sent worksheets, get expected to get on with those really, but like there wasn’t any guidance really at all.” (Aged 17)

Children and young people who were in secondary education but not yet at the stage of preparing for formal exams appeared to feel particularly affected by having more limited learning opportunities at this stage. They reported not covering topics and learning objectives at the level they felt was needed, or missing these completely, and believed this had contributed towards them “falling behind” their expected level of academic progress.

“I felt it was hard to like motivate myself to do it and I just felt like it wasn’t really that beneficial because it was more… like they didn’t really give you proper work or learning, it was just like more quizzes and games and I just felt like it didn’t really help too much.” (Aged 16) “I learn best when I have a physical thing in front of me that I can see someone doing, so, having to sit at home trying to learn all this brand-new information about all these subjects that are just new to me… without being able to see anybody do it was very difficult. ” (Aged 16)

Young people who were at the upper end of secondary school set to take formal exams during the pandemic described more varied experiences. This included feeling much greater pressure at points during the first lockdown to submit homework and to attend online lessons so as not to risk failing their exams. 

“It was so stressful in school because nobody knew if we were going to do [exams] or not… they made every single test like as if that was going to be used for your grades. So, you have to do well in everything, if you wanted to do well.” (Aged 22)

Notably, some young people in upper secondary education, and also some of those with specific SEN, described how some aspects of independent learning were preferable to learning in school and online. The benefits they described included avoiding disruptive class members in online lessons, completing work more efficiently and this approach being more suitable (for some) for revisiting content that had been taught already.

“During lockdown, I remember I’d just do it and then I’d be like, oh wow. Instead of a whole day of, like, seven hours at school I’ve just done all my work in, like, 30 minutes.” (Aged 18) “At the start they kind of were just trying to figure out because to be fair to the teachers they hadn’t trained for this, had they? But I think towards the later lockdowns they kind of gave us an introduction to the work and just kind of let us go and do our thing and to be fair that probably worked a bit better. Just telling us what to do and then doing it. Because it’s so hard to teach when half the class has cameras on. Like, the background noise going on. So they kind of just gave us work to do and carried on and then told us to go off and do it and then submit it the next day. We had Google Docs that we had to submit the work on that… I didn’t really mind it because that was the only way I was really going to get the work done. You can’t really teach a classroom on Zoom, like, for the kids [who are] 16, 17; it’s not really going to work.” (Aged 20)

Beyond school timetables and guidance, the ways children and young people described structuring their days during remote learning appeared to be affected by their home environment, and how engaged they were with learning prior to the pandemic.

Learning from home

A key challenge highlighted by children and young people was trying to complete work, concentrate, and manage their time and mood at home rather than school. The main difficulties described around learning from home were in following a consistent learning routine, staying motivated, and concentrating and retaining focus. 

Ew Challenges to learning section, below, explores the experiences of those for whom these challenges were especially heightened, as well as of those who described distinct challenges in this context. 

Among primary school aged children interviewed, some appeared to have struggled if expected to work without the structure or reminders of a school environment, including break times to socialise, or bells at the end of lessons. One child in primary school during the pandemic described how the combination of a lack of pressure and not being in a school environment with a set timetable led to her falling seriously behind in her workload.  

“There wasn’t very much work right at the start because no one really knew what was going on and no one knew how long it would last. So it was just kind of like do what you can… I got really behind on schoolwork in year 5, I think it was like that’s the time when you really learn to, like, get on top of stuff and, like, it gets harder. And I kind of missed that and I remember I was so behind that my teacher had to email my parents and be like “she’s not done anything”. We used a thing called Mathletics at school and I had… 56 assignments that I hadn’t done – so I [received] like, a timetable for my mum and I had to do, like, at least three on a weekend and I had to do all my work in one day. And I just remember being like ‘oh my god. Why didn’t I do this at the time?’ Because it was just like, so much effort to catch up on.” (Aged 13)

Across ages, compared to in-school learning, children and young people discussed feeling less accountable for their schoolwork, partly due to lacking regular feedback, which made it harder for some to feel motivated. 

Children and young people also discussed difficulties in concentrating while learning from home due to boredom from spending long periods in one place, and constant distractions such as social media and gaming (see Online behaviours). As a result, some of those interviewed discussed finding self-study extremely difficult and unmotivating, and recognised gaps appearing later in their subject knowledge from not completing work.

“Like, you wake up on a weekday [for] school, and you don’t really manage to get through the day at school because you’re so tempted to just do what keeps you happy. Instead, you’re just stuck in front of the screen and your eyes start to hurt, especially in the summer. During the day you had to stay inside on [your] computer… just looking at the screen, just listening. And it’s really hard to listen, because at home you’ve got so many more distractions than you have at school. So, it’s hard to keep focused.” (17 salî) “People would answer the [remote lesson] call in bed. People would be in science third lesson and would literally have the camera off and would be posting on their Instagram stories or their Snapchat stories literally them watching The Only Way is Essex or something like that. Like, no one was doing anything. I think it’s really hard to be motivated when you’re at home. There’s so much more I want to do. Like, I want to clean my room again. I want to go through my clothes. I want to do my makeup. Oh I don’t know. Now I want to play with my dog.” (Aged 19)

Finding space and quiet to focus and attend lessons away from other household members such as younger siblings could also be difficult. This was particularly the case for some living in overcrowded accommodation.  

“It was a little bit harder because there was a lot of distractions around. Because it was in a home environment it wasn’t as, like, quiet and because the teachers weren’t really there to, like, make us all quiet and there was other things going on in the house at the time. Like other family members doing their own thing in the other rooms and stuff. So it was a little bit louder.” (Aged 12)

With teachers less available to support children and young people directly, those learning from home were more reliant on parents. When parents were not available, some primary school aged children claimed to find it especially hard to understand and complete tasks. This could make them frustrated and give up on the work as a result.

“[The teachers] couldn’t obviously explain it properly. Like, they couldn’t, like, help us because they weren’t there.” (Aged 12)

Parents were said to struggle to support their children too. For example, one child explained how after forming a WhatsApp group with other parents to get them help with a difficult assignment, her parents had received a stern message from the school’s head teacher, insisting that children should be working out solutions to questions independently.

“It was very difficult because sometimes we didn’t understand and there were so many people in one [online] class… I remember getting stuck on one of these maths things and then our parents creating a separate [WhatsApp group with parents] saying that I found it difficult and then them getting told off… [by the head teacher] because we weren’t allowed to do that.” (Aged 10)

There were examples of children and young people who mentioned that their parents found it difficult to support them in their home learning because they were not familiar with their child’s particular education system. This included parents for whom English was not their first language. In addition, some children and young people who attended Welsh and Irish speaking schools mentioned having English-speaking parents, who struggled to help with their homework in Welsh or Irish. These children and young people also reflected on the difficulties of returning to school after being at home speaking English for so long.

“I’m the oldest child, and my parents were immigrants, so pretty much since, well I wasn’t born here but since I came to the UK like around the age of six or whatever, I pretty much did everything for them, so even during the Covid I felt like no one could help me with schoolwork like basically I was all on my own. I just had to figure it out basically.” (Aged 21)  “My mum helped me the best she could, but because I was in a Welsh school… So, the only thing my mum could help me with, was English… Couldn’t, couldn’t really have any more help from her. Because she doesn’t understand Welsh… And then when I went back to school, it took me a while to get back into speaking Welsh again because I was speaking English so much at home.” (Age 16)

However, it should be noted that those interviewed also discussed positive aspects of home learning. Some primary school aged children enjoyed being able to learn with parents, while some who were secondary school aged believed they benefitted from there being fewer distractions from classmates. Some children and young people with SEN also discussed benefits they felt they gained from working in a home environment. These aspects are explored in more detail below, in Enabling learning during the pandemic. 

“I preferred it at home because in the classroom it’s sort of like, not cramped, but there’s like lots of like other kids there… [at home] you could like, go to your own like space and you could like, you could, you could like have more breaks, because [at school] you can’t take it all in and then, it’s like, oh, let’s move to the next lesson now, like in two seconds… At home it was better… because then it’s not all jumbled up in your brain, all the stuff, like all of it at once. But when you’re at home, then… your head can take it in, yes.” (Aged 11)

Experiences of online teaching and learning

As remote learning through digital resources and online lessons became the norm throughout the pandemic, children and young people’s attitudes towards these lessons appeared to shift over time. Those interviewed discussed how, especially early on, online lessons were much less demanding than in-person classes. At this initial stage, they typically enjoyed this aspect of them due to feeling more relaxed, and less pressured or accountable. The Challenges to learning section considers, in more detail, the varied experiences of those children who lacked resources or who had specific needs. 

Accounts of online lessons as the pandemic progressed were more negative, highlighting frustration, boredom, and perceptions from those interviewed that they were not learning as effectively compared to being in school.      

Children and young people reported that, compared to in-person classes, online lessons were much less structured and provided fewer ways for teachers to monitor attendance and engagement. This was said to make it easier to avoid paying attention without facing consequences. Lessons were felt to be “clunky”, “slow”, “pointless” and “chaotic”. During online lessons, young people could often leave their cameras off, mute themselves, and entertain themselves with video games or other distractions. Teachers’ level of control over the class, and ability to discipline pupils, were both felt to be limited. 

As such, online lessons were said to be subject to widespread disengagement and multi-screening (using more than one screen-based device at the same time), which children and young people felt made them hard to take seriously. Those as young as five at the time described classmates disrupting lessons by talking back to teachers, making noises and being rude in the chat function. 

“There’s like this chat thing where you could like make comments and stuff and then somebody told the teacher to shut up… somebody was being silly and they were like oh, the teaching assistant was [telling them off] and then somebody put in the chat, ‘oh shut up!’” (Aged 11) “Because it was on the same computer, I could just play Minecraft [during online lessons] and then… if I was to turn my camera on, it wouldn’t look like I was doing anything like playing the game.” (Aged 12) “So I think we were online for six weeks. No one was doing the work – because we would just turn off our cameras, go on mute and just play games.” (Aged 14)  “It was just all online and no one would go, no one would have their cameras or mics on and it was just really weird, so weird… it was just not motivating, like what’s the point. So I just didn’t do much there.” (Aged 22)

Children and young people described struggling to learn from or enjoy online lessons, or to follow instructions, and that these difficulties led to “wasted time”. Key aspects of this were disruption, pupils’ reluctance to answer questions in an online setting (due to embarrassment, feeling shy or trying to fit in) and technical or operational issues during lessons. Online lessons were said to make it hard for them to receive effective in-lesson instructions and support from teachers. For example, one young person described how they felt their teachers spent most of the lesson time admitting pupils, trying to share content and managing bad behaviour.

“Some of the older teachers, they weren’t as familiar with the technology. So it would be, like, they would take, like, the first 20 minutes of the lesson setting up all the stuff. And then by that time we would have less learning time. There’d be issues with them, like, putting up the PowerPoints or attaching the work.” (Aged 18) “The online learning was horrendous, from the teachers not knowing how to use Zoom, I feel like there was a lack of training there… [to] other students inviting their friends from other schools and other classes with the link, and they never got in trouble from it… there would be students swearing or whatever… this whole online thing really impacted my learning, because one hour class of one hour of learning was 20 minutes of teaching and like 40 minutes of nonsense and getting set up.” (Aged 17) “[The lessons were] really boring, everyone wasn’t really paying attention… I kept on putting my sunglasses on when I was young [parent explained this was because he was shy].” (Aged 10) “[The] bad thing [was] that I couldn’t quickly ask someone for help. My mum would like try to encourage me to work it out by myself. Like if I was in school I’d be like ‘please can you help?’” (Aged 11) “It [online learning] does take me longer to process stuff so when they did give out the work I’d already been looking at it, like, what on earth have I got to do and then I’ve got to ask the teacher. Obviously you don’t know that I want to speak so I’ve got to try and get my voice heard out of all these thirty other people with, like, the echoes… by the time I’d, sort of, figured it out they’d be, like, right, go to your next lesson now.” (Aged 16)

Some children and young people believed that the quality of lessons during remote learning was much more dependent on each teacher’s adaptability and technical knowledge than it had been previously. They noticed more variation in lesson quality as a result. 

“Some teachers were better than others walking through stuff online, the older teachers didn’t really know what they were doing.” (Aged 16)

However, one person interviewed also reflected that seeing his teachers struggle made his teachers seem more relatable and encouraged him to put more effort into learning as a result.

“Ever since going back I kind of saw my teachers as real people… Also, they are also impacted, probably as much as me, so, naturally, I’m not going to say I made friends with them because I didn’t, but I was a lot more friendly with them… And you know, once I enjoyed it more, I was able to learn better and I am sitting pretty good now.” (Aged 16)

Children and young people also described technical issues with learning platforms that affected online learning. These included difficulties accessing virtual assemblies and lessons, and being unable to submit homework on apps. The children who appeared to have been most affected by these issues were those at the end of primary or in early secondary school during the pandemic. This may have been due to lower levels of confidence and experience among younger children in using technology for learning, as well as more limited teacher preparedness and training in using these platforms with these age groups.  

“I had some schoolwork. To be honest I didn’t do much… I think there was something like the hub and you like go on it, but I could never sign in and we would call my teacher trying to figure it out, I just gave up and [did] it on paper I remember.” (Aged 14) “And, like, some people, you couldn’t join because, like, the codes were wrong so there was a lot of issues with it. But it was a lot harder because you didn’t really have someone in front of you actually teaching you.” (Aged 15)

As a result of the experiences discussed above, taking lessons online appeared to decrease children and young people’s engagement with learning and encourage some to even miss online lessons. Those interviewed felt this happened due to being frustrated, knowing other peers were not taking part, and a feeling they could “get away with it”.

“We’d have like an 8am lesson and then it’d just be like, oh, we’re doing it online. So I’ll just stay in bed and do it. And I’m, like, falling asleep. And then you’re like, oh no, I’ve missed the work. And then you’re like, okay, I’ll catch up later. And then you never catch up. And you’re just like dreading going into the lesson because you’re like, oh no, I haven’t done the work.” (Aged 19)

Children and young people mentioned longer-term negative impacts they felt were the result of online learning. Those who had been at the start of secondary school during the pandemic discussed feeling like they lacked knowledge of “the basics”, especially in Maths and other Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) subjects, as a result of a combination of poorer quality online learning and their own disengagement. Those taking their GCSE/Nat 5¹⁹ exams in 2023 or 2024 discussed becoming increasingly aware of the effects of reduced learning opportunities on their preparedness and results or felt it was “unfair” to have to sit exams after their learning had been disrupted.

“It’s like teaching a child multiplication when they don’t even know what a number is. It’s like you need to understand the basics to then learn, you know.” (Aged 17)  “So, I feel like education though, even though obviously I’m in year 10 now, it’s been three, four years, I feel like… it still all links back to what I could have done more in year seven, because year seven was crucial and year six, even during SATs20, there was no [new] content [during lockdown].” (Aged 15) “It was horrible. I’m more of a person that [likes] to sit in front of someone and ask more questions… more of a practical learner, that I am. I was still in year nine and year eight… so it didn’t mess it up much. But even now, doing my GCSEs [they say]… ‘oh look you learned about this in year nine’ and I [am] like ‘no, no I didn’t’.” (Aged 15) “Last year was a car crash because the, the English government… they [made] no adjustment to any kids’ learning, had no consideration into… how our learning was badly affected, like how our mindset [towards exams stayed] below two years. We never had any sort of experience, expectation, preparation [for] A-level.” (Aged 19) “I remember the first year when they announced that the mark schemes for all the papers were going to be easier for the people [older than] us and then when they released the mark schemes for us, when we had to do exams, you were like, well, that’s not fair because we missed the same amount of stuff that they’ve missed. So, there was almost a sense of favouritism to people who have already done their exams.” (Aged 17)

Some children and young people also described dropping out of education due to issues with motivation and falling behind during the pandemic. For other children and young people, these negative learning experiences were said to influence important life decisions. For example, one young person decided not to go to university due to their negative experience learning online during sixth form college. 

“I ended up leaving school so I didn’t get my… actual A-Levels because by that point that was when I actually got my job, which I’m still in now. I think I, you know, I had a taste for earning money then so I was like, okay, ‘I think I’d rather just go into the working world.’ Which obviously at 17 I thought that was a great idea but now looking back I think I would have rather have got my A-Levels and maybe gone to uni or not even necessarily done that but maybe just stayed in education… I think I would have done if it wasn’t for Covid.” (Aged 20) “Mum has still got a fine from court for us not going to school, I just couldn’t concentrate in school [after I went back], I always wanted to go on my phone, [was] arguing with the teachers… I dropped out of school after half a year, went to year 11, I couldn’t concentrate, get my head around school… I feel like if Covid didn’t happen I would have been a different person… They shouldn’t close the schools and make home learning, because when you’re at home, it’s a lot different, you have no teacher there to help you.” (Aged 18) “Being at home a lot and being online, that kind of changed my mind about going to university as well. Because it was something that – I mean, I was considering both options: go to university; get a job. But by the end of college I thought ‘I just don’t want to go to university.’ Because I’d pay all that money when I don’t have my heart set on anything. And you just don’t know if you’re going to pay to be sitting on kind of Zoom, Skype calls all day. So it wasn’t something that I decided I want to do. So I think that was kind of affected, like I say, my path in life, because it did kind of stop me from wanting to do that.” (Aged 20)

Challenges to learning

Below, we explore in more detail the challenges that made learning harder for those interviewed, with a focus on those who appeared to struggle more than their peers: those with limited resources, and those with specific needs and circumstances. We discuss challenges that represent extreme versions of those faced by children and young people more broadly such as difficulties concentrating, adapting to online lessons, and working in a home environment, as well as unique difficulties, including lack of access to a personal device or inadequate support for those with SEN.

Learning challenges due to limited resources

Discussions with children and young people indicated that learning progress and engagement could be additionally disrupted for those who lacked regular access to devices for schoolwork or a reliable internet connection. Responses indicated that whether children and young people had access to these devices could lead to markedly different experiences. Those with access to appropriate devices could find remote and online learning “easy” or “boring” whereas those without could find this “difficult” and “stressful”. Those at different stages of education also highlighted specific challenges related to limited device access, such as being unable to complete and submit digital homework or join university lectures comfortably.

Children and young people reported how a laptop or desktop computer was the most important device to allow them to continue learning. These offered larger screens than other devices, better compatibility with schools’ software and a separate keyboard and mouse or touchpad for navigation. Some children and young people also mentioned that they felt more “focused” on a computer than other devices. Some children and their parents, especially those primary school aged, also benefitted from a printer as schools asked them to print and complete worksheets. As most work appeared to be completed on worksheets, workbooks or online, limited feedback was received around resources such as textbooks or other learning materials. 

A range of contexts contributed to children and young people having more limited access to devices. Primary school aged children and their parents noted that younger children were less likely to have their own devices or were already used to sharing with family members when needed. For other children and young people, factors such as level of deprivation appeared likely to have played a role, alongside a range of different individual circumstances. 

In the most extreme situations, children and young people described how they did not even have access to a shared device or a reliable internet connection. These children and young people tended to be from lower income families. For example, one child receiving free school meals who had been in primary school and had no laptop had to be sent printed material on PowerPoint slides from her school and was unable to join online lessons. As a result, she said she missed out on lots of schoolwork, and realised how far she was behind others when she returned to school and struggled with lessons and tests.

“All of a sudden we had to stop going to school, and we had to start doing online learning, but I couldn’t do online learning because I didn’t have the right tools to access it. So the school sent me printed worksheets, but the work was really confusing because there was no-one there to guide me through or help me with it.” (Aged 13)

Responses from children and young people indicate that school provision of devices was inconsistent and that this contributed to making online learning especially challenging. Those interviewed mentioned that schools provided them with laptops or gave their parents the money to purchase one. However, even when this happened, sometimes devices were not made available or could not be requested until the second lockdown.

“I didn’t have a laptop [in year 7] and then in year 8, I think it was 2021 my school gave out laptops… I had a computer… but it’s quite old and it didn’t really work so some of the work I couldn’t do anyway. And plus that’s what my mum was using to work.” (Aged 15)

One young person on free school meals had been reliant on school devices for completing work pre-pandemic, and only found out during the second lockdown that she was able to apply for a funded device based on her circumstances.

“I’ve always used, like, the computers in college and in school… I was using my phone [for learning] all summer term… [by the time] I did get [a laptop] funded I was on my foundation diploma… if you were sort of on the same criteria as free school meals you could then get a free laptop.” (Aged 21)

Another young person described how a lack of digital access meant she was unable to receive updates or get support from school. She eventually bought a laptop with her own money. She was frustrated after returning to school and realising that some peers had been provided with a laptop.

“I then had to adjust to learning from home. I asked for the paper stuff because I didn’t have a way of doing the Teams meetings, I struggled a lot because anything I didn’t understand, I couldn’t reach out, I couldn’t ask for help [online], I was just expected to know what was going on already… I bought a laptop at that point [for school] with the money that I got for my birthday… so as soon as I had that, I was like, ‘what’s going on?’… when I wasn’t doing schoolwork, I’d be like checking up on the news… [I felt] I have to stay in the loop, have to stay updated…. Some pupils were given laptops, but only like very few students, and like students that were typically like naughtier kids, they would either have to go into school during lockdown or they would be given a laptop. But I didn’t know that that was a thing until after lockdown and I started becoming friends with some other people from my school… it wasn’t fair.” (Aged 18)

Children and young people with limited device access – and their parents – described trying to find ways to help continue learning. For example, some of those interviewed discussed borrowing from or sharing a device with parents or siblings, such as a laptop or desktop computer, but also smartphones and tablets. This was said to be more challenging for those with siblings who also needed to use devices and the internet for schoolwork. 

“We didn’t have that many devices to go around because obviously my brother he was also needing a device and Wi-Fi and everything I feel like… they should have like, schools even they could give us… laptops or anything. Because imagine a parent has like five children, how are they going to have five devices to go around? And also, they asked us to put our camera on… maybe the camera’s not working, and it was just so much [of a] headache and everything for my parents especially, because they had to sort it out, where to get extra devices from… we had to like borrow it from my auntie and it was just like we don’t really, we shouldn’t have to like borrow devices just because of something that like [the pandemic] that’s not really normal, like we should have, they should have provided us with something really.” (Aged 15)

Those using devices other than a computer discussed learning challenges that were demotivating and led to setbacks. For example, children and young people on smartphones described not being able to view the chat function during online lessons and those using tablets struggled with compatibility issues. These appeared to result in longer-term challenges and children and young people tried to catch up with classmates. 

“I was working on my little iPad except that it was a little cheap one so it wasn’t very good and it was very glitchy, so I got a laptop, and then I shared that with my sister.” (Aged 13) “[At first] I was just using my mum’s phone. It was a little harder. Because I couldn’t just stay in bed or anything; I had to be downstairs using her phone. [So later] I got offered a free laptop, which I took. And that really helped a lot.” (Aged 15)

Similar challenges were experienced by young people in a further or higher education context. One young person completing their foundation diploma described this as an “exhausting” period where she needed to spend between six and eight hours on her smartphone actively learning her course.

“Some days it would be, like, four days back-to-back lectures, like, all in the morning and then all afternoon and it was just, like – yes. It was just not fun… Things wouldn’t work properly, the teacher would try to share their screen; it wouldn’t show up properly on my phone. And yes. It was just a really hard, unprofessional way to work, I think. So I definitely struggled to find the drive to keep going with it.” (Aged 22)

Some children and young people also found it difficult to study at home when there was not enough space to work, especially those living in overcrowded accommodation. This impacted their ability to keep up with schoolwork and attend lessons online. Some were aware that they were facing challenges that their peers were not, and this made them feel worse about their situation.

“When it came to, like, studying for, you know, GCSEs and stuff, the space was definitely limited… I mean, still was able to, you know, finish the exams and stuff but that’s not really the point. It’s just the experience of being in there and seeing some people at school who, you know, maybe they had a better, you know, home environment. And, like, I didn’t look at them in a way, like, you know, jealous or anything – of course not – but it’s just like wanting to have that as well.” (Aged 22) “We only had one table, like a good table. So it was very hard balancing who could have a table and who could go to the floor and work.” (Aged 15)

²³ Descriptions of individuals’ special educational needs after quotations reflect needs and characteristics as reported by children and young people and their parents. Therefore, this encompasses diagnosed, assessed and suspected special educational needs.

Learning challenges due to specific needs and circumstances

Interviews with children and young people indicated a range of specific needs and circumstances that contributed to them facing additional learning challenges compared to peers. This included some of those interviewed with SEN and physically disabled children and young people. The factors that helped mitigate these challenges are discussed in the Enabling learning during the pandemic section, below.  

Children and young people with SEN and their parents described how their learning experience was additionally disrupted compared to peers their age without SEN. Those interviewed described how much of the formal support that they were receiving prior to the pandemic was disrupted when schools closed for in-person learning, including for those who went to special schools²¹. This included having SEN support staff²², Special Educational Needs Coordinators (SENCOs) and additional small group tutoring. 

Children and young people described missing the help and support they used to receive prior to the pandemic from their support worker or SENCO and struggled to learn or focus without them. They felt like they were left alone to try and do work without the additional support or motivation that they were used to.

“I had a lot of one-to-one teachers, and I think suddenly I was at home on a screen, and it was hard because I suddenly didn’t have that help anymore… I didn’t like it. I’d have loved to have been in the classroom. I didn’t really do much work.” (Aged 17, dyslexia, dyspraxia, ADHD, global development delay)23 “You learned a lot more when you were in the classroom with your special teacher helping you… The teachers did not help whatsoever [online] because they just told you to do the work and then just left and just made you go and do it… the special teacher wasn’t there to motivate me.” (Aged 17, dyslexia, dyspraxia, ADHD)

Typically, parents reported feeling unassisted due to losing the regular contact and communications with staff who would have normally supported those with SEN prior to the pandemic. Some parents described thinking that they needed to provide this learning support themselves, with some reporting that their child’s school provided no online learning provision over one or more lockdowns. One parent described juggling their everyday teaching job with providing educational support for her son who would normally attend a special school. The parent described not receiving any materials or online teaching for months, which led to her contacting her son’s teaching assistant herself to get some activities sent to their house.

“I said this is not good enough, that actually he can’t be left just by himself, he’s regressing and his sister in the meantime is following a semi structured programme, you know there were activities for her, nothing has been even suggested for him” (Parent of young person aged 19, ASD)  “He had a lot of one-to-one teacher support and I think suddenly he was at home on a screen and it was hard because he suddenly didn’t have that support anymore. I used to have regular meetings with SENCO teachers about [child’s] progress and then suddenly that all stopped.” (Parent of child aged 17, dyslexia, dyspraxia, ADHD, global development delay)

In addition to losing learning support, some children and young people with SEN reported that the experience of learning from home was more difficult than in person. Many of these challenges appeared to be heightened versions of those experienced more generally by children and young people. Those with SEN referred to home learning as “hard”, “frustrating” and “boring”. In particular, children and young people spoke about comprehension, information processing and understanding social cues (such as when to mute and unmute their microphone) being harder when learning from home. Those interviewed often struggled to focus on schoolwork, and felt they did not receive enough help to understand concepts because they found it harder to ask teachers questions in the same way as they could in the school environment. However, some more positive home learning experiences among young people with SEN are explored below in Enabling learning during the pandemic.

Educational disruption was also said to have affected the ability of some children and young people with SEN to transition into an appropriate school. One child discussed being unable to join a special school during the pandemic. This child had left a mainstream school prior to the pandemic and was waiting for a place at a special school during the initial lockdown. He described how unsettling it was to not know what he was going to be doing every day and whether he would be able to go to school. His mum agreed that there was no learning support and found home schooling support pages on social media sites to be an unreliable source of help. 

“I had to go and ask my mum every night before bed, what’s going on, what we going to do tomorrow, that type of stuff. But with Covid she didn’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow. And like you know, we applied to the school but we didn’t know if you could get a school place or not, it was just like 50/50 to see what would happen, I didn’t like it, I like to know what’s going to happen the day after, it just wasn’t nice”. (Aged 17, ASD) “There was no support, there was no help. We went on a couple of like Facebook home schooling pages that we were trying to look at and all we kept getting, oh someone will be in touch, someone will call you, no one ever did.” (Parent of child above aged 17)

Some children and young people with SEN described finding it particularly difficult to concentrate on online lessons. For example, they found it difficult to know how to ask a question on Zoom, especially when everyone on the call was talking at the same time. Those interviewed with cognition and learning needs talked about how they take longer to process information and to work out what they need to do to complete a task. Therefore, during online calls, they recalled feeling lost, with lessons going too fast for them to understand what was going on. Some children and young people with ADHD also felt frustrated, and parents thought this was because they did not have a structured routine. Parents reported that they became dysregulated and were difficult to support at home.

“We had to do it on our laptops, so we didn’t have the physical work there. Just trying to concentrate and everything was a lot harder because you had so many distractions. It was the meetings, the live meetings, everyone was talking and what not.” (Aged 15, Visual Dyslexia) “It was very boring and frustrating doing online calls, because I was just sat on a Zoom call, eating cereal, with my teacher asking me questions that I didn’t know the answer to, so I would just stay silent until she picked on someone else.” (Aged 16, ASD) “I think I found it kind of difficult because I could just sit there, and be like ‘oh, I can just kind of do whatever’, with the teachers talking and then I kind of fell behind.” (Aged 19, Cognition and Learning Needs)

The pandemic was also felt to have contributed to an increased awareness of special educational needs among some children and young people, their parents and their schools. The change in routine and learning new ways of doing things appeared to highlight children and young people’s additional educational needs or struggles. There were a range of perceived outcomes from this increased awareness, such as initiating the assessment process following the pandemic or receiving greater support from schools for children and young people’s special educational needs. 

For some children and young people, spending more time at home during lockdown seemed to bring to light educational needs to themselves or their parents. Spending more time at home with the chance to self-reflect led some older children and young people to start thinking about the diagnosis process. 

“I think when it started to show that I had anxiety and they could pick up on things that were a little bit, like, why does she do this and why does she do that? Obviously because now I’m getting diagnosed with ADHD but before that we had, like, no idea. I didn’t even know myself. I just thought I was a bit weird”. (Aged 16, ADHD) “I realised that I was neurodivergent, I realised I had ADHD and autism, maybe it was something that I kind of already knew but hadn’t thought about because it was just not, it wasn’t causing too many problems.” (Aged 20, ADHD, ASD)

Similarly, the pandemic was perceived by some as a catalyst for seeking a special educational needs assessment. Some children and young people reported that they thought the issues and needs they presented once back at school after lockdown, such as low attendance or disruption, contributed to teachers or staff at school deciding to refer them for different assessments.

“I missed a lot of school and I got to the point where, I think it was like in January, when they’re telling me that I couldn’t have days off any more and they couldn’t send me home because of my attendance… it would make me quite nervous and just worried about it… The [school] thought that I did have autism.” (Aged 14, Social and Emotional Needs)

One young person reported that she thought that her case was prioritised during the pandemic, after many delays and long waits throughout her life. She also felt that getting an ASD diagnosis became more “acceptable” during this time.

“I mean my mum was trying for fourteen years to try and get me diagnosed with any sort of autism, because it was obvious from the start, I think I was mute for five years, and I still have selective mutism, but as soon as like lockdown happened they started prioritising it because it came a lot more acceptable to get diagnosed with autism, so that’s when I got mine.” (Aged 15, ASD)

Physically disabled children and young people also described the additional challenge the pandemic placed on their abilities to keep up with their learning. They found that their additional needs, which they felt teachers took the time to consider before the pandemic, were sometimes forgotten or not accommodated as well as usual in the pandemic. For example, one young person with visual needs found that the worksheets he was sent home with were not always printed in a font large enough for him to read. This young person had to get a QTVI (qualified teacher of visual impairment) involved in the issue before he was able to receive worksheets in large enough font.

“And his QTVI said… he needs to have a particular font size like 24… And I think it got to the point where I said someone has to come up with a solution because there’s no point providing him work that he can’t see, and that was the point where the school then took charge.” (Parent of young person aged 19) “I prefer to go to school, it’s easier… I felt a lot better and easy to concentrate and stuff.” (Young person above, aged 19)

Children and young people with a hearing impairment – including being d/Deaf and having an auditory processing disorder – also described how mask wearing affected their ability to lipread and could lead to feeling excluded. Online lessons during lockdown could similarly be difficult to follow, even with subtitles. One d/Deaf young person described how teachers and/or other students wearing masks made it difficult for her to follow a lesson. She felt that the pandemic potentially had a negative impact on her learning and, in some cases, on her final school grades. 

“I might have been able to do a bit better but in lessons and stuff it was really hard to tell like teachers and other people when they were saying something to the teachers, like I couldn’t pick up on it… So I feel like I’ve missed information.” (Aged 20)

Some children and young people lived with health conditions that affected their concentration, and this made online learning challenging for them. Children and young people with chronic migraines, fatigue or other health conditions that left them with chronic pain found it difficult to concentrate due to their health conditions, which sometimes affected their learning.

“So, my classes went online. We did them on Teams. It was really difficult to engage with that, especially with just, like, feeling out of it and dizzy all the time.” (Aged 22)

In one case, the impact the pandemic had on learning was compounded by the young person having already been out of school for surgery. The pandemic then led to a cumulatively large amount of missed school which made it very difficult for him to catch up.

“I missed a full year of school. [Whereas other] people… missed half a year because of Covid. I missed a full year because of [my] operation.” (Aged 18)

Enabling learning during the pandemic

Across the whole sample, interviews with children and young people revealed a range of factors that enabled some to continue learning during the pandemic. 

These factors, which interacted for individuals, included receiving more individual learning support – such as additional support from parents or teaching staff, or from smaller class sizes and in-person learning at school – as well as individual preference for the pace, flexibility and autonomy of home learning. 

When one or more of these factors were in place, children and young people appeared to find learning more enjoyable or motivating than their peers. An important consequence of this was they were generally better able to continue learning during the pandemic and avoid feeling worried about falling behind.

Individual learning support

Personalised and focused learning support from parents, tutors, SEN support staff22, SENCOs and additional small group tutoring all appeared to play a role in enhancing a young person’s learning experience and encouraging them to continue learning. 

Children and young people described the role that their parents and guardians played in supporting their learning. This included parents supervising their home learning over entire days, monitoring how distracted they were and intervening when necessary, explaining concepts, and finding additional online learning resources to complete. One child interviewed described the “bad” habits he started when learning from home where he would go back to bed whilst his lessons were playing on his laptop. This child acknowledged the role his mum played in getting him back on track with his learning by encouraging him to change these habits.

“I would sometimes just, I’d sometimes just turn the laptop on during the lesson and just go back to bed, but obviously that created bad and lazy habits regarding my schoolwork, but I was lucky enough to have my mum who pushed me enough when I came back to school, and I got back on track and everything was fine in the end, which was good, but some people maybe don’t have someone to push them, which is not the best because they’re just, you know, it will be a disadvantage for them in their future.” (Aged 17) “And also, I feel, my work wasn’t affected too much because my mum was trying to make sure, like she was buying me different maths books, so I could learn at home… I’d done all the Seesaw [learning application] work and everything. And then I was working as hard as I can in class to get back up to… like my intellectuality and everything.” (13 salî)

One child talked about how grateful she was to have support from her parents, particularly her mum, during lockdown. She acknowledged that it helped that her mum was working part-time and from home so had the time to help her find resources and find solutions to problems together. 

“They were both very involved, especially mum because she was only working part-time from home. They were really good with helping us. They were very involved with it. Mum still is anyway. She was really helpful, she would help me find some extra resources for Maths and English online for when I was done with the work school set us and we would discuss the answers together and she would help me if I got stuck, and if she didn’t know the answer, I’d ask Dad when he finished work. I was really grateful we had that kind of help from mum and dad.” (Aged 16)

Another young person recalled the role her grandmother played in keeping her on top of her work during the first lockdown. This was said to be particularly noticeable during the second lockdown because she was then only living with her dad, who worked nights, so she had no one to tell her to do her schoolwork. She reported feeling as though her work ethic suffered without the support of her grandmother. 

“In the second lockdown I was living with my dad. And my dad works nights so he would sleep all day. My sister was in uni so it was literally basically just me, so I didn’t really have any distractions with people. Which I think worked in the counter effect of I had no one being like, ‘[name deleted], you going to do work? Are you going to hop on your laptop?’ I think it would have been better, maybe, if I was still living with my nan because my nan used to ask me every week, ‘have they sent you work? Have they done this?’ And my dad would sleep, obviously, because he’d just got in from work.” (Aged 21)

One child with Down’s syndrome loved being at home and spending time with her mum. Her mum organised the school day for her and provided a lot of the home learning herself, which her mum said was helped by the fact she worked in a Down’s syndrome charity. As a result, she felt her child’s grades improved through having a one-to-one intensive learning experience.

“I felt happy because I was at home with my mum, dad and brother.” (Aged 14) “We were working quite intensively with her on a one-to-one basis and [my employer] did talk about, maybe I would want to home-school full time because her marks had gone up.” (Parent of child above aged 14)

Additional support from teachers and tutors was also reported to have played a key role in enabling learning. One young person described her school’s successful efforts to tailor teaching to her needs when she was struggling, through a questionnaire, direct contact and teachers asking helpful questions to check her understanding.

“[The school] sent out a survey about to ask – like, the school in general sent out a survey asking, oh, how you’re doing? Like, how are classes? And then I did – I remember I did say in that survey that, like, I wasn’t, like, probably doing as well as I could have in, like, actual school… they emailed my parents and they were like, oh, ‘do you think she wants, like, additional help or support? And then I think I did – I had a few of my teachers, like, talk with me and, like, ask me, like, oh is there anything you want us to help or anything? And then that did help a bit because afterwards, like, I think they specifically would try and ask me questions.” (Aged 18)

Where children and young people had attended independent schools, some described benefitting from the attention and personalised support they received from their teachers, particularly having smaller class sizes during online learning. One child moved from a state school to an independent school during the pandemic. He felt his small class size meant he got more support and guidance from the teachers. He had regular, interactive lessons on Microsoft Teams, compared to his old school where they received worksheets and were expected to complete them independently. He also described teachers regularly checking in with them to see how they were getting on.

“In the second school I moved to in November 2020 yes, that’s right, so they would do things online, that’s partially why we moved [to an independent school] just for the better education. So in the year group there was eighteen of us I think… so very small. Yes, there was much more support in the other school then, so teacher would be messaging you to check you’re getting on with the work okay. [In the state school] Like we didn’t have that teaching or anything, we’d just be sent worksheets, get expected to get on with those really, but like there wasn’t any guidance really at all… you didn’t have that support from teachers.” (Aged 17)

Another young person moved to an independent school following the pandemic. She described comparing her pandemic learning experience at a state school with her new peers and thought it sounded as though her peers received a more personal experience, with more attention.

“I’ve moved to a private school for sixth form and, hearing my [new] friends talk about their [pandemic learning] experience it sounded very different. Because it’s quite small in terms of its size and they got a lot more attention [than I did]. So I think that was a kind of more of a personal experience with it.” (Aged 16)

In-person teaching

Some young people who attended in-person schools during lockdowns reported feeling as though they received more attention and personalised support from their teachers, given the smaller class sizes. This also appeared to provide opportunities to make new friends and enjoy learning. This was said to help them to continue learning and, for some, made it easier for them to resume their academic work when they returned in Autumn 2020.

“Because not many people obviously went in. So I feel like when I went in I get more support and I think that helped me a lot to be more confident, as well I think I definitely got more support going into school than staying at home”. (Aged 14) “It was nice to be in. I did find I could concentrate a lot better. And I had help from a teacher as well which was really nice. So it did make a difference being able to go in.” (Aged 16) “I actually liked it [in-person school] because I felt like you got more attention to yourself. I mean a lot of my friends weren’t there because their parents weren’t key workers, so that was a bit upsetting. But I mean it gave me a chance, especially like in primary school to like socialise with people that I don’t normally talk to, and make friends outside of like who I’d usually talk to. So that was quite nice.” (Aged 14)

Those who had a positive learning experience once back at school in Autumn 2020 appeared more likely to mention that they felt supported by their teachers, and as though they could return to learning at a comfortable pace to catch up with their learning. Some also felt they benefitted from catch up sessions outside of lessons or knew of peers who attended them. One child recalled having a teaching assistant who she felt helped her catch up to the level that everyone else was at.

“I think if anything, it [schoolwork once they returned to school] wasn’t easy, but if anything I found it easier because with, especially the school that I went to, our results were like teacher assessed as well as the effort we put in, but they’d put in little hints for us saying like, maybe you’ll get a past paper.” (Aged 21) “I really, like, trusted my teachers. I had really good teachers and I knew that they would tell me what [I] needed to know. I thought that my teachers were amazing.” (Aged 21) “I think there was this one teaching assistant. She used to take me into a room and she used to, like, help me catch up with the work a little bit that everyone else was doing. Because I was quite slow on my work. Because I was still thinking in my brain that, oh, we’ve done in the pandemic. And it’s just like, she just helped me through it and she, like, she made me catch up a little bit more. But it was still hard. I still couldn’t catch up. But she was helping me a bit more.” (Aged 12)

Independent learning

Some children and young people reported benefitting from the home school environment because they liked having control and independence over their learning. They described feeling as though researching key concepts independently enabled them to actively engage with the content, which they felt improved their understanding. Those who reported this included those who described having a quiet and peaceful home environment to enable them to concentrate on home learning.

“[Home learning] actually helped me in education, though, because where sometimes you would rely on a teacher, you’d have to go and find out the answer and research your stuff. Research stuff yourself. So I think that actually helped because then you’re actively engaging in the education yourself. And it definitely helped, actually. But as well I think definitely understood things way more because you’re becoming more self-sufficient.” (Aged 19) “I liked being able to kind of handle it myself a bit. Yes. I think that just works well for me. Because I know what works for me. And so that was in terms of, like, prioritising and stuff that was a lot more helpful in terms of we would be set some drama work. I’d get it done in terms of being able to hand it in but I wouldn’t, like, really invest in that because I knew I wasn’t going to be taking drama for thing. And so when drama work at home, it wasn’t really kind of beneficial to me in terms of that kind of research. So I think being able to prioritise what I knew I wanted to and stuff like that, it works, like, really well. So in terms of, like, I love study leave now for exams. Like, it just that’s what works for me kind of figuring it out myself.” (Aged 16)

Being away from school was said to be an enjoyable experience for those children and young people who had found school to be an overwhelming place prior to the pandemic. This was particularly the case for those with communication and interaction needs who appreciated being away from crowds and social interactions. Some mentioned that they liked the flexibility of learning from home, for example being able to complete worksheets in their own time.

“I don’t do well in crowds and then at that point, I also, I’m diagnosed autism. I guess it was nice not to have stressful school environment.” (Aged 19, ASD)  “[I had a] quite positive [experience of learning from home], I think, because I didn’t have any social interactions. It gave me like a year to relax and not have to worry about school. I realise that I work a lot better when I’m not in social situations.” (Aged 15, ASD)

Some secondary school aged young people took advantage of greater flexibility to develop their interests and expertise in subjects such as art or music. This was said to lead to young people finding schoolwork more enjoyable, feeling they were able to learn about themselves, and shaping future decisions around subject choices at school or university.

Adjusting to new norms

Below, we explore children and young people’s experiences of returning to in-person education after schools reopened for most pupils following the first lockdown in 2020. We discuss how those interviewed experienced new rules and restrictions, and how they found attending in-person lessons again. Finally, we discuss children and young people’s reflections on their exams and exam results being disrupted over this period, as well as the pandemic’s effects on higher and further education.   

Schools began to reopen across the UK for certain year groups in June and July of 2020. From August 2020 in Scotland and Northern Ireland and September 2020 in England and Wales, schools and colleges were expected to fully re-open to all students for the duration of the term. The reopening of schools and colleges to restart face-to-face learning brought about further changes to the lives of children and young people throughout the full 2020-21 academic year. Children and young people mainly identified the impact of remote learning and Covid-19 restrictions on socialising with peers and their capability to learn.

The return to school was largely described in positive terms. Children and young people reported feeling happy and excited when they returned to school after feeling bored and frustrated at home for so long, particularly if they kept in contact with friends during lockdown. However, some described feeling worried or overwhelmed about the prospect of being amongst others again, especially if they had enjoyed aspects of being away from peers (see Social contact and connection). Children and young people also explained how there was a period of adjustments to restrictions and in-person learning, which we describe below.

“I was so excited, I kind of remember my first day and like I was just so happy.” (Aged 12)  “Yes, I think I definitely looked forward to it which was a different feeling for me, because it’s not normal like when you’re that age or like throughout secondary that you look forward to going back to school like when September comes you know it’s like time to go back to it. But yes that time round I think I was definitely more, yes more optimistic”. (Aged 21) “I was so excited to go back to school. I was so excited. Not for the work. Just to see everyone. And, like, what’s changed. Because over lockdown I was like, five-foot-six and then I come back to school and I was, like, six foot! I hated [learning from home]… I just wanted to go and, like, speak to my friends who weren’t next to me.” (Aged 18) “Being back with everyone was great fun, I mean during that time we even had, they tasked us to pick a book and read that… but it was actually being back with friends that was amazing.” (Aged 16) “I liked it [returning to school], it was good to be able to see people face to face. I’ve always had a good group of friends, we kept in contact… we sometimes like called and we were on the phone together while watching a movie.” (Aged 14) “I feel like that’s where my anxious feelings started to kick in [returning to school]. I went from seeing just a minimal amount of people to literally seeing everyone. So, and the same people that weren’t really as they seemed. So it was a bit awkward. Very, like, anxious. I was very anxious but yes, just had to go on like nothing happened, really.” (Aged 19)

Adapting to restrictions at school

The Covid-19 restrictions in schools and colleges that children and young people referred to included one-way systems, staggered start and lunch times, face mask wearing, social distancing, student ‘bubbles’, self-isolation, increased hand sanitising and reducing or ceasing the sharing of equipment and practical tasks such as science experiments.

The Covid-19 restrictions and rules at school tended to be accepted and taken seriously by those children and young people who reported being particularly worried about spreading Covid-19. Some children and young people reflected on the importance of following the rules to reduce the risk of spreading the virus to someone vulnerable, such as someone’s grandparent. Having experiences of a family member who died from the virus also appeared to play a role in children and young people’s appreciation of the rules at school. 

“I was very aware [of catching Covid-19] and I had a lot of like self-precautions and I didn’t want anyone to like touch me or high five me or even breathe next to me… I found the rules very good actually but not everyone followed them… I understood the reasons [for the rules]. I agreed with them too because I just wanted it to be over quicker. I was very worried for a long time after Covid and quarantine that it wouldn’t be good if I got closer to people and spoke to people closely”. (Aged 17) “I think I was okay with it [the rules at school] because I was like, it’s going to stop someone from getting it and that’s – might stop someone’s, like, very elderly grandpa or something from dying from it. So I was like, I think it’s okay even though it slows everything down.” (Aged 13) “My Nan… she died of Covid… well, we think, which meant that kind of opened my eyes fully to, you know, yes, she was old and at risk but I knew my friend’s grandparents who died, I think one of my friend’s mum died which meant I fully understood why I needed to do what I did which meant, when my teacher did tell me off, I would take in what they said and actually learn off it.” (Aged 16)

However, other children and young people reported that they found the new rules “restrictive” and “pointless” because pupils were still catching the virus despite these being in place.

“You’d just be standing there in a big group, and you’d all be separated from each other trying to have a conversation, but you’re just in this massive circle. There’s only five of us but we’re all two metres away from each other… it just became quite tedious and awkward, some of the rules.” (Aged 15) “They [the rules] were very restrictive but I guess that was for a purpose – I was frustrated that we had to do so much to distance from each other but also still isolate if someone I’d never met had it.” (Aged 21) “I think I found them [the rules] a bit annoying I think at this point I was a bit like, you know, we’ve all kind of gone through this. We’ll be safe. You know? And I think everyone already seemed to be catching it anyway so I didn’t feel like it was making too much of a difference. It was just a bit annoying.” (Aged 16) “I remember, I think I didn’t like wearing a mask initially, but eventually I got used to it and I wore it a lot longer than like other people, but the social distancing that was, it was a bit awkward and it felt like, it just didn’t feel like school.” (Aged 16) “Honestly, it felt a bit like I was in like some dystopian movie just because it’s like you’re used to like going in just chilling with your friends… And then all of a sudden everybody’s wearing masks and you’re going in washing your hands, sanitising them and then heading up to a class.” (Aged 19)

Rules and restrictions were also said to be particularly confusing for some children and young people with SEN. One young person with ADHD described how the one-way systems made it hard to get to lessons on time, something they already struggled with.

“And then I already had a problem with lateness. I’d come up the stairs and I’d have to walk the whole way round, three flights because I can’t just cut up.” (Aged 16, ADHD)

Schools’ Covid-19 measures were also said to disrupt children and young people’s friendships due to schools splitting pupils up into different ‘bubbles’ within and outside lessons. When children and young people were separated from their friends, some continued to feel isolated despite the return to school, although others enjoyed developing close friendships in their bubbles.

“We had to keep rotating. And there could only be, like, one person per table when it’s supposed to be, like, two. It was a bit lonely because most of them my friends weren’t in, like, any of my classes.” (Aged 14) “So every single one of our lessons was with our form. And so it was like that was really full on. Thankfully I had, like, all of – like, my friendship group was kind of happened to be my form as well. So that was really helpful… and we all got quite close because we were spending so much time together.” (Aged 16)

Mask-wearing was said to be a common requirement in schools, and was referred to as uncomfortable and itchy, making it difficult to concentrate. Some mentioned not being able to hear or understand teachers well due to mask-wearing, which was said to be more prevalent among secondary school students.

“My brain was a bit turned off that way, and once again you’re in school and there’s all these new rules and masks… I think I did struggle in that way along with the content.” (Aged 16) “So being back in the classroom, it was quite horrible, to be honest, because they would make us like sit there the whole time in our masks. I didn’t like that. And the learning, like, obviously, I didn’t really understand it because like, we haven’t had like the proper time to be able to learn that.” (Aged 16) “When people are wearing masks you’ve got no clue what they’re really saying they’re that far away from you. So it just made everything so inconvenient.” (Aged 18) “We had to wear masks all the time, which is probably the hardest bit because it’s hard to understand people, and it’s hard to do lessons in there because they’re obviously quite, like, uncomfortable to wear. So that was quite tricky.” (Aged 16) “I think my least favourite thing about it was face masks, I couldn’t stand them, and the amount of, we call them conducts [punishments], that I got from just not really wanting to wear them. You just felt a bit restricted with breathing and another thing is I just couldn’t read other people’s faces very well so, because I am, I like to think of myself as very observant, so I would normally know how they are feeling and that kind of restricted me a little bit.” (Aged 16)

Mask wearing could also create challenges for those who had a hearing impairment, including being d/Deaf or having an auditory processing disorder, who described how masks made it difficult for them to follow what people were saying and the knock-on effect on making friends, socialising, and keeping up with lessons. One young person with hearing difficulties described wearing the sunflower lanyard, used to represent non-visible disabilities, as a key memory of the pandemic. She found that she needed to wear this to help with asking people to remove their masks in order for her to lip read.

“The sunflower lanyard had the most impact on me because I didn’t need the lanyard beforehand, and then I’d need it to be able to tell people that I needed to pull the mask down so I can like hear and like read what they’re saying… Because I couldn’t lip read.” (Aged 20)

Those interviewed also described how restrictions meant practical lessons such as experiments or group projects were unavailable or restricted for a while, which was felt to impact quality of learning and progression. Children and young people expressed disappointment about this, especially for those in exam years or studying sciences, where interactive learning was felt to be crucial for understanding. One young person reported changing their future education plans: she did not take Triple Science GCSE due to thinking it was mainly theory based and not being able to complete experiments when she returned to school.

“So in terms of science, like, we were just in a normal classroom so we had no experiments, no practical work. No drama, music, anything like that. Because it was all just everything became theory. And so then I didn’t pick triple science with GCSE because I just thought… it was all that kind of theory. But then and now I really love science and so I’m really annoyed that I hadn’t. But I just hated it at that point because it was all just – there was nothing kind of practical to it and stuff like that.” (Aged 16)

Experiences of learning at school

Children and young people generally felt appreciative for the return to in-person learning again: technical difficulties were absent, it felt more natural to ask for help, they could discuss tasks with their classmates and all the resources were readily available within the classroom environment. Some described a sense of shared experience, knowing that everyone had missed out on some learning and was “in the same boat”, and felt reassured by this. 

“It was a lot more fun, like just learning, because it was just much easier to have it just in a class, where you’ve got all the stuff you need, it’s just like the teacher can teach quite easy, like they don’t have to mess about with a Zoom call.” (Aged 19)  “I suppose everyone was in the same boat as me. Nobody did work either. There would be some times where I would be like, ‘oh I’ve done the work, nobody else had’, which was nice for me, because it meant I didn’t have to catch up or anything. But, we went over the same things basically, again, as what we did in lockdown.” (Aged 16)

Returning to school also enabled some children and young people to receive additional learning support that they were not receiving prior to the pandemic. These children and young people and their parents felt that their needs were more acknowledged after lockdown and were addressed with extra provision to enable them, particularly those with SEN, to catch up on learning.

“For the academic support, I just had a really good maths teacher who was really good with me. And then I ended up getting a key worker as well, because they finally acknowledged that I had additional needs to help me like put things in place to sort of learn what I’d missed. So my learning really improved once I was back in school.” (13 salî)

However, returning to school once it was open to all students again was also described as a stressful experience for some children and young people with SEN. This included both children and young people who had not attended school during lockdown and those who had been allowed to continue attending school in person. Those interviewed described finding this hard because they were not used to the more regimented school routine and were used to having more flexibility and freedom at home.

“When we had to go back in class and stay silent, sit down and do work it was just like no I’m used to being at home, I’m just going to stand up and walk around, I’m just going to talk to people when I’m not meant to… it was like when I was at home I didn’t get a detention, so why am I now getting a detention?” (Aged 13, ASD, ADHD, Dyslexia)

Difficulties with the social aspect of returning to school also appeared to be heightened for some of those with SEN. Those with communication and interaction needs such as ASD recalled feeling nervous to talk to their peers which made it difficult to make friends. Different seating plans and class ‘bubbles’ were also stressful for some children and young people when they were not placed with their friends.

“When I first started [back at school] I was really nervous to talk; no-one spoke for the first day really. But after that, because of my autism and other like social issues, I just didn’t say a word for the entire time, not a single word to anyone, other than the teachers. And because of that I had absolutely no friends. So I was spending all my time either in lessons or sitting down staring at a wall.” (Aged 15, ASD) “I guess it was just stressful, because it was so different because the desks were arranged differently, everyone had to sit specifically, you couldn’t really hang out with your friends even at break… it didn’t feel like a school anymore.” (Aged 19, Cognition and Learning Needs)

Disruptive behaviour once back at school led to exclusion in some extreme cases among children and young people with SEN. One child described being excluded from school several times because of his disruptive behaviour, which he felt was due to falling behind and struggling to settle back into learning again. His mum supported his view and believed this was because he could not cope with the regimented environment after being left to work independently for so long at home.

“I lost like probably about three years of my proper learning… yes and then like in year five when I was constantly being excluded. It was quite stressful [going back to school] for me because I was going into a new school and I couldn’t properly settle in because like the way we were learning, I think.” (Aged 13, ASD, ADHD, Developmental Delay) “[Covid] was a huge contributing factor [to my child being excluded]. Just being left to his own devices for such a long time and that, when he was going back into school it was so regimented and so strict that he couldn’t cope in that environment… it was just perceived that he was just causing problems not adhering to the rules and [he] was excluded.” (Parent of child above aged 13)

Children and young people with SEN reported that they generally found completing schoolwork more difficult once they returned to school than before the pandemic. Some said they realised this was because they had missed out on a lot of learning during lockdown. One young person with dyslexia in a mixed ability class described falling behind her classmates and feeling worried from comparing herself to her peers. 

“I think I felt kind of like down as well because there was people in my class that were higher than me and could do more than me and obviously had more strengths in different things. And I was thinking, ‘why am I not like that?’” (Aged 14, Dyslexia) “Even though [the work] was the same as before, it felt so much more difficult.” (Aged 17, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, ADHD, Global Development Delay)

Children and young people who attended in-person school during lockdown also experienced some difficulties in adjusting to learning within the school environment once everyone else returned in Autumn 2020. Those who had reported receiving individual attention from teachers missed this once everyone else returned and they were in a normal sized class. Some also reported missing the peace and quiet of the small class sizes. Those who had experienced more playtime and limited schoolwork reported finding it difficult to adjust to having a full school day and catching up on learning.

“It [in-person school] was easier because, like, it wasn’t as crowded and it was a bit more peaceful without the noisier bunch being there. They would make us do work and then we’d be back out playing in, like, another half an hour. So we had, like, five break times every day… They gave us quite easy work. But I think the people who were homeschooled got a bit harder work… [When everyone else returned to school it was] A bit overwhelming. Because I wasn’t really used to it after it was, like, quiet and barely anyone being there. And then it just went from that to everyone being there. And it was just a bit strange. Like, I wasn’t expecting it to happen so quickly. And we got asked to do a lot more schoolwork because we got – just as I say, like, five breaks a day; it went from that to one.” (Aged 12)

More broadly, children and young people mentioned feeling lost and confused in lessons once they returned due to the break in in-person teaching. Secondary school aged students identified knowledge gaps, particularly in maths, and reported returning with many incomplete assignments. Primary school aged children reported forgetting basic skills like telling the time or doing their times tables. Those who had found it difficult to engage with online learning tended to report knowledge gaps once they returned to school and mentioned incomplete assignments that had built up over lockdown. These children and young people reported feeling stressed about these knowledge gaps and described feeling conscious of the differences in knowledge and understanding with their peers.

“It was really hard to learn because of the pandemic I didn’t learn how to tell the time because I missed them lessons and I didn’t know how to like do my timetables properly because I missed all of them.” (Aged 12) At the very start [of returning to school] because I had a lot of work that I hadn’t handed in so I knew every class [I] go to there was going to be a teacher saying, ‘why didn’t you do this, why didn’t you do that?’… Because there were times in that second lockdown that I think I was sitting with thirty assignments missing, teachers were asking me where are they and I had five tech homeworks that I hadn’t submitted because I just, I basically blanked school out for those months.” (Aged 18) “The jump up from second to third year [year eight to year nine], you feel it and it was weird. I struggled in third year [year nine] actually and looking back at it I struggled in school and I think that could have been because of Covid as well, yes. I kind of my brain was a bit turned off that way and once again you’re in school and there’s all these new rules and masks… I think I did struggle in that way along with the content.” (Aged 16) “I had to learn things that they hadn’t been teaching us. And it was, like, quite soon, just coming straight back into school, after there being barely anyone there and barely learning anything. So it was a big change going from that to everyone being back and learning everything straightaway.” (Aged 12)  “I think it was quite tricky because obviously where some people had done more work than others, how much we’ve covered was very varied. So there was a lot of going over – re-going over things just to make sure we were all caught up.” (Aged 16)

Children and young people also mentioned that there was a lack of opportunities to catch up on lost learning when everyone returned to school. Some of those interviewed described that teachers did not go over content that was covered in lockdown and instead continued with teaching material that they were expected to learn at this point in time regardless of the pandemic.

“With lockdown there was a just a massive gap of doing nothing and I treated it like a summer holiday pretty much, that’s how I treated lockdown, like I did nothing for quite a lot of it… If there wasn’t a lockdown I’d be doing much better… [When we returned to school after lockdown] they [the teachers] didn’t do any catch up at first and just like picked up right off from what they were learning online.” (Aged 16)  “So when school did open up, I was really far behind, I do remember having to put in a lot of hours to catch up.” (Aged 21) “It was as if lockdown hadn’t happened because we just had to carry on, which was so hard… I think they [the school] put on some kind of summer catch up course but no one did it.” (Aged 19)

A stressful experience highlighted by those interviewed at the start of secondary school or exam years in this period was having lots of tests or mocks once they returned. Some expressed frustration at being streamed into ability sets or receiving predicted grades based on these marks.

“So we went from, like, mixed ability classes to everyone being put in the class based on how much they actually know. And I wasn’t used to that because I’ve never – like, it’s never happened to us before.” (Aged 16)

Children and young people recalled feeling frustrated that they continued to miss out on key milestones and experiences throughout the 2020-21 academic year. School trips, residentials (overnight or multi-day enrichment activities), leavers’ assemblies and proms continued to be cancelled or stripped back even by the summer term of 2021. For example, one child was disappointed because the annual end of year six trip to the Isle of Man didn’t happen for his year group.

Self-isolation and further lockdowns were said to lead to frequent stops and starts to school. As a result of this, children and young people reported that they continued to spend considerable time at home and were expected to complete schoolwork or attend online lessons during isolation. Children and young people mentioned feeling frustrated and annoyed that they were required to isolate when someone in their bubble had caught Covid-19, despite testing negative themselves. Children and young people also reported that they were impacted by teachers who were absent with Covid-19.

“So year 12 and year 13 were put in a certain block but that meant that it was, like, 100, 200 students in one block so if one person got Covid you all had to isolate. Sometimes it was like, you’d isolate for two weeks and then come back. And then in a few days they would do, like, a Zoom meeting for the whole school. So if in the middle of your lesson you’d be like, oh okay. I’ve got to go home again.” (Aged 21) “So because so many teachers were off because of Covid and so many had left the school in Covid, we just had so little teachers that the teachers were kind of being shared between us a bit. So that really impacted because I didn’t have, like, a maths teacher for, like, a half-year so I taught myself most of my subjects which was, you know, is obviously going to make a difference because I didn’t really – it was kind of guesswork for a bit.” (Aged 16)

Disruption to exams

Over the course of the pandemic, children and young people in all four devolved administrations of the UK experienced widespread disruption to their examinations.²⁴ Exams for formal national qualifications such as SATs and other primary assessments, and GCSEs and A levels that were due in summer 2020 were cancelled in March 2020. Exams for summer 2021 were cancelled from the second lockdown, between October 2020 and January 2021. Alternative assessment and grading methods prompted controversy and policy reversals. Children and young people’s experiences of disrupted examinations varied greatly by school year, institution, and individual learning approaches. Some differences by country in the UK were discussed by those interviewed and are described below. 

One young person discussed how she still had two very different versions of her A level results. She described how this reminded her of how strange and uncertain the period had felt for her and how “wrong” her results felt when she received them.

“I don’t know anyone else that really has this. There are two different exam results, where at first we were given grades that were re-marked by… the exam board. And then that got cancelled out, and we got sent a new set of exam results… based on our teachers… our work never got to be formally assessed… The people that gave us our original results slip haven’t even seen any of our work… it was all just brought down based on statistics of the previous years of the school and, like, where you lived and stuff. I always think of it now how I’ve got two A levels but only this one’s valid… [the grades on] this one [are] DCBB and then this one’s CCBA, which is quite a big jump… I’ve always got top grades and [for one exam] I got a pass out of, like, pass, merit, distinction. And that’s the lowest grade I’ve ever got and it just felt wrong.” (Aged 22)

Experiences were highly mixed across individuals. Some reported positive experiences or claimed the disruption to exams put them at an advantage. This included those children and young people who described feeling motivated to work harder by earlier exam cancellations. However, others noted the period was stressful, unpredictable, and inconsistent. Reflecting on the longer-term impacts, some also felt they lost the chance to build exam skills and confidence during remote learning. 

Young people tended to report that they reacted positively to the news of the cancellation of formal exams across 2020-21. Those in secondary education discussed the relief of not having to take exams. Young people who were particularly pleased at cancellations included those who disliked or struggled with exams, or already felt confident they had learned content sufficiently. Exam cancellations announced in winter 2020 were especially appreciated by those who had been worried about whether these would take place at all.

“I was doing A Levels, yes. So to be honest I was happy, my A Levels were cancelled, you know, in what world does this happen? A Levels exams get cancelled, it’s amazing.” (Aged 21) “[I felt] as close to over the moon as you can get, personally [about GCSE cancellations].” (Aged 20)

However, young people also described a range of negative experiences connected with exam cancellations, which contributed towards a confusing and stressful educational experience. Young people often perceived communication from the government and schools as poor and inconsistent, and some felt angry about the way government decisions would “chop and change”. Those interviewed also discussed how the lockdown and remote learning context made it harder for them to know what was happening and those less engaged with school communications reported it taking some time for this message to reach them.

“One of the teachers even said to us, oh, [I] don’t think like the GCSEs are getting cancelled, because that’s never going to happen. It’s never happened before, it’s never going to happen… Then like a week later… it came on the news that they cancelled GCSEs and everybody had to stay in lockdown… it was so different to what everybody was expecting, especially [as] teachers had been in the industry for years.” (Aged 21) “[I felt] angry because I understand that it was a very unprecedented time for everybody, you know, the government had never obviously been through something like this before, so it was very difficult for them to know what was the right thing to do, but also on the flip side of that it could have just been, the messages could have just been delivered in such a better format, especially with exams and things like that, I think, you know, rather than leaving it last minute.” (Aged 20)  “[The government] just needed to be clearer. Not chop and change all the time.” (20 salî) “When you do your GCSEs, it’s the biggest thing in the world. At the beginning I was like, this is the worst thing in the world, it being cancelled… and after a while it doesn’t actually matter that much. I was stressing so much… but it is just GCSEs. I definitely think it just matured me in terms of me looking at priorities and what is important and what isn’t.” (Aged 20)

The cancellation of exams was also felt by young people to have led to some long-term adverse effects, including lost motivation contributing to young people dropping out of education, developing a fear or dislike of exams, and a sense of missed opportunities to prove themselves.

“I didn’t know this when we first started year 12 but my year 12 grades in the assessments that we did, we found out they didn’t count towards my overall A Level grade. So I was really disheartened by that because I worked really hard on them and, like, I managed to get really good marks on them… then they said, oh, because of the disruption, that means they don’t count. So I understand that for some people they would have found it really hard to work in those conditions but I just felt a bit defeated. Like, I’d worked hard and then they didn’t count.” (Aged 21) “I wanted to prove myself right and wanted to do well for myself and I was like I just feel like ‘I can’t even do what I feel like I can do’ because you can’t even do an exam at the end of it. You know? Economics is so exam heavy. Like, there’s no real practical side of it. It’s all like numbers and, you know, charts and everything. It’s like, no ‘I need to do an exam for you to understand if I’m going to be able to [achieve] like, a certain grade.’” (Aged 21) “[I have] completely forgotten how to do exams… [university exams] made me so anxious because I couldn’t remember how to revise properly or, like how to write exams… since Covid I’ve never been able to finish an exam in time… I think that is because I didn’t get any practice during [the pandemic].” (Aged 22)

Other children and young people felt they faced knock-on effects from this disruption on secondary school choice and how they were streamed by ability into different sets (if taking primary assessments), A level subjects (if taking GCSEs/equivalent), or university selection (A levels and equivalents).

“I feel like if I’d [taken] my SATs I would have been put in a higher set. But because I didn’t take them, I was in a lower set… I don’t think I’m in the right set, I think I need to be in a higher set. I haven’t got a proper Maths teacher, he doesn’t know what he’s doing… I was on the internet even looking up how to do things to try and help them, but at the end of the day I’m not a teacher.” (Aged 13) “I feel like maybe I could have gotten into [specific university] or something. I mean, it’s just a gut feeling but grade inflation [was] really a thing. So a lot more people got 3 A*s. So universities [were] way less, like, willing to give out offers. I believe [this university] rejected a lot of people.” (Aged 20)

While the pattern of exam cancellations was broadly similar across devolved administrations, differences in examination approaches could affect individual experiences. In England, AS level exam scores no longer contribute to A level results whereas in Wales they count for 40% of the final grade.²⁵ With AS exams cancelled in Wales during the pandemic, some Welsh young people reported feeling under additional pressure preparing for their A level exams, as these now determined their entire final grade.  

Young people were affected even if not taking formal exams during the pandemic period of 2020-21. Young people who had taken exams from 2022 onwards often felt they lacked revision and exam skills they expected to have gained through practice. 

“I personally feel like we’ve been s*****d a bit, I don’t think like we’ve, I feel like we’re always going to be known as the Covid kids… I was nervous from March up until the end of June [2025] because I feel like when they said ‘oh, you’re sitting both fourth year and fifth year’… it became quite overwhelming.” (Aged 18)

Some young people taking formal exams for the first time after 2022 also felt unsupported compared to older peers who they believed received more allowances, such as being told what would be in the paper, only tested on part of their course and having lower grade boundaries. While some highlighted adjustments that made taking exams easier, such as being provided with equations for science exams, these young people often felt unprepared. This was said to be exacerbated by fewer internal exams (as perceived by young people) that would have helped them practice. 

Young people’s reflections on receiving Centre Assessed Grades (CAGs)²⁶ were mixed. Some young people had major concerns with their fairness and consistency. These concerns reflected distrust in ways grades were perceived to have been determined, for example through mock exams, prelims (in Scotland), or coursework, the influence of previous years’ exam performance, or “favouritism”. Young people felt that the process varied widely between schools, which they felt could undermine the credibility of their grades. Some young people received better marks than expected and benefited. Others felt imposter syndrome or that their grades “did not count”. Those who had not taken mocks or coursework could feel seriously penalised at the lack of evidence used for their predicted grades. 

“We were very conscious of the fact that we had just spent the last two years… working towards [A levels] so it was very much, ‘what are these two years for, if we are not going to do anything… and I remember thinking, I’m definitely not a D student in politics. I’ve never once, in past papers, I have never once got a D in any of them.” (Aged 21)

Some young people felt that their predicted grades did not reflect their ability, and contributed to decisions not to continue with education. Some young people also found that their CAG results limited their choices for A level subjects or university destinations.

“I think [if] I would have stuck [in education] I think I would have been… good. Because I mean, like, my GCSEs, which are obviously the year before that, I tried really hard for them. I revised really hard. I got really good results. I think that shows that something must have changed, what happened, my outcome, and it was obviously Covid… I would sit at night every night for my GCSEs and revise and try – like, but I just lost all motivation, I think… I lost motivation in the sense of like, okay, this is just going off what the teachers are thinking I can do. Like, people work differently. People wait until right before the exam and do loads of revision and do this. Some people revise all year. Some people are really good in lessons; concentrate. Some people flake off but do work at home. Like, it’s so hard to get a gauge of what you think a pupil’s going to get.” (Aged 21) “I ended up not being able to get into the uni that I wanted to go because one of my grades dropped. So I ended up [in this work] instead, which I’m super thankful for and I think it all ended up well. But that felt like a stab in the chest to be, like, to be wanting to go to somewhere so badly and then not get there because – potentially because of Covid. Because all my motivation just dropped to do anything.” (Aged 21) “I know loads of people who didn’t get into uni because of the way that my school did [predicted grades] and… other people’s schools, they, I just think, it wasn’t consistent so, to me it wasn’t fair… it doesn’t matter which way, I think as long as they decided one way, and everyone did it that way.” (Aged 22)

Other young people described how they felt the pandemic context affected their educational or career direction by making getting into their ideal university or a job more difficult or competitive.

“I realised actually it had a very big impact on my life. Mainly because I was trying to do medicine. And because of the pandemic and everything… all the applications for medical schools got sort of pushed to the next year… by the time I went to apply for it, the, a lot of the spaces were already filled, from previous applications… the competition was increased massively, which led me to taking a gap year in the end, because there weren’t enough places, competition was really, really high. So, that backlog of people for not only, for just medical places, med schools, and dentist schools and yes, it just had an impact on what I was going to do in that time.” (Aged 21)

Disruption to higher and further education

As those interviewed were between the ages of 5 and 18 during the pandemic, few were in higher or further education when the first lockdown was announced. However, a larger proportion entered higher education in autumn 2020 just before the second national lockdown. This followed on from what was often experienced as an abrupt end to school due to the cancellation of exams and school leaving events. 

Responses from young people indicated that, once they started higher education, they could easily feel socially isolated due to remote learning and lockdown restrictions. Some young people also described how they either returned to or did not leave home in this period. As a result of these experiences, they struggled to find ways to form social bonds, within or outside lessons. 

Young people described feeling a lack of support networks that might encourage them to complete their work and make them feel motivated and secure; for example, in their own abilities, and their decision on university choice and subject. Those interviewed described ways this negatively affected their learning quality and their wellbeing.

“I think yes the whole way through my degree I think I felt and I think I probably haven’t done as well as I could have done because it’s really hard to remain motivated when you feel like you’re on your own.” (Aged 21)

More generally, young people discussed feeling lonely and angry, and that they had missed having a “proper” university experience due to pandemic restrictions.

“When we first went into lockdown it was my first year of uni and I was having such a good time and so I think that sort of sudden shift of not being able to experience my – this, like, university lifestyle that I’d waited so long to have and it was just taken away. I was really just – yes. I was really frustrated at that and just not being able to experience it… It felt like an Open University degree, if you wanted a virtual degree, I would have gone to the Open University.” (Aged 22) “Now I have to laugh about it to get me through it. But… it made me angry. It was gut wrenching that we’ve put all this time into a degree. You go for the experience of uni. I’ve lost that.” (Aged 22)

Young people described limitations to their learning progress in this time. They discussed how online lectures and seminars could feel boring and repetitive. Some lectures were said to rely on outdated pre-recorded content, and it was common for classmates to have their cameras off during discussions.

“I remember most of my lectures in first year were, like, pre-recorded from, like, 2018. So they were completely out of date and, like, not engaging in the slightest and most of the forms of assessment were, like, multiple choice quizzes because they hadn’t figured out how to, like, move them online yet. So they just – they were really easy.” (Aged 22)

With a much more self-directed learning approach than at school, some young people also struggled from a lack of educational and pastoral support from academic staff. The reported effects of this on individuals included failing to submit work and missing lectures, experiencing feelings of stress and worry, and even deciding to leave higher education.

“It was also just like the lecturers, it was almost like they’d completely given up as well. It was like they didn’t care. Like it was like, oh we’ve got a class on Wednesday if you want. Oh it’ll be online. Here’s the code if you want. Like, it was never, a need to be there or do anything and if you didn’t hand anything in there was not an email, there was not a follow up, there was not a chase up.” (Aged 21)

One young person described how having lectures online led to him falling far behind in learning because he did not feel pressured to attend them in person. Still at university, he mentioned how he felt attendance at lectures was much lower due to the pandemic.

“It was just so hard to stay focused for that long in front of a laptop. And you weren’t getting any fresh air. And the fact that you didn’t have to go somewhere to be at the lecture… it was just so easy to just think, oh, I’ll just watch that later on… And then before I knew it I think I was something like 30 lectures behind and then I started to get a bit stressed out about that as well… [now] a lot of people still just decide to stay at home.” (Aged 22)

Another young person described seeking out individual learning support due to struggling with feeling a lack of support at university while learning online. He decided to return to his college to complete his degree to get additional support from tutors he already knew.

“A lot of [my university course] was just Teams calls, you still couldn’t go in because of Covid and it was quite, that was quite stressful, because like it was a big step… and to not be able to ask questions in person was really difficult… I managed to pass [first year], but then I went back to [my old college] because it was just better, it was easier for me… I think it’s because I was familiar with them as well.” (Aged 22)

One young person who was living in overcrowded accommodation described dropping out of college due to feeling unsupported by lecturers and bored in her home. She left her course after receiving a job offer and reflected that she would have been earning more if she had stayed in education.

“There [were] not really any chase ups [from lecturers]… and being in the house all the time, you, I kind of, lost motivation to do it so I found that I didn’t actually end up sticking with college I kind of, wish I did stick with it… because, it was, like, last year, the start of last year or something, everybody that was in my class was – well that had stuck with it, was, like, graduating and they’re all doing whatever now and obviously that could have been really good, especially because I was so young [so would have benefited from] getting that [qualification]…Obviously right now I’m at [company] that’s, like, just above minimum wage by, like, twenty pence. So I’d probably definitely be doing better financially but I don’t really think that’s, like, the most important thing anyways, you know what I mean.” (Aged 21)

Some young people were disappointed at the value they received for the cost of their university education in terms of knowledge and skills. This was especially the case for those taking courses with more ‘hands-on’ or in-person components such as animal management and events management. Among these young people, some reflected that they had limited opportunities to develop the skills they needed for future careers as a result.  

“I did events management… I couldn’t put any events on and the whole point of, like, virtually every assignment, was to plan an event and put it on every year. And [at] the end of my first year… [they said] yeah, you’ve got to plan an event… we had to do… a virtual event… which is awful.” (Aged 22) “Online it kind of felt very, it was too impersonal. And I think the main concern everyone was having was that we hadn’t paid for online university which is about half the cost [and] we’ve all got debts for now.” (Aged 22)

Similarly, young people expressed frustration based on their experiences with further education such as apprenticeships. Some young people reported that apprenticeships were delayed, stripped back or stopped altogether during the pandemic. For example, one young person began a dental nursing apprenticeship before the pandemic and said they were unable to do practical procedures as part of her course for a while, and as such, it took six months longer than it should have to complete. Despite this, this young person expressed that she was glad she was able to work at full pay and felt that everyone was in the same situation.

“You had to do practicals at college and you couldn’t do them because you couldn’t go into college and you couldn’t see patients which was a bit of a shame… It was only an 18-months course but it took two years for everyone doing it the same time as me. It was six months longer… But the earning side of it, my boss was so good: he kept our wages to the full.” (Aged 21)

Another young person described feeling “frustrated” and “deflated” because her hairdressing apprenticeship was predominantly taught online. She felt as though she could not be properly supervised for such a hands-on subject with the course being taught remotely. As such, she switched courses and felt as though she would have continued with the course had it not been for the remote learning element.  

“I think if Covid wasn’t a thing I would have continued to do hairdressing. I didn’t feel like I got as much out of the learning than what I should have because we weren’t able to be there 24/7 or use like actual clients rather than using doll heads. So I do feel if Covid wasn’t a thing I would have continued with the career.” (Aged 22)

Concluding remarks

These findings highlight the wide range of ways in which children and young people felt the pandemic disrupted their education and learning, as well as wider impacts of this disruption on their lives. Alongside this disruption, it is notable that some children and young people highlighted aspects of learning in this period that they enjoyed or had carried forward. 

This research indicates, from children and young people’s perspective, the sheer variety of learning approaches used by schools across this period, as well as their inconsistency. Adapting to these new approaches, particularly learning from home, unstructured school days and online lessons, and reduced teacher support and guidance, was said to affect motivation, academic progress and wellbeing. 

The findings identify the ways in which factors such as limited resources (including device access or space to work at home) and specific circumstances (including having SEN or a disability) made pandemic learning particularly challenging. These factors exacerbated difficulties faced by children and young people more generally, for example making online learning even less engaging for those using smartphones or tablets to join lessons or access content. The influence of these factors was particularly noted by some who were experiencing new and challenging learning stages such as preparing to take exams or starting university. The findings also indicate how receiving more individual learning support, being taught in person, and enjoying independent learning helped children and young people to cope and even thrive in disrupted circumstances. 

For some children and young people with SEN, the findings also highlight specific difficulties faced during the pandemic around the loss of learning support and reliance on parents as a result; heightened experiences of the challenges faced by their peers; and unique difficulties they faced when learning from home, including around comprehension, information processing and understanding social cues.

Consistent with themes discussed in Development and identity, experiences of disrupted education (including of exams) could also lead to frustration or anger at “missing out” on milestones such as the end of primary school or post-exam celebrations. This research also highlights instances where young people felt less inclined or able to go to university due not only to lower grades but also feeling less engaged in learning.

3.5 Online behaviours

Têgihiştinî

This section explores children and young people’s access to and use of the internet, social media, and online resources, and positive and negative aspects of this. 

Chapter Summary
Positive aspects of online behaviours Difficulties managing time online Experiences of online harm Concluding remarks	Communication and connection Entertainment and escapism Misinformation and disinformation Contact with strangers Other negative experiences of social media

Positive aspects of online behaviours

Below we describe how time spent online was a valuable source of communication and connection, and entertainment and escapism for children and young people. It should be noted that some of those interviewed had limited access to devices or Wi-Fi during the pandemic. While some described this affecting their home learning (see Education and learning), they still found ways to go online to play games or contact friends, sometimes on shared devices or their parents’ phones. 

Communication and connection

Communicating or playing online with people they knew was an important source of connection for children and young people during the pandemic and described as a way to support wellbeing (see Social contact and connection).

“I enjoyed being on my phone because obviously with the whole Covid thing I wasn’t allowed to see my friends and it was just nice to like message them and contact them.” (Aged 12) “We used to play Roblox a lot, that was so fun, do you know what one of my core memories is like being on FaceTime to my friends and we used to play this Roblox game called Flee the Facility and we used to play that and… it was so much fun. Still to this day we would talk about how fun it was in lockdown playing Roblox and stuff like that.” (Aged 17) “Playing games [online] with my friends really helped because it just took my mind away from everything that was going on in the world.” (Aged 17) “I think [being online] was a bit of a safety net of like community… don’t just wanna keep reading or being on my own because I’m on my own 24/7 so I can sort of be [with others] on my phone instead.” (Aged 20)

Some children and young people in their teens during the pandemic also experimented with meeting new people online, through gaming, social media, and platforms such as House Party, Discord, and Yubo, although some recognised the risk of online harms through these platforms. Some appreciated being able to become part of a wider community online, from connecting to other gamers to joining a faith group (see Social contact and connection). 

“We’d play House Party… and meet people from all over like, I know loads of people now. Like from down in London, Hartlepool, all over. I still speak to them. That’s how like I met people. And my boyfriend who I’m with now, he would be on, and he’d be like, oh what you doing, like this and that. He’d be joining loads of different people’s parties and that’s how I like started speaking to him more.” (Aged 18) “There was this App called Yubo… basically Tinder for like people under 17… you livestream together, so me and my friends we used to go on it… it was so funny… it was live groups and you would just join them, speak to random people online… it’s still a thing, but I think it was very popular [during the pandemic].” (Aged 21) “I feel like my online life was a lot [during the pandemic]. I used social media and, you know, the internet a lot. But I feel like it all worked for my good… because I met so many amazing people.” (Aged 20)

Online challenges and TikTok crazes were also a salient pandemic memory for some. Those who got involved enjoyed the feeling of connection from taking part in a collective experience (see Social contact and connection).

“I can’t emphasise how much like TikTok and Roblox was just like such a big factor to me, like I would just be on it all the time, I was just copying the trends, just doing dances… Whenever I see things online, like throwbacks to 2020, like TikTok was in Covid, I always just like find it funny, I’m like ‘oh my God that was a crazy time where we did that trend, and we did that dance’.” (Aged 14) “I would say [spending time on TikTok] was a good thing, like certain things you can all look back on and remember on like this, when we think of certain things during lockdown we think of this TikTok… [it] brought people together.” (Aged 15)

A sense of connection on TikTok and other social media was also mentioned in the context of experiencing post-viral symptoms. Some described the value of these platforms in providing valuable information and helping them feel that they were not alone in experiencing their condition.

“[I have] something called parosmia…27 I used to love Irn-Bru. I don’t like the taste of it anymore… I’ve read about it online… I was thinking surely I can’t be the only one. I’ve read, like, blog articles of people that it’s happened to or I’ve watched TikToks; some YouTube videos of people it’s happened to.” (Aged 21)

Entertainment and escapism

Online content was also seen as a valuable source of entertainment, escapism, and comfort for children and young people during lockdowns. In some cases it also provided inspiration for new activities and interests that helped children and young people to make the most of their time at home. 

“I reconnected with all the random video games that I used to play when I was younger, stuff like that… I feel like it gave an escape… and it gave a different sense of reality, which I think is what I needed at the time.” (Aged 22) “TikTok was like kind of a safe space… to relax and just get away from Covid.” (Aged 14) “I started watching a lot of TV and movies [online]. I got into, like, cartoons… I used to, like, I remember watched eight seasons of the show in, like, a month. Like, I just loved watching TV.” (Aged 13) “I think I was looking at Roblox videos. And I just started listening to music… just pop music and stuff. I started singing. And then I realised I can sing… So I just started learning hundreds of songs.” (Aged 14) “TikTok was a very big thing for me during the pandemic. I was all day every day scrolling through TikTok or making TikTok videos… it was a positive thing because I got to do things that I liked. Like I like to do make-up so I was doing loads of videos on TikTok for make-up. And I was getting a lot of good views and feedbacks and comments and stuff, which made me feel good considering that I couldn’t go out and do anything.” (Aged 22) “Everyone was posting these, like, oh ‘how to do these at home’ [online videos] like ‘get yourself abs in six days’… I literally hadn’t even tried working out until the pandemic, I’m not going to lie, like that was my first time ever sort of getting into working out… When I was given all this time and I was in my room, I was like, well, I might as well just do some ab crunches on the bedroom floor.” (Aged 20)

For some primary school-aged children, who had not spent much time online previously, being allowed to spend more time online was recalled as an exciting part of lockdown and helped them to deal with boredom.

“I remember I got my first console in the pandemic. Yes, so video games will always have a special place in my heart… I made my love for gaming… my mum did used to have, like, a work iPad which I would use but that was the only screen I had access to other than the TV… I remember in the pandemic my parents could see I didn’t have too much to do so they decided they would get me the console.” (Aged 9) “If I was going to bring something [that reminded me of the pandemic], I’d probably bring my Nintendo Switch… I was playing, that whole time, I just played Animal Crossing… I had 600 hours on it by the end of lockdown… [I remember feeling happy] because I was sitting there with no school playing Animal Crossing for like six months.” (Aged 13)

Difficulties managing time online

With so much time at home during lockdown, managing the amount of time spent on a screen was recognised by some children and young people as having been a challenge. Children as young as seven at the onset of the pandemic described their online behaviour during lockdowns as “unhealthy”.

“That’s why I have square eyes28 [because of my screen time during the pandemic]… It was not limited, but now it’s limited to an hour… We could spend as long as we wanted, but now since we have square eyes [my parents] decided to keep it an hour a day.” (Aged 9) “I’ve discovered that I really enjoy [playing video games] during lockdown because when I’d finished like my lessons I used to just go on the iPad for a bit… it probably got me way too addicted to a screen because I just had to stare at one for that long every day and it was like, it probably wasn’t, like they say you shouldn’t stare at a screen otherwise your eyes will go square, like obviously that’s not true but it’s also not good to go on an iPad for all day or something. So yes, that kind of like, that was a bit of a negative because it was probably not great for me to be doing what I was doing all day, yes.” (Aged 11) “[As well as schoolwork] I’d use [my laptop] for like playing video games and chatting to my friends on… We’d basically do that all day and we’d watch some TV in the evenings. A lot of screen time… probably not very healthy… I think it made me tired.” (Aged 11)

Some of those interviewed reflected that the sheer number of hours spent online was not good for them. Children and young people of all ages recalled spending six or more hours a day online, sometimes into the night (19 hours a day was the highest amount mentioned). For some children and young people, this could also be affected by having school-scheduled days (see Education and learning) with frequent online lessons.

“[The pandemic] definitely made me online a lot more. Like, I was online for school, like, communication. Everything I was doing with, like, the outside world was online… Any shopping I was doing that wasn’t a supermarket was all online. [It] definitely increased how much I was using, like, my phone and my laptop… [I was spending] probably about seven or eight [hours a day online]… I was all-consumed with it.” (Aged 16) “I think one day there was, like, my screen time went to 18 hours or something stupid because there wasn’t really anything else to do… The only way you could talk to your friends was online. The only way you could, like, entertainment was online. Schoolwork, online… just everything ended up being online.” (Aged 20) “[I was] mostly playing video games, just like Roblox, just like 24/7. Because of the fact that we didn’t have much help during the online school, pretty much myself and a couple of friends we would just play Roblox 24/7. I remember like looking at my screen time and it was 17 hours… Like 17 hours daily, every single day… I think I ended up getting like over that probably, just like into 19 hours per day…I thought it was fine, my Dad thought otherwise. He was like ‘focus on your online school’ and I’m just like ‘no, no thank you’.” (Aged 16)

Some children and young people also reflected that the time they spent online was not good for them because it was so mindless and “empty”. This was mentioned by young people in their teens who referred to “binge watching” shows or “endlessly scrolling” as examples of mindless activities, as opposed to interacting with others.

“[I was] just binge watching things on Netflix, I think I watched like the whole, I don’t know I’ve seen like six seasons of Prison Break in like a couple of days, that’s how bad it was, yes, just constantly scrolling through TikTok, constantly, hours and hours and hours.” (Aged 21) “[The amount of time I spent online] was ridiculous. It was so bad. It was so bad. I’d be on TikTok all day. And it’s the most futile thing ever, because I gained nothing from it… horrible.” (Aged 17) “I feel like I wouldn’t be on my phone as much if the whole Covid pandemic didn’t happen. Because I got so used to constantly being on my phone because I had nothing else to really do other than walks in the woods. But when I was at home I’d mainly be on my phone quite a lot. And I think that made me get in the habit of keep constantly looking on my phone… like watching TikToks, scrolling for ages.” (Aged 17) “People were posting a lot of **** on [social media]… it kind of knocks your brain a little bit when you’re on there for hours and hours and hours, constantly on there… posting of them dancing or like just I don’t know people slapping each other or just adding loads of stupid stuff whatever it may be… don’t get me wrong it’s entertaining, but when you’re watching it for hours and hours that’s when it’s like does your brain in really.” (Aged 22) “[Spending time online] was just empty… kind of filled with nothing… like it felt like I was doing something, but I was also being really unproductive… I think at the time it was a novelty to me and then it was just a bit boring and sad.” (Aged 11)

An awareness that others were also spending long stretches of time in this way normalised this behaviour for some, but it still felt unhealthy.

“[The amount of time I spent online] was probably, it was at least 12 hours a day… something crazy, yes. But I know friends were on like 17, 18 hours… There were so many apps that were coming out, like TikTok first came out then… that was probably the biggest reason why it’s so popular now, because everybody jumped on it straightaway… because they had so much free time. TikTok really blew up… and then you’ve got Instagram, you’ve got Snapchat, you’ve got Netflix, you’ve got all these different programmes that are designed to keep you on, and so that, that probably took over in that sense, we didn’t really have much better to do… a lot of time wasting… Like we could have, we could have learnt so much, so many skills or anything that time, but instead we were just sort of wasting away in our beds or just sort of, just by not doing much.” (Aged 21)

Some of those interviewed who were secondary school-aged during the pandemic described pressure from others to be on their phone constantly in order to keep up with their messages, particularly girls. In some cases they described situations where friendships felt “co-dependent” or “toxic” and found this overwhelming and difficult to escape.

“So I did definitely feel that pressure to keep kind of constantly available to everyone. That definitely added into my anxiety because I just felt constantly, you know, people would just call me or people would text me all the time and, like, I felt constantly accessible. There wasn’t that time to kind of hide away because it was then 24 hours a day.” (Aged 17)

The time spent online was also felt by some children and young people to have affected their health. Negative physical impacts at the time included feeling tired, lethargic, and unable to keep to normal sleeping patterns (see Health and wellbeing), as well as feeling the effect of prolonged screentime on their eyes.

“Too much screen time isn’t good. It’s good to be outside doing physical activity. It is not good to be inside just like cooped up in your room doing stuff on your phone or iPad or just online. So I don’t think it was good at all… I think because I was online so much I probably didn’t sleep as well as I would because like it affects how you sleep.” (Aged 14) “I would just get lost in the world of the video game – it really wasn’t good for me, to be honest, looking back on it. It definitely affected my sleep and concentration.” (Aged 15) “[I’m] hardly ever [online now]… because obviously spending so much time online really highlighted the negative things that come along with it, if you know what I mean? So, like, for example, a bad sleeping pattern and, like, sore eyes from looking at a screen all day and stuff like that.” (Aged 17) “I think one time that I got a headache [from being online it] was almost like eight hours, because I checked the clock.” (Aged 15)

In some cases, children and young people felt that their online habits during the pandemic had affected their attention span and ability to concentrate longer term, affecting schoolwork.

“[I was] mainly [gaming] and like yes, social media, just YouTube and you know, watching videos… [there] wasn’t much at all to do. And it’s purely because there was nothing else to do, you know you couldn’t go out, you couldn’t meet your friends, like what else was there to do as a 17-year-old, I didn’t have any responsibilities… At the time, yes, [I spent] far too much [time online], like just endless hours and hours. Long term, I don’t think [it has affected me], but possibly, because TikTok is very addictive… I feel like because TikTok, that came out during the pandemic… and I feel like that’s actually fried my attention span. I can’t watch anything that’s like longer than 30 seconds now and that’s purely because you’re just scrolling, watching ten-second videos and it just fries your attention span, because it’s what you get used to. So, whether that was during the pandemic when that happened, because I have noticed, I can’t watch a five-minute video anymore, there’s no way, my attention span just goes. And that is because of the scrolling and watching 20-second videos. So, that possibly started with the, with Covid, with the pandemic because you’re bored… I can study, but I do have to take small breaks, to go on TikTok, which is so bad, but I can get it done eventually. But yes, watching videos, five minutes and like I can’t, or I have to watch it on fast, fast pace, fast forward. And that’s probably from the lockdown, just hours of just you know, scrolling and scrolling, frying our brain.” (Aged 21) “It was constant, like the screen time, I think one time I got like, I racked up like 16 hours or something like that… in one go. Like I was just sitting on the console… eating food, coming back, keeping it on, and then just going… just continuing, it was just like, I think my friends went to bed and then woke up and I was still playing, it was that bad, it was just my life, it just so becomes your life you know… I definitely think my education, my sort of, like how much I studied just got completely hit… my NAT 529 was sort of fine because I was like, didn’t fully hit then but, I think my Highers I was on my phone all the time and I stopped going to the gym because I was just like, oh no I want to go play PlayStation tonight… [I was] not studying and it always was about PlayStation… so that definitely was impacted with that I suppose, it was just like, my time was just consumed by it. And then I sort of realised, after my prelims I was like, oh I got terrible grades in those, if I want to go to uni or I want to do anything I need to sort of pack it up and do something about it.” (Aged 18)

Boys in particular described finding it difficult to deal with the distraction of gaming after having the freedom to play so much during lockdown.

“I discovered like loads of games because obviously I think the pandemic was really bad for the little children because you were so trapped; the only thing you had was electronic so people got so glued to it and that’s why kids were on their phone all day so much because they had a long period of time to get addicted… [I feel] quite sad because like, I think I’m addicted. So I’ve tried to go to like the libraries to learn instead of using electronics because you get very glued to them.” (Aged 12) “My PlayStation controller [reminds me of the pandemic because] a lot of the time in Covid, it’s just like, I was just playing for a lot of it… [it was hard to get on with schoolwork] during [the pandemic], it was just the temptation of like playing… After [the pandemic], just like not paying attention because obviously you played a lot, you’re still thinking about playing… it’s like the distractions of games… was just a bit worse, because of Covid, just like because most of the day you just played.” (Aged 12)

It was notable that some children and young people, particularly those in their teens during the pandemic, also described experiencing feelings of dependency – “being consumed”, “being addicted” – and realising that they had become increasingly reliant on being online, having done this so much to fill their time. 

“For a little bit, I got a bit of an addiction to the gaming. And like I was gaming late into the night. [I] stopped doing that, decided to stop, I told my mum and everything… I realised it’s wrong and [affecting my sleep]… because I relied, I relied on gaming too much… It was my mum and mine ideas [to stop]… because she was like again, ‘[you’re] too tired and everything, when you go back to school, you’re going to be even more tired than you already are’. And it’s like just wrong. So then, me and her decided to stop, she just, she thought it would be best to hide it away, so I didn’t have a temptation for a while… For around three months, I didn’t play on my Nintendo Switch… And that just made me realise how it was affecting me… because [stopping] made me… appreciate things more… I felt more in the world and everything.” (Aged 13) “I sort of got a bit addicted to my phone, which probably wasn’t great because I could have done so many more amazing things with that time in lockdown. But I think it was… wanting to see other people virtually. So I sort of put everything else to one side.” (20 salî) “I think [the pandemic] just changed phone addictions for everyone. People are more addicted to their phones because of how much time they spend with their eyes locked to the screen during lockdown and they’ve almost like acclimatised to how it feels and they’re like just scrolling on TikTok for hours and hours.” (Aged 17)

One child interviewed, aged around ten at the time, described how becoming addicted to a “gun game” during lockdown affected his wellbeing.

“[I] didn’t sleep at all really in lockdown, no. I slept when I was really tired from not sleeping, I would get, then after that I literally had one big sleep, not sleeping, have one big sleep. [Because I was on] the game so much, yes, it was just horrible, it was bad… I just was too addicted to it. [Being online affected my mental health] massively because I started getting into like gun games more, so I feel like it made me more violent… I feel being stuck inside and… going on the games my rise of temper was just way quicker.” (Aged 14)

Another child, aged around eight at the time, described how his time spent gaming during lockdown had a financial impact when he bought online currency on his mum’s credit card.

“I’ve stopped myself from going on [my Xbox] as much now, because in lockdown I started to spend a lot more money on it. And that started to affect my mum after my dad moved out. My Xbox was directly linked to my mum’s credit card. It’s like online currencies but it costs real-life money to actually get them. So, it started to cost mum a lot more. She said I spent enough to buy a decent holiday. It was already going on before the pandemic but it was not being able to go and see my friends that made it worse.” (Aged 12)

Reflecting on these feelings of dependency, some children and young people described consciously making an effort to spend less time online once lockdowns were over. They reflected that their negative pandemic experiences resulted in a greater appreciation of face-to-face activities and interactions.

“I think now I’m able to, like, see people in person I just want to be present and stuff like that. Because we didn’t have that opportunity [during lockdown] and it felt like you were kind of constantly relying on screens… I like being present and I think that’s definitely been affected by Covid. Because I think, you know, I just want to be present… when I have the opportunity to, which we didn’t, and so take that for granted less.” (Aged 17) “I would definitely spend more time online [during the pandemic]… that has definitely changed, I am not online as much as I was. I like to get myself out and about.” (Aged 19) “I’m barely online anymore, I just, I don’t have interest for it… I feel like I can do so much better stuff in my life.” (Aged 19)

Experiences of online harm

Below we describe how time spent online could lead to exposure to misinformation and disinformation, contact with strangers, and negative experiences of social media. 

Misinformation and disinformation

One aspect of online harm experienced by children and young people during the pandemic was exposure to misinformation or disinformation³⁰. Some children and young people as young as 12 during the pandemic recalled being exposed to online misinformation or disinformation and rumours, and feeling upset about this. They came across these on social media and in one case shared on a WhatsApp group with extended family. Children and young people mentioned coming across fearmongering about Covid-19, described as “fear culture”. Some also referred to seeing conspiracy theories and “rubbish that people post”. 

“[I came across misinformation/disinformation] every day… Facebook was an absolute cesspit of it. I’m done with Facebook now. I was done with it for a while. But realising just how many sorts of people have mad opinions on things. And I think Covid allowed people to just spout their opinion a lot more and a lot more free… And there were, like, companies hiring bots to reply negatively to certain things. It made me realise I couldn’t trust exactly what I was seeing so I really had to filter through.” (Aged 22) “[A negative aspect of being online during the pandemic was] loads of conspiracy theories… loads of idiots online… just lots of them on Facebook… loads of relatives sharing random stuff… dangerous advice like take salt water or… how to kill Covid, stuff that could kill people… I was rather annoyed. People needed medical attention, not salt water.” (Aged 19) “I feel like that was the negative side [of spending time online] because as much as I was getting different perspectives, which [was good] for me as an individual, I’d always rather get multiple perspectives… some of the things that I was hearing… it’s like, well, that was rubbish because that was just not true. And with the conspiracy theories, with what people were making up and… never came into fruition ever. So, I feel like the negative was that was it put like an unhealthy fear… some of the things and the influx of information that I was just getting, I feel like that was what was bad.” (Aged 20)

Children and young people set to take formal exams recalled seeing online speculation and rumours about what would happen with exam cancellation and grades, and finding this added to the stress of the situation.

“I feel like a lot of the speculation around exams and how schools were going to work, that didn’t really help with the stress, anxiety of things so, like, we’d read one thing and we’d be, like, ‘oh awesome’ and then something else completely different would happen.” (Aged 20)

Contact with strangers

This research also captured some experiences of feeling at risk when meeting new people online. Some children and young people felt that they had put themselves in a vulnerable position through this, a risk that they would not have taken in normal times. They reflected that when meeting people online they could not be completely sure who they were.

“Because everyone was doing it in 2020 I basically went on this app called Yubo. This app has got deleted a week later and hasn’t and will never be back on my phone… You’d talk to random people. I don’t know what possessed me when I was 16 to do it.” (20 salî)

One young person, aged 18 at the time, described meeting men through Tinder because she was frustrated not being able to meet new people in person. In hindsight, she felt that she should have thought more about her safety.

“I look back on it now and think yes, I was 18 and I was single and I was speaking to guys online and things and it was fine, like not like anything awful happened. But like I wouldn’t say I put myself in the best of situations and like something awful could have happened. Because I don’t know these people because they are online, I had no other choice… so that was probably more risky, yes instead of meeting guys in person… I wasn’t overly safe… I was young, I was 18, I did not think about consequences and things like that… I just wanted to interact with people.” (Aged 22)

One child, aged around 10 at the time, described coming into contact with a girl she didn’t know through a game on Roblox. While she was happy playing with her on Roblox, she felt uncomfortable when they had contact on TikTok and this girl wanted to be her “online best friend” when she didn’t really know who she was.

“On Roblox there is] kind of like a simulator, you can just build your own world and I would always like roleplay with people… it’s very common if you like roleplay with someone then like you’re enjoying it, then like they’ll friend you and then you will go back to that roleplay and stuff… There was like one girl and she’d always join my server and ask to roleplay with me because she friended me after one time, it was really fun, and like we would always build houses together, I would like help her build all her stuff… because it’s just online you don’t really know the person, but I was also on TikTok a lot, so then she wanted to like actually become proper friends in real life, and I was like ‘I don’t know how we can do that when there’s Covid’, and she’s like ‘oh just like add me on TikTok’, so I was like ‘okay’… But she was not a great friend, she was kind of toxic, but obviously you can’t really see because you’re just online… she wanted to be like my online best friend, like internet friend, and I was like, ‘that’s a lot’.” (Aged 14)

Being exposed to inappropriate images and messages from strangers was also brought up in some interviews with LGBTQ+ young people (all aged 18 and over at the time of their interview) where they discussed their experiences of exploring their sexuality during the pandemic.

“I’m bisexual but I already knew I had a preference for women. But then after seeing all of those men, like, because it was usually men who were putting the nudes on there, it just did not make you want to be with a man.” (Aged 18)   “I found that whenever I’d be open about being bisexual I would get a lot of men saying very sexually inappropriate messages.” (Aged 21)

Other negative experiences of social media

Finally, this research also captured some negative experiences of being on social media during the pandemic. Some girls in their teens during the pandemic felt that spending more time on social media had a negative effect on them, encouraging them to compare themselves to others. Instances of where this contributed to a negative body image and affected mental health are explored in Health and wellbeing. 

“I was definitely spending a lot of time online. And I remember, like, TikTok had just become, like, a big thing and I remember just, like, yes, spending a lot of time on, like, TikTok and Instagram… my phone, my screen time definitely increased… it kept me entertained but it was, like, TikTok, like, was definitely comparing your life to a lot of people. I know, like, that’s always the case with social media but, like, especially in the pandemic it was, like, people doing, like, ‘oh I’m doing this’… I think it was quite, like, toxic. But obviously I didn’t realise that at the time; I was like, 17, 18… It was kind of like endless scrolling on TikTok, seeing what other people were doing… definitely [had an impact on me] I think… It probably actually wasn’t very good for me to be on social media that much… but the problem was there was just nothing else to do.” (Aged 22) “[Being online more during the pandemic] probably made me more body conscious because of, like, unrealistic posts of, like, models and stuff… and, like, being really introspective because I was just on my own a lot.” (Aged 21) “I didn’t see a lot of real people; just, like, social media people during the pandemic. So the way I viewed myself was in a very, like, much more negative light than I already did. And because I didn’t have any distractions for that it, like, kind of just allowed me to just stay in this, like, horrible circle of, like, self-hatred and being, like, so critical of myself. Which was quite, quite horrible.” (Aged 18)

Social media could also create feelings of missing out for some young people, particularly on Snapchat where they could see the location of friends together without them. This was especially difficult when some were allowed to break rules in meeting up and others were not.

“It was easy to just get stuck in Instagram and TikTok… scrolling through it… It’s definitely something I’m more mindful of now, I think… I guess [it affected my mental health]. Seeing what some people were getting up to during lockdown… I was living at home; some people weren’t living home… they didn’t have their parents keeping an eye on what they were doing… They were going against the sort of guidelines. But you’re still jealous of that because you can see them out with their friends or going to different places. Some people I knew still managed to go on holiday and go away during the pandemic where they’re going to certain places… I guess [I felt] sort of jealousy in a way… it’s quite disheartening when you can’t go out and you’re seeing other people still managing to do things.” (Aged 22) “I kind of avoided Snapchat in particular. I didn’t want to see that. Because everyone on my Snapchat was still doing everything that they wasn’t supposed to be doing. I just didn’t want to see it… It was just kind of annoying me, to be honest.” (Aged 19)

Concluding remarks

These findings illustrate how valuable it was for children and young people to have online access during the pandemic, particularly during lockdown – not only to facilitate home learning but to support their wellbeing in a wide variety of ways.

Being able to stay in touch with friends online during the pandemic was extremely important to children and young people, and perhaps critical for those struggling with feelings of isolation or dealing with challenges at home. Platforms like TikTok also helped children and young people who were feeling alone to feel connected to others and part of a collective experience. 

Online access also provided valuable sources of entertainment, comfort, and escapism, as well as the inspiration to learn something new and do something rewarding. All of these aspects of online behaviour gave children and young people ways to support their wellbeing. 

However, this research also highlights difficulties that some children and young people experienced in managing their time online, given the circumstances of lockdown. This could affect their physical and mental health at the time, and in some cases affected their concentration and capacity to study when children and young people returned to school.

Finally, this research includes some instances of children and young people experiencing online harm during the pandemic, from their exposure to misinformation and disinformation, contact with strangers, and negative experiences of social media. While none of these online risks are confined to the pandemic, responses suggest that some children and young people may have felt particularly vulnerable to making contact with strangers and feeling upset by social media given the isolation of lockdown.

3.6 Health and wellbeing

Têgihiştinî

This section explores how young people’s health and wellbeing was affected during the pandemic, highlighting the factors that posed a risk to physical and mental health as well as the ways in which young people were able to support their health and wellbeing during the pandemic.

Please note that experiences of accessing support from health services are explored separately in Experiences of systems and services during the pandemic.

Chapter Summary
Challenges to physical health Challenges to wellbeing and mental health Supporting health and wellbeing during the pandemic Concluding remarks	Disruption to physical activity  Changes to sleeping Changes to eating Experiences of catching Covid-19 Experiences of vaccination Experiences of post-viral conditions Isolation and boredom Fear and worry Weight of responsibility  Strained relationships Eating problems and diagnosed eating disorders Ways to be active Ways to cope with difficult feelings Social support

Challenges to physical health

Below we explore children and young people’s experiences of challenges to their physical health during the pandemic, including disruption to physical activity, changes to eating and sleeping, and experiences of contracting Covid-19. We also include experiences of post-viral conditions and the longer-term impacts of these for some children and young people. Experiences of accessing healthcare during this time can be found in Health services.

Disruption to physical activity

The impact of the pandemic on physical activity was characterised differently according to age. Those who were primary school-aged during the pandemic commonly thought of their levels of activity in terms of play, rather than exercise. They shared some negative feelings regarding activity levels, such as feeling bored and frustrated, or having lots of pent-up energy, rather than a loss of fitness. Older children and young people, particularly those in their teens during the pandemic, tended to think about their levels of activity during lockdowns in terms of fitness, body image, and combatting lethargy rather than play. Some were also conscious of being less active while spending more time online. 

Across ages, the cancellation of organised activities had an impact on those used to being physically active through classes and clubs. As well as giving them fewer opportunities to stay physically fit, this contributed to the wider loss of routine and structure and could affect their mental health. Boys in particular missed playing football, particularly those who were playing regularly in a team. Some of those interviewed who are now adults reflected that this break in physical activity affected their motivation.

“I would say in the pandemic you just sat at home and [were not] able to get much out, usually you were in like in a routine, you would go out and you’d go to the gym, you’d go to football you know. You would just be out and about, but obviously during lockdown it wasn’t the same anymore… [Did I lose fitness?] Yes, definitely, yes.” (Aged 19) “I was doing sort of as many clubs as I could really [before the pandemic]… And then it sort of just went and stopped, so I’ve got no football, I’ve got no this sport or that sport. It was like ‘what can I do?’. I’ve got sort of some energy and willingness to do something and I can’t do anything, apart from go for a run occasionally, or a walk, but I don’t really want to… I kind of started maybe being a bit lazier, I guess… I felt that I didn’t want to do anything, so I was just like ‘I can’t be bothered’, and sort of lazy, I guess.” (Aged 18) “Not actually being able to go out, play football, get myself even more physically fit. Like that impacted me a lot. And that’s probably what spiralled me going more and more like depressed, I guess. And like that’s why I’m just so unmotivated at times now.” (Aged 21)

Although some children and young people were offered the chance to keep up a physical activity online, those who tried to follow dance or gymnastics classes online described finding it hard to make the space at home for these, as well as finding it hard to follow them online. 

The closure of gyms also affected some children and young people and some described feeling extremely frustrated by this disruption, especially if they had a goal to become more fit. 

“I did get pretty stressed sometimes. Especially regarding sport. Because I just started getting into the gym and I started going to the gym with my dad. And eating healthier and trying to be better at football and improving myself physically and I was getting stressed out because I couldn’t move around… I couldn’t work out… I got less fit… Just before the pandemic [I had] started this, like, new fitness kick and I was trying to go to the gym more and with my dad and go outside, going on runs. And I’d always played football but I was playing football and doing school football as well. And then that was just – that all stopped in the pandemic.” (Aged 15) “I was in the gym quite a bit before Covid. So then when it came I kind of lost the motivation for it… We had a boxing bag in the shed but none of the machines. We had the free weights as well – the dumbbells – so I was just kind of using them but it’s not the same so I kind of lost the passion for it, really.” (Aged 18)

For some, being less active was felt to result in a reduction in fitness levels. Some described noticing the effects that being less active had on their overall physical wellbeing, such as muscle aches. Some of those in their teens during the pandemic reflected that feeling less fit made it hard to get back into physical activity when things opened up again. In some cases, the change in their activity levels led to unwanted weight gain, which could in turn contribute to a more negative body image.

“My physical health was just deteriorating, my whole body was falling apart. My muscles weren’t doing anything, I wasn’t walking… It got to the point where my entire body started aching.” (Aged 14)  “I became unfit and behind everyone in my age group and then that somewhat affected me, stopped playing football.” (Aged 19) “I found that I became a lot less physical… I’ve started deciding that I should probably do something about [my fitness]… I used to be quite active and quite sporty before Covid. I played football with my sister. We were both on the same team and then I did badminton and I liked to skateboard but with Covid absolutely all of that just came to a complete standstill.” (Aged 21)  “It was really hard [with gyms being closed]. I didn’t make any progress, wasn’t stronger in anything, didn’t look better. And that was really annoying and frustrating.” (Aged 20) “I felt very self-conscious about myself… at the time, I was… ten to 11 and I was just hitting puberty… and with puberty even puppy fat comes, and that as well as not being able to lose it made me look really chubby. That made me really uncomfortable.” (14 salî)

Some girls also mentioned that they became more conscious of body image due to images and content they saw on social media (see below in the exploration of mental health challenges). 

Changes to sleeping

Changes to sleeping appeared to vary by age, with children and young people who were secondary school-aged during the pandemic describing more changes to their behaviour. Those still at primary school described fewer changes, perhaps due to their parents’ role in keeping to a routine at home. 

Some of those interviewed who were secondary school-aged during the pandemic described experiencing considerable change to their sleep patterns and in some cases to their quality of sleep, which could affect their energy levels and ability to have a healthy routine. Staying up later and waking up later than usual became a pattern for some, particularly during the first lockdown.

"I didn’t really sleep that much [at night]… [I’d] sleep at 3 or 4am in the morning and I’d wake up at, like, 5 or 6PM, go eat, stay up for the whole night… Some days I used to sleep later, wake up a bit earlier, or sleep a bit later, wake up a bit later. I had a regular sleep pattern but it was mainly me awake and active at night instead of being awake and active in the morning.” (Aged 19)  “Sleep was bad… I was on my TikTok or whatever I was on, there would just be nothing to do so you would sleep through the day, I would just stay up at night, watch TV, whatever, try some clothes, chuck out some old clothes, in the morning walk the dog and then go to bed… My sleep routine completely flipped.” (Aged 19)  “Me and my brother we’d go asleep at 10AM, wake up at 7PM, just it was all over the place. Because you didn’t have any responsibilities to wake up. Mealtimes all over the place. Because [the] sleeping routine was off, that had a knock-on effect.” (Aged 21) “Talking to friends and everything like that and with no reason to get up early for school because you could just roll over and start school, you could stay up later and talk to your friends more and, sort of, things like that so, yes, I think quality of sleep definitely went downhill.” (Aged 20)

Spending more time online at night (see Online behaviours) seemed to contribute to the change in sleep schedules among secondary school-aged children and young people. 

“I spent most of the time nocturnal, to be honest with you. I was up on the Xbox all night and then I would go to sleep at, like, 10 in the morning. Do you know? Like, just completely upside down. And I’ve never been like that in my life.” (Aged 17) “The quality [of my sleep] was a complete mess because of no schedule and you had no reason to get up or go to sleep, so – and at that age you want to stay up late, don’t you? And just play on the games. So I can’t remember exactly how much I was sleeping but I bet it was awful.” (Aged 20)

Some children and young people also recalled changes to the quality of their sleep, sometimes having nightmares or waking up more often in the night, which was linked to worry and feelings of anxiety.

“Quality of sleep; I think the anxiety really didn’t help with the quality of sleep and then also just the tech side of things.” (Aged 20) “I remember a lot of changes to my sleep actually. I don’t know if it was linked to Covid or what I’ve seen on the news or just stress or, I don’t know, but I used to wake up a lot more at night; I used to have a lot more nightmares, that I noticed I didn’t have as much before Covid and I don’t have as much after Covid either, right now.” (Aged 17)

The effects of this disruption to sleep included feeling tired throughout the day and having less energy and motivation to exercise or do schoolwork.

“During Covid, my sleep patterns got worse. Which then obviously made me really tired throughout the day and I wasn’t at my best.” (Aged 16)

Those who were primary school-aged during the pandemic did not describe such drastic disruption to their sleeping patterns. Some felt their sleeping patterns were unchanged by the pandemic, particularly if their parents made sure they were up to do schoolwork or attend online lessons. Some felt there was little change to sleep patterns during the week, but that they stayed up later and woke up later at the weekends. Some primary school-aged children felt they had more sleep overall during lockdowns as they did not need to be up early to get ready for and travel to school.

“I think I got more sleep because like I wasn’t in a rush to do anything… So I think like if I woke up during the school day [in normal times] obviously I wake up at like seven and I go to bed at like half nine to ten… And I think at the weekend even because it’s like the one time you’re not at school, I want to make the most of it; I wouldn’t lie in like for half the day because I feel like I’m missing out… But like in Covid… I had nothing to do; I’d just sleep for as long as I wanted.” (Aged 11)

Changes to eating

Changes to eating also appeared to vary by age, with children and young people who were secondary school-aged during the pandemic again describing more changes to their behaviour. They perhaps had more freedom to choose when and what they ate compared to families with younger children where parents kept to a routine.

“In the summer we would get up, about twelve, one o’clock, have some dinner, which was really breakfast, like pasta and that. Then we would have our tea, then we’d just snack during the night.” (Aged 18) “Everything was pretty scattered because all times and all days kind of blurred into one for us. We never had set times [for meals]; one night we could have ate at four o’clock in the afternoon and then we could have not [eaten] till half eight the next, because you had all the time in the world.” (Aged 21)

Children and young people described a range of experiences regarding their eating habits during the pandemic. Some highlighted some positive changes, for example eating more home-cooked meals due to parents having more time to cook and spending more time at home. They found they would eat together as a family more often, and would find different ways to make mealtimes interesting, such as choosing a theme or country of origin for the evening meal.

Others felt their eating habits changed considerably. Children and young people described snacking more often, seeking out less healthy foods, and ordering more takeaway foods from delivery services. This was particularly mentioned by those who were secondary school-aged during the pandemic, who may have had more freedom over their eating than younger children whose meals and snacks were prepared and monitored more by parents. Some of those interviewed felt they often ate out of boredom while at home during lockdowns, in some cases leading to unwanted weight gain.

“I ate a lot of unhealthy food because there wasn’t really much else to do when you’re at uni apart from get a takeaway together.” (Aged 22)  “I guess sometimes you eat out of boredom, and I was really bored, so sometimes when I wasn’t hungry I’d eat just because I was bored.” (Aged 15)  “I got big because I wasn’t realising what I was eating and I was just snacking out or comfort eating probably; that’s probably a bit of the mental health thing as well, because I had nothing to do I would just eat.” (Aged 14)  “I was just eating too much sugar and it was bad for me. So I was just eating too much because I couldn’t burn it off. So I thought I wanted more and I was craving it because there was nothing else to do.” (Aged 11)  “Eating crisps, biscuits, whatever’s in the cupboard and then I don‘t know. For example, I don’t know, I am playing FIFA, it’s half-time, I’ve got one minute straight to the kitchen, and grabbing the biscuits or crisps or whatever and just going to eat it and it fills a hole for a few hours, you forget about it and then I’ll go eat – instead of getting a whole meal in me, which is actual food I am just eating processed c**p. So that took a toll as well. I didn’t get supersized or nothing but I think in my gut health probably didn’t agree with it.” (Aged 20)

It should be noted that this research did not capture many instances of children and young people referring to food insecurity during the pandemic as making things hard for them, although children and young people did describe being helped by friends and neighbours when family members were ill or shielding and unable to get to the shops, and in some cases receiving support with food supplies from a food bank. However, one young person described how they lost weight during the pandemic and felt that worrying about the availability of food at home contributed to their eating problems. 

“I was dropping weight very quickly just because of not eating at all… My body was just in, like, extreme survival mode.” (Aged 22)

Experiences of catching Covid-19

Those interviewed who caught Covid-19 were keen to discuss this and often saw this as an important element of their pandemic experience. The experiences of those who caught Covid-19 varied widely across the sample. 

Some children and young people described experiencing mild and manageable symptoms of Covid-19 with little to no lasting physical effects at the time of their interview. Symptoms mentioned included low energy, coughing, loss of taste and smell, and a sore throat. In these cases, the emotional effects of getting Covid-19 were felt to be more impactful than the physical ones.

Isolating due to contracting Covid-19 was recalled as being difficult and lonely and when this occurred outside of lockdown, some were stressed about the knock-on effects of isolation, for example, missing exams and social events. Some also described feeling worried that they would infect their family members with Covid-19, who might then have worse symptoms. This was particularly acute for those in clinically vulnerable families. (see Clinically vulnerable families).

“I isolated in my room by myself; I was really upset; I was crying my eyes out. Because my mum and my two brothers and my stepdad all caught it together I was like, it’s not fair, you all isolated together, it’s not fair being by yourself at this age, I was ill.” (Aged 18) “I was begging to go to the first [exam] but then [my mum was] saying, no you’re way too sick.” (Aged 13)

Those interviewed who reported more pronounced symptoms of Covid-19 had more negative experiences and described how they found it hard to breathe, felt physically drained, and lost weight. Some described taking longer than others to recover and experiencing lingering effects of Covid-19 in the subsequent months, such as lack of taste and smell. These children and young people were more likely to be fearful of catching Covid-19 again and infecting others. 

“[When I had Covid] I slept throughout the day most of the time, I became a lot more hungry, and a lot more extra symptoms developed as well. I developed an eye infection with it as well, which was quite hard as well, having to… get eye drops and all. I lost 12 kilos because the second time around it was quite difficult because I couldn’t eat… if I ate or drank water sometimes I would just throw up; I couldn’t eat, or drink water. I tried as much as I could but I couldn’t fully, and then not doing exercise, it just didn’t benefit me at all. My first game back it was an absolute shambles; I had to come off after ten minutes because I couldn’t run anymore; it was just really bad, physically wise I’d lost all my fitness and stamina… so I just really didn’t want to catch it again.” (Aged 18) “I was quite unwell. I lost my sense of smell and taste. And my taste didn’t come back for a long time. I remember crying, eating like a Gregg’s pasty, because I couldn’t taste the pasty. And someone had bought it for me and given it to me and I had Covid at the time and I remember crying because I couldn’t taste this pasty. I felt like I couldn’t catch my breath at times. So, then I still have, I still like run out of breath quite easily… I had caught Covid three times and so I was worried when I started uni about catching it again.” (Aged 22)

Experiences of vaccination

Across the sample, there was a mix of those who did and did not receive the vaccine. Children and young people had mixed experiences of getting vaccinated and views differed on the Covid-19 vaccinations in general. 

Those who were secondary school-aged during the pandemic tended to feel more distrustful and sceptical towards the Covid-19 vaccine than younger children, and resentful that vaccinations were required to travel. Some felt that parental and societal pressure resulted in them getting the vaccine despite this going against their desire for autonomy as young adults and their personal preference, which was sometimes due to a fear of needles. Some also had concerns regarding the safety of the vaccine. 

“I was so angry, I had to get the vaccine; I was so, oh my God. I was 17/18, my mum made me get it as well, because she was like, oh if you don’t get it you can’t come on holiday with us.” (Aged 21)  “And then the injections came along and you couldn’t go away unless you had two… So that was quite, it was quite scary at the time, but it was like I’d do anything to go away, so.” (Aged 22)

It should be noted that this research also included interviews with those who reported experiencing adverse effects post-vaccination. These children and young people spoke of impacts of this including on their physical health, academic progress and personal development.

Those who were primary school-aged during the pandemic did not express strong views regarding the vaccine and were more likely to discuss the experience of receiving the vaccine, including remembering short-term stiffness and soreness in their arm following the vaccine. Some had no memory of getting the vaccine or were not sure if they did receive it. 

Experiences of post-viral conditions

This research included interviews with children and young people who had experienced or were living with a post-viral condition³¹ connected with Covid-19: Long Covid³² and Paediatric Inflammatory Multisystem Syndrome (PIMS).^{33 34} It is important to note that these are distinct conditions, each with its own range of symptoms and impacts. While the analysis identifies shared themes to highlight common challenges, where possible it seeks to recognise and preserve the unique aspects of each condition. This group of children and young people included those living with post-viral conditions that developed both before and during the pandemic. Due to their experiences, some of those interviewed felt that the pandemic was still ongoing.

More participants shared experiences of Long Covid than of PIMS, with Long Covid accounts varying considerably in severity and impact. The group of those affected by Long Covid included some whose conditions were only suspected, whereas all those interviewed with PIMS had received a diagnosis.³⁵ In line with this, the PIMS experiences shared some consistent diagnostic milestones and themes, although they were still highly individual in how this emerging and acute condition was experienced and understood. Due to the qualitative nature of the sample, it was not possible to draw definitive distinctions between the health experiences of those with Long Covid and PIMS. 

Some believed they experienced post-viral conditions after one Covid-19 infection, whereas others reported that this happened after catching Covid-19 two or more times. In some cases, children and young people directly connected their infections to events such as the reopening of schools to all students. 

Reflecting breathing issues being a key symptom, some children and young people closely associated their Long Covid infections with diagnoses of asthma. Those interviewed with a history of asthma felt this made them more susceptible to lingering effects after catching Covid-19. Some children and young people also described how catching Covid-19 had led to them developing asthma. Other contextual factors exacerbated physical symptoms, such as children and young people or their family members smoking.

“I have asthma but it’s not something like my mum’s. It’s very mild. I remember when I got Covid, though, my breathing was, like, going crazy. I was like, what’s going on. And then I had to end up getting an inhaler for the first time.” (Aged 21, Long Covid)

Among those with milder or shorter lasting post viral symptoms (all relating to Long Covid), experiences typically included shortness of breath and loss of energy. This could follow on from extended periods of breathlessness after contracting Covid-19. 

“When we all got hit with [Covid-19], I remember at the time thinking it’s just a flu… but it was… [more] extreme… Today I’d say that you’d need to go hospital… [but] I thought, okay, maybe it’s just [something] hereditary and now it’s decided to kick in… I had more shortness of breath generally, just feeling more unwell regularly than I used to.” (Aged 20, Long Covid)

For these children and young people, who had largely recovered by the time of interview, post-viral conditions had still resulted in noticeable changes to day-to-day life. These were generally related to managing existing or new asthma by having a reliever or preventer inhaler available to them when they needed it, although how frequently they needed to use these had typically decreased over time since the infection. Some also experienced sporadic physical and cognitive issues such as chest pain, exhaustion, and brain fog. Finally, those interviewed who experienced subtle or lingering changes to smell or taste noted that this could have a large effect on their daily experience and sense of identity.

“But the thing is, with the loss of taste and smell it had long-term impacts… something called parosmia. [It is] when your smell is impacted for a long period of time… even after I got better, my favourite perfumes didn’t smell the way they did. And, like, my mum’s chicken and rice didn’t taste the way it did.” (Aged 21, Long Covid)

For other children and young people, experiencing either Long Covid or PIMS was said to be terrifying and confusing, and included the sudden onset of difficulties breathing, rising heart rates, lack of appetite, and brain fog. In the most severe cases, symptoms were similar to those of other complex chronic illnesses such as persistent fatigue, cognitive difficulties, and pain after minor physical exertion. Those children and young people affected described being worried and helpless due to a lack of control and often had increased fears of catching Covid-19 after their infection.

“I had Covid [around] October 2021… so bad. I was like hallucinating… maybe about five months later, I just woke up and everything had changed… I felt so exhausted… I couldn’t even get out of bed. Like I was so like spaced out… I couldn’t really think straight… I also somehow lost like nearly half a stone overnight… My main symptoms were just complete exhaustion, no energy whatsoever. I’ve had eye floaters ever since then… Then I first noticed [my heart condition36 that developed as a result] because I got an Apple Watch and I got the high heart rate notification and it was like my heart rate was like 110… I went out for a walk the next evening and I couldn’t breathe… and my heart rate was between like 180 and I think the most it got to was 230.” (Aged 21, Long Covid)

³⁶ This individual was diagnosed with Supraventricular tachycardia (SVT), a condition where your heart suddenly beats much faster than normal. It is generally considered a non-life-threatening (benign) heart rhythm condition but its impact can vary depending on the type, frequency, and severity. Supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) – NHS

Children and young people who reported severe lingering post-viral conditions described distressing and persistent health impacts due to their illness. Examples of impacts on physical health included frequent hospital appointments due to chest pain, and needing to use a wheelchair due to mobility issues. Those interviewed included some who were classified as disabled due to their illness.

“I’ve been mostly housebound these last three and half years. And if I do need to go out and walk, you know, in more than five minutes to hospital appointments or just for fun, I need a wheelchair. So yeah, it’s pretty unrecognisable from how I was in 2019.” (Aged 17, Long Covid) “The pandemic has impacted my life in probably the worst way possible because now I’ve got like so many illnesses that are… incurable… I have physio every week. I have hydro physio every month. I have pain clinic visits every month. Like there’s a lot going on kind of thing just to keep it going, I guess. I have a, what’s it called, it’s like a disability card for public transport so I can get on like any train or bus for free because it’s the disability thing.” (Aged 20, Long Covid) “I did find it really difficult to feel like myself again because… I’d never been ill like that before.” (Aged 17, PIMS)

Children and young people with post-viral conditions described assessment and treatment journeys that were uncertain, emotionally challenging and complex. This included some of those with Long Covid and all of those interviewed who were eventually diagnosed with PIMS, likely due to limited awareness of the condition and the potential for extreme symptoms to encourage a range of alternative diagnoses. Children and young people and their parents with Long Covid and PIMS reported misdiagnoses, feeling that their experiences were not adequately listened to by health professionals, and receiving “dismissive” treatment or “bad advice”. This included children and young people who felt their fears or symptoms were discounted because of their age or gender, attributed to psychological effects (such as suggesting they were “copying” an unwell sibling), or who were told to stay in school or to keep active, which could negatively affect their health. 

“I went to the doctor, maybe the third or fourth day [after feeling unwell] and obviously since it was such like a new illness and people didn’t really know what it was, I got diagnosed with scarlet fever… which obviously… it wasn’t… they misdiagnosed me. Whatever they were giving me, like, whatever treatment I was being given, it just wasn’t helping me at all. And I was just getting worse.” (Aged 17, PIMS)  “They tested [my child] for glandular fever… They all came back with no notes and they would be like saying, ‘is there any chance you could be pregnant’, you know, at the time [my child] is like 12.” (Parent of child aged 16, Long Covid)

Additionally, some children and young people experienced a range of other complex symptoms and illnesses as part of post-viral conditions. Although these were typically described as following on from a Covid-19 infection, sometimes aspects of these symptoms predated contracting Covid-19 and were connected to other health conditions. Children and young people reported that these made diagnosis and the pinpointing of cause and effect extremely difficult. These illnesses included dysautonomia (a condition of the central nervous condition), “nutcracker syndrome” affecting the flow of blood into the stomach, and chronic fatigue. 

Some children and young people and their parents expressed doubts about the capability of NHS and mental health professionals to treat complex post-viral conditions – both for Long Covid and PIMS. This included both children and young people who only experienced post-viral conditions during the pandemic and also those with other complex health issues that predated the pandemic. This second group described earlier challenges in receiving the support they felt they needed from health professionals. However, they perceived additional strain on the healthcare system in a pandemic context, which made it even harder for them to get treatment. 

“I’ve been trying to get tested for [my illness] for a decade but I wasn’t taken seriously for a number of reasons, mainly being a woman… I think healthcare has been really dismissive for a while… My surgery has almost 15,000 people and there’s only, like, 20 doctors… [during the pandemic] doctors became more dismissive because everyone was really panicked about Covid… so a lot of doctors were just used to seeing really anxious people maybe anticipating health concerns which weren’t there.” (Aged 18, Long Covid) “I felt like I was kind of like, pushed around. Nobody wanted my case… My feeling is that the mental health people have no idea of what ME [Chronic Fatigue Syndrome] is, or what Long Covid is. So you just find yourself having to explain again and again… [And] when it got to crisis point, you know, my mum had to really sit me down and like beg me to try and talk to people because at that point I was so wary of any sort of like counsellor or therapist.” (Aged 17, Long Covid)

Children and young people highlighted that receiving a diagnosis and therefore being able to receive specific treatment was a major turning point in their recovery journey. Additionally, children and young people and their parents named specific hospitals, doctors, nurses, and support workers as having a critical role in their diagnosis and treatment. One parent whose child was diagnosed with PIMS reported that she felt lucky to live near a leading specialist hospital with extensive paediatric expertise. These children and young people and parents generally also reported negative previous experiences in seeking support and diagnoses, but valued feeling listened to at this stage and that their concern was taken seriously.

“They were talking about PIMS from the moment we arrived in [the hospital] obviously they’d had experience [during] the pandemic… just seeing how many people were sitting around a table talking about [my son] was reassuring.” (Parent of child aged 9, PIMS)

The significance of receiving a diagnosis seemed to vary more widely among children affected by Long Covid and their parents compared to those with PIMS. While both diagnoses could be transformative, experiences of Long Covid diagnoses varied depending on the severity of symptoms and the effectiveness of treatment, with recovery or stabilisation often being gradual. For those interviewed with PIMS, although recovery was not straightforward, the diagnosis appeared to provide a clearer and more immediate path to targeted treatment. This may reflect the specific diagnostic criteria for PIMS, which can lead to urgent and targeted treatment, whereas Long Covid symptoms can be more complex and varied, with no single treatment pathway.

“They were extremely hesitant to diagnose me. I think for a while they were thinking about taking me to a hospital in London… because they didn’t know how to deal with it… One of the doctors thought that it was PIMS and then I started being treated for it and then I got better. I spent about eight days in hospital.” (Aged 17, PIMS) “I was originally on antibiotics for about three weeks before they realised it was Long Covid… I’ve got inhalers and stuff now, but that’s really it… they said to have a few more weeks off school and then do half days and no PE… it’s only just recently where I’ve started to get back into like feeling a lot better with like my chest and stuff.” (Aged 21, Long Covid)

Some children and young people with severe post-viral conditions also described how they felt they were affected by a perceived lack of understanding or stigma from family members, friends, schools, and in some cases medical professionals. They explained how this made them feel dismissed or disbelieved. Some attributed this to widespread beliefs – which they perceived to be reinforced by government messaging – that “kids don’t get Covid” or experience lasting effects, as well as stigma around chronic illnesses and the influence of the “anti-vaxxer” movement. In one example, a young person shared how scepticism about their Long Covid led to a breakdown in her parents’ relationship with extended family.

“The government messaging was still, I think you know for a time, it was that kids don’t even get Covid. And then it was like, kids don’t get severe Covid. And then it was kids don’t get long-lasting effects from Covid… We used to be… really close with our extended family… and when I got it, it was a real shock how they behaved, you know, in some cases we weren’t even believed. And then some just weren’t very empathetic…The way they’ve acted has been quite heartbreaking. I think, especially for my mum and dad.” (Aged 17, Long Covid) “If you try and explain it to somebody that hasn’t got a child with Long Covid they say, ‘Oh yeah, my teenager’s lazy’. My kids aren’t lazy. It really bothers me.” (Parent of young person aged 16, Long Covid)

Those interviewed with post-viral conditions also discussed long-term impacts of their illness on their mental health and self-image. This included prolonged feelings of anxiety, stress, depression, and loneliness due to their symptoms and social isolation. One young person described the distressing psychological impact of losing hair and experiencing weight fluctuations due to their illness. Some of those interviewed also expressed feeling upset at their belief they were doubted, misunderstood and stigmatised by others. 

“I hated looking at myself in the mirror. I was 14 and you know, having clumps of hair come out in the shower is just really awful. And it was the way everything turned overnight from being able to function to just – not. I spent that winter of 2021 mainly bedbound. I wasn’t able to climb the stairs. I wasn’t able to walk, eat, talk. I had light and sound sensitivity.” (Aged 17, Long Covid)  “If your mental health is quite bad it affects your physical health because then you don’t want to go out as much and do what you want to do. [And your physical health affects your mental health, for example]… I can’t go outside. I can’t play football with my friends… So it kind of hits a bit of everything [and] puts a block in front of you and it just leaves you feeling one way for… the whole day or throughout the whole week. And you’re just feeling down all the time and that can be really difficult.” (Aged 20, Long Covid) “I remember reading online that being young but also, like, chronically ill just, like, sucks. It feels as though, like, you feel like you’re behind everyone. Like, you feel like you’re not meeting all those, like, milestones in the same way.” (Aged 22, Long Covid)

Those who experienced post-viral conditions also discussed a range of ways this had affected their education, learning, and future opportunities. Some of those interviewed said they had found it harder or impossible to take part in pandemic schooling. This included not being able to take part in remote learning or to return to school after lockdowns ended. Children and young people reported how this could seriously disrupt their educational progress, plans and expectations. 

Those interviewed who experienced more severe, lingering symptoms as part of post-viral conditions (such as extreme fatigue, chest pain or breathing difficulties, and regular brain fog) described needing to pause or drop out from education. Some missed out on education for over a year, and others did not yet feel able to consider returning.

“Yes. I missed out on about two and a half months of lessons, and I didn’t [work] from home either because I couldn’t really do anything like that… So I basically missed the start of [year 7] up until about the middle of December… At the time, yes, it was a big difference because… they were doing stuff that I had no idea about. It was quite confusing and I didn’t quite know what was going on.” (Aged 14, Long Covid) “[My parents and I] decided [that I should] take a year out of education because I was just too ill to [attend]. It was taking so much energy and it was not sustainable, so I’m currently not in any form of education.” (Aged 17, Long Covid)

Children and young people also discussed how interconnected aspects of dealing with a post-viral condition made it even harder for them to recover and “get back on track” following this disruption. For example, some described how the feeling that they were falling behind peers at school due to health issues could affect their mental health and their confidence in handling challenges.

“It affected me… because obviously I’ve got Long Covid now from it and just it’s a really, really – it’s a difference to my life. It kind of sometimes can stop me from doing what I want to do and learning and stuff like that and it can be difficult for me to… feel [like] that kind of like ‘optimistic self’ that I was before and [that] leaves me feeling a bit more down. And it can be difficult because obviously you want to do these new things and you’re feeling positive but sometimes you always have that optimistic feeling about, you know, what if Covid comes again and what if these things happen again? And you never really feel 100% secure in how you think life is going to go because something like Covid could come and everything stops again.” (Aged 20, Long Covid)

Of the children and young people with post-viral conditions who returned to education after lockdowns, those who felt most impacted by their condition reported falling even further behind peers and struggling with the lack of extra support and accommodation of their needs in lessons. This included experiences of ‘brain fog’ with knock-on effects on school performance and their confidence in their abilities. Some also felt unsupported or stigmatised by their institutions at this stage. 

“[At first] I came in for two or three subjects every day just because [the school] still couldn’t really handle it properly… this past year my attendance got to the worst it was ever at, I think I was like 50 something percent… there were days where I was just in so much pain that I literally couldn’t even move.” (Aged 17, PIMS) “In terms of education, I started university in September [2023] and I was there, I want to say maybe three weeks and then I got infected again. And then I unfortunately had to drop out.” (Aged 20, PIMS) “I lasted two days at school before my mum had to come and get me… you know, going back to school was just impossible… I tried to go back to school but couldn’t… my school were accommodating, but that was a lot of, like, kind of forgetting to stream lessons and not giving me the appropriate materials. And me having to chase up homework, which all took a lot of energy on top of actually doing the schoolwork… I took a year out.” (Aged 17, Long Covid) “I could be thinking about something… have a really great idea that I want to write… or have an idea in my head and go downstairs in my house… I’m just standing there like I’ve forgot what I want to say… So little things like that. It’s not life changing but it for me it kind of is life changing.” (Aged 20, Long Covid)

Post-viral conditions were also reported by some as affecting their fitness to work. For example, one young person had a job during the pandemic but developed a range of Long Covid-related conditions in the 2021 lockdown, including a heart condition and chronic fatigue. She described having to stop working as a result, which meant she was not able to earn money.

“I was working before I got sick. I was working since I was 14. So, you know, I built up a few savings and I’ve kind of just been like using my savings for like just fun stuff… [I could only save up for a house] if I started working again, to be honest. It’s just the amount of universal credit I get is like not even enough. Like I can’t pay my rent.” (20 salî)

Among children and young people with post-viral conditions, there was a spectrum in the degree to which they felt their plans and ambitions were affected by their illness. This depended not only on its severity and duration but also access to wider input from friends, family, healthcare professionals, and support groups. In cases where emotional and practical support was in place, those interviewed were more optimistic about their future. Where children and young people reported milder effects, they appeared to have largely progressed as expected in their education, work, and life. Some children and young people also reflected that challenges led to positives such as meeting new people or being more aware of their health.

“[My illness made me understand that] health is just so important, much more important than you realise.” (Aged 21, Long Covid)

However, children and young people who continued to live with post-viral conditions described a range of ways in which they felt this restricted their daily lives and future. This included uncertainty in becoming independent from their parents, going to university, or achieving their “dream” job.

“[Being ill] has made me a lot more dependent on my mum and I think it’s sort of set me back a wee bit. I don’t feel like I’m ready for university, so at the minute my plans are to take a year off and get a job and save up a bit, a bit of money and then eventually go to university whenever I feel ready for it.” (Aged 17, PIMS) “I think it affects me because I think even with working and stuff, just thinking about what job I feel I could do, mentally. Because before Covid I was thinking [about] accountancy. And I know that’s a lot to do in numbers and stuff and I think ‘really could I do that now?’… and what I want to do in life as well, like, I feel like my plans… [are] not as big as they were before… it just kind of stopped me from having these kind of big dreams that I had when I was kind of younger… the big dream I had was to be a Formula One driver.” (Aged 20, Long Covid) “At first [my illness] was making me, like, just stay at home, not get a job, just try and stay in the house and just hope for the best. But now, like, I’m trying – I’m getting pushed, like, for, like, family and friends to try and get, like, a job so they’re encouraging me to get active again.” (Aged 21, Long Covid) “I can’t really plan for the future because I don’t know how I’m going to feel… It’s just completely different being financially dependent than like doing stuff independently.” (Aged 20, Long Covid)

Challenges to wellbeing and mental health

Across interviews, children and young people felt that their wellbeing was affected during the pandemic and particularly during lockdown. Their experiences included feeling bored, lonely, and frustrated that they could not see their friends or family, or frustrated at the lockdown rules in general. It should be noted that this research captured a wide spectrum of experiences in relation to wellbeing and mental health, from those who felt they coped well during the pandemic despite the challenges, to those who felt they struggled, who in some cases sought professional help. Note that the experiences of those receiving formal support for mental health difficulties, including depression, anxiety, self-harm and suicidal ideation, are covered in Health services. 

Below we explore the challenges described by children and young people, including experiencing isolation and boredom, fear and worry, weight of responsibility and strained relationships with family and friends. We also share the experiences of those affected by eating problems and diagnosed with eating disorders during the pandemic.

Isolation and boredom

Across ages, children and young people described feeling lonely and isolated during the pandemic, particularly in relation to being unable to see friends and family outside their household and missing other social interactions from sports and hobbies. While those with siblings could still feel this way, some only children felt that they were particularly isolated. 

“It’s not like I have a sibling to talk to… I would say during the pandemic I was on the phone a lot to my boyfriend but really and truly that can only do so much. So I felt pretty isolated.” (Aged 21)

One young person who was living rurally at the time, but had since moved to somewhere with neighbouring houses, reflected that not living next to any other houses made her feel even more isolated.

“One of the first things I said [after moving in 2021] was this would have helped me so much living here during the first lockdown… even being able to see other houses opposite was such a relief of like ‘oh we’re all in this together’… whereas being in the countryside I was like ‘what’s going on’, you are just so out of it. And when you can’t hear any car, it was just very, very isolating.” (Aged 20)

While some were able to stay in touch with friends during lockdown (see Social contact and connection), those without a strong friendship group did not have this support, leading to feelings of sadness or insecurity as well as isolation.

“That was a big thing, in Covid, [feeling] insecure about whether those friendships would stay and last during the pandemic.” (Aged 20) “There would be some times where I was crying because I had nobody to talk to… I felt so lonely and isolated. I’d be crying to my mum sometimes saying ‘why does nobody want to be friends with me. Why does nobody want to like talk to me or FaceTime me’.” (Aged 16)

For some already struggling with their mental health, the loss of seeing friends in person was very hard to deal with.

“I was just thinking like I’m not going to be able to see my friends, that’s my biggest support network, it always has been and when things aren’t great at home the best thing to do is just go out and see your friends, it just really lifts up your mood… [Before the pandemic] I would have good days, I would go out and see my friends, do nice things, but I feel like the pandemic just stopped the good days and it was just, I just was not happy at all.” (Aged 20)

Some young people interviewed described recognising that the experience of feeling isolated and often being “in their head” and dwelling on their thoughts was affecting their mental health, exacerbating struggles, or bringing issues to the fore. Some felt that not having the release of physical exercise increased their feelings of introspection.   

“When you’re alone not interacting with other people and not having the distraction of, like, work or school… you just think about, like, lots of things in your life… If you have had struggles in your life I think [it] brings them back up. And I think I… [was] already struggling, so I think it wasn’t helpful that I was like, reduced into that space.” (Aged 21) “[In lockdown there was] a lot of, like, kind of discovering different parts of myself that had maybe been hidden because we were so isolated, like, not really talking to anyone else, I kind of started to notice more what was going on in my head… I think being in total isolation really forced me to look at parts of myself that I hadn’t before.” (Aged 22)  “I didn’t see a lot of real people, just, like, social media people during the pandemic. So the way I viewed myself was in a very, like, much more negative light than I already did. And because I didn’t have any distractions for that it, like, kind of just allowed me to just stay in this, like, horrible circle of, like, self-hatred and being, like, so critical of myself. Which was quite, quite horrible.” (Aged 18)

Feeling alone during the pandemic was also linked to boredom. Children and young people of all ages described being affected by feelings of boredom during the pandemic. For primary school-aged children, particularly some only children, not having someone to play with was a key component of feeling bored. Older children who were able to play with friends online were able to overcome this, although sometimes had difficulty managing the time spent gaming (see Online behaviours). Some also described getting bored quickly when doing activities on their own. The monotony and repetitiveness of daily life could also compound feelings of boredom.

“I was feeling, like, really bored and lonely because couldn’t go to school, couldn’t see my friends, and, like, had to stay at home and stuff.” (Aged 12)  “Because my mum was working I didn’t really have anyone to, like, talk to or anything. So I would just kind of like watch her work and everything like that.” (Aged 15) “Sometimes I’d get bored because I’d draw but then I got bored of drawing so I’d watch something but I’d get bored of watching something. I could never just do that the whole time. I didn’t really like that.” (Aged 11) “Things just felt the same every day I guess like, just a blur really.” (Aged 17)

Feeling “hyper” or having pent-up energy were described by children who were primary school-aged during the pandemic in relation to their experiences of boredom and a lack of activity and exercise.

“It made me way more hyper than I usually am.” (Aged 9)

In contrast, some children and young people in their teens during the pandemic recalled boredom and inactivity leading to feelings of lethargy and a lack of drive and motivation.

“[I was] depressed, definitely. I think it was sort of a weird little blank period, I know now that people talk about how you know, they learned to play an instrument, or they used that time effectively. But the way my mind works is like if I know I’m waiting for something to happen, it will go, it will slip into this, this sort of like waiting room, and in my head because I didn’t have an end period for the lockdown, I couldn’t pick up anything… you know, ‘I’m sure I could try and learn the guitar now, but what if lockdown ends tomorrow, it’s pointless’. So, I didn’t do anything except wait, really… And it’s strange because like I didn’t read, I love reading, but I didn’t read much, and I didn’t watch much of anything except YouTube. Yes, I honestly just didn’t do much of anything at all. And it was a long while to not be doing anything. I think I just, I just lay in bed for a lot of it. Bored. I was definitely bored.” (Aged 20) “I just didn’t do anything; I just sort of rotted in my room.” (Aged 18)

When reflecting on the impact of lockdown on their wellbeing, some described periods of lockdown in terms of “empty time” and “wasted days”, when they did not do things that they found rewarding. Some of those interviewed who were in their teens during the pandemic reflected that a lack of routine had contributed to this, and that if they experienced something like this again they would know to create one. 

“I think [my friends] would just feel like [it was] empty space in their life; I mean that’s kind of what it felt like to me. It was just empty… kind of filled with nothing… like it felt like I was doing something, but I was also being really unproductive.” (Aged 11) “[During lockdown] you don’t have the routine or the kind of like drive to actually get up and… shower and eat breakfast and get dressed, and, like, become productive and… invest time into yourself.” (Aged 21) “[Something I learned was] just having a routine. Making sure you’re doing something every day which at night you can go to sleep and think I’m glad I did that. Not just, oh, why have I been on my phone all night? Why have I done this? Just something to make yourself feel good about yourself.” (Aged 21) “I would probably say probably to always be in a routine, because I feel like I really struggled without a routine… I feel like now I always make sure I’m in a routine because I know I’m going to struggle [without one]. And whenever I think like, oh I’m not going to have a routine, I always think back to lockdown when I didn’t have one… So that definitely, without realising, affected me, because whenever I don’t have [a routine] I think of lockdown and I think, ‘no, got to have one’.” (Aged 17)

Fear and worry

Children and young people recalled feeling confused and upset by the onset of the pandemic. Some remembered first hearing about Covid-19 through rumours at school or on social media, or being told about it by their parents. Some described periods of confusion about the pandemic, particularly those who were too young to follow what was happening, including feeling unsure about how it was spreading and what they were or were not allowed to do, and felt worried or anxious as a result. 

Children and young people of all ages discussed feeling anxious and worried for the safety of family members and themselves if or when they contracted Covid-19, and uncertainty surrounding the long-term effects of Covid-19 was felt to contribute to this worry.

“I was just worried that, like, because on the news I’ve heard that, like, a couple people were, like, dying from the Covid. So I always was worried that, like, something was going to happen to one of my family members because they went out shopping quite a lot because they had to get loads of food and stuff like that. So I was always worried in my little brain that something was going to happen… Then mummy got Covid and then we thought we were going to get Covid and it was very tricky.” (Aged 11) “I remember my cousin had bought this tiny little fake plastic candle and it would light up just enough so that I could see a little bit. And I put it on the headboard of my bed and I turned it on I was, like, praying, almost, asking for my mum to be better because she meant the world to me… She got Covid really bad and she was being taken to the hospital. I was really stressed about it. I remember feeling like a piece of my heart was taken. Like, my mum means the world to me.” (Aged 12)

This fear was particularly acute for those who had clinically vulnerable or elderly family members, who had experienced the death of a loved one due to Covid-19 or knew someone else who had (see Clinically vulnerable families û Şînî). Understandably, the experience of family illness and bereavement also affected children and young people’s wellbeing and mental health.

“I’m feeling so incredibly helpless because this pandemic is spiralling out of control and like I’m anxious because I don’t want my mum to get it; I’m scared as well.” (Aged 19) “[I felt] anxious and scared… just that crippling fear. Especially when they lifted rules and you could go out in a group of six. That fear that me prioritising my mental health and going to be social would end up killing my mum. Like, that would be my fault… she would say I want you to go out and I want you to see your friends and I want you to do normal things. But I’m like, well, if I bring Covid back and you get ill that’s on me. That’s my fault. Yes. I think just really a lot of a lot of fear and anxiety around that and worry and guilt. Because it’s so out of your control.” (Aged 21) “My mum once had to go into a hospital [during the pandemic]. She needed to get checked out. Her brain scan and everything like that. She took as many precautions as she could… and she still caught Covid because hospital ventilation and requirements for hospitals weren’t there… I remember that because it was a terrifying time. It was an especially terrifying time because it impacted her really, really severely and it was very uncertain to know what would happen.” (Aged 19) “If [the pandemic] happened now I think I’d understand it a bit more but I didn’t really know what Covid was because obviously I just got told you got ill and then I just got told people were dying… And then it was my grandparents that died so it was a bit, like, God… I just had to worry about a lot of stuff. I was worried about my mum [who was recovering from a serious illness] and then obviously my grandparents died… and it was just all a little bit [too much].” (Aged 16)

Those interviewed who were clinically vulnerable themselves, or had a health condition, described their feelings of anxiety and fear of catching the virus and the implications this could have for them. One child, who was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease halfway through the pandemic, described how he viewed that period in two halves – with the first half being far more positive than the second, when the additional burden of having to be extra careful around Covid-19 led to feelings of anxiety about the chance of getting seriously ill from the virus.

“I was more strict with like the social distancing [than my friends] because they were just kind of like, ‘why do you care so much?’ And I was like ‘you don’t really understand like, it’s like you, if you get Covid, yes, it would be bad, but it would be more just like a cold. But I don’t know what could happen to me’.” (Aged 14)  “[You also said you didn’t leave your house for 55 days. So, like, what was driving that?] Just really intense fear that I was going to get ill.” (Aged 22) “There [were] two different phases I remember mainly. The first one I would probably say [I felt] excited, happy and thankful. But [during] the second one, at the end of 2020, I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, so it put me at high risk. So I did feel a bit like anxious that I would get [Covid] and probably get really ill.” (Aged 15)

Confusion around shielding advice could also create worry, where some children and young people were unsure if they were at risk. One young person was initially told to shield at the start of the pandemic due to cerebral palsy being classed as a heart condition, but then received different guidance, and found this lack of clarity stressful.

“I think they got mixed up with [what] muscles were affected. So I was told to shield and to just completely stay away… a few weeks later I was told I was fine. Because I was worried that I was, you know, very vulnerable. But I wasn’t.” (Aged 20)

School could also be a source of worry and some children and young people described being affected by this for various reasons. Some felt worried about the expectations of online learning, difficulties keeping up, and the uncertainty of exams. On the return to school, some felt they struggled with their concentration and behaviour or felt worried about being behind (see Education and learning). Going back to school after lockdown could also cause worry because of the prospect of being around and having to interact with other people there.

“Not leaving the house… and then having to try and get used to being in public again, and going to school… definitely contributed to, like, my anxiety being a lot worse.” (17 salî) “[Returning to school after lockdown] was quite scary at first because like we had been off for so long and I think I had isolated myself and people socially so I kind of needed to rebuild friendships and things, but I found that difficult… I just didn’t really know where I was… It really negatively affected that and I think it’s affected me for a long time since… Just the lack of confidence really.” (Aged 17)

In some cases children and young people described how the pandemic affected their confidence to be with other people more broadly (see also Social contact and connection). This included feeling less confident in social situations, or feeling anxious or claustrophobic when in large crowds in the months after restrictions had lifted.

“I feel like after Covid now, I hate like being in big like crowded places; I really don’t like meeting new people, doing things that I don’t, like going places I’ve never been before, especially if it’s by myself… Like if I was to go somewhere I’ve never been, by myself or meeting someone I’ve never met by myself… I don’t like that… because obviously, I was at home for so long, I didn’t really need to meet anyone. [It makes me feel] just very anxious.” (Aged 19) “It took me, I think, like a good year, year and a half, two years to get back into being able to normally socialise and go up to people and talk freely without having crippling social anxiety, which definitely, I think, was exacerbated by the pandemic.” (Aged 21)

One young person shared how trying to overcome worries about socialising that developed for her during the pandemic had actually prompted her to take part in the interview for this research.

“[The reason I am doing this interview] is mad because it links into Covid. Basically during Covid I lost all social skills. So I’ve been basically putting myself in awkward positions. That’s why I’m sweating right now… to just kind of overcome that.” (Aged 22)

In some cases fear and worry were experienced as feelings of anxiety leading children and young people to seek help – these experiences are explored in Health services. 

It should be noted that some children and young people interviewed were in specific situations during the pandemic which were a source of fear and worry in themselves, such as being in contact with the criminal justice system, being in a secure setting, or seeking asylum. In these cases, feelings of heightened uncertainty and a lack of control due to these challenging circumstances could be compounded by the additional uncertainty created by the pandemic. These experiences will be covered in more detail in their respective chapters in Section 4.  

Weight of responsibility

Other sections in this report highlight how responsibility at home affected some children and young people during the pandemic (see Home and family û Clinically vulnerable families). As well as carrying the load of practical tasks, some also felt the emotional weight of supporting their family, particularly where people outside of the household could not come and help, which could affect wellbeing. 

"I was definitely anxious about my mum with her surgery, and my sisters because like, it was hard to help them with their schooling, sometimes I felt anxious and my, this is like my responsibility, am I failing them. It was quite scary.” (Aged 14)

Some children and young people were also affected by an awareness of difficulties the adults in their lives were going through, including worsening mental health, worries about finances, and experiences of bereavement. This exposure to adult responsibility and stress meant that some children and young people “grew up fast” during the pandemic.

“I feel like I kind of had to see [my parents], like, more as people rather than just, like, ‘oh my mum’s always nagging at me to do this’… Because I was, like, seeing her, like, all the time… in, like, quite vulnerable ways because of, like, how stressed everyone was. It kind of like felt like… [I was] meeting my parents as, like, an adult.” (Aged 18) “[My mum] did struggle with money [during lockdown]. I’m not sure if it would be, like, any more than she usually did but, like, because I was there, like, I did see, like, a lot more of, like, her worrying about it and stuff like that.” (Aged 18)

Strained relationships

Tension at home also had an impact on wellbeing for children and young people during lockdown (see Home and family). Being confined together, especially in a cramped living space, sometimes created an environment where any existing tensions were exacerbated and new ones could arise. In some cases, these were compounded by other circumstances that made this period stressful, such as shielding or going through financial difficulties. 

Some of those interviewed described tension at home as directly affecting their mental health.

“Relationships were a bit strained with my parents because I was just proper just, I felt like at some points I was angry, some points I was just sad, that I was just going through it all… So it played a part in my mental health and stuff for sure.” (Aged 17)   “It was like I couldn’t stand being in the house any longer and like when you’re surrounded by your family, like the same people every day and so you argue with them a lot more. And so like my relationship with my parents just like pretty much deteriorated in lockdown and then so my mental health got quite bad after that… I think if I’d been able to go out and like had the freedom to go do things then [my mental health] wouldn’t have got as bad as it did, but because you were just, I was constantly arguing with my parents because you just, you get tired of each other I think, but like that just really affected me… [the arguments were] like definitely one of the causes [of my anxiety being worse].” (Aged 17)

Some girls in their teens during the pandemic described experiencing feelings of stress when the pandemic placed strain on their friendships. Some felt excluded from online conversations that they knew others were having without them, while for some the pressure to respond to friends’ messages became too much. Experiences of friendship are discussed in more detail in Social contact and connection.

Eating problems and diagnosed eating disorders

Some girls shared their experiences of eating problems that arose during the pandemic. In some cases, this led them to seek professional support during the pandemic; these experiences are explored in Health services. 

One young person shared her experience of eating unhealthily during the first lockdown and gaining unwanted weight. She described herself as developing an eating disorder in the second lockdown when she became hyper focused on losing weight and eating less. 

“That’s what I distracted myself with then. Like, I think because everyone was so bored… I just became hyper focused on eating healthy, looking a certain way. And that was a distraction then and I think another part of it was – well, when we came out of the lockdown, oh everyone’s going to think I’ve lost so much weight and, like, oh I would focus on that. So I think then I started focusing on, yes, just looking a certain way.” (Aged 21)

One young person shared her experience with eating less over the pandemic and being diagnosed with an eating disorder that also resulted in anaemia.

“I started eating less and I got really sick. I had to like see a doctor and then I got diagnosed with anaemia, I had to take like these tablets as well. And that was the worst part then that also affected my mood, physical health, and I was really unhealthy.” (Aged 18)

One young person described how stopping exercising during the first lockdown when she could no longer take part in sport led to a distorted view of her weight and affected her eating habits.

“I just thought I was, like, this huge disgusting mess because I wasn’t being active so I just thought I, like, must have piled it all on and had it in my head I was disgusting… I didn’t realise how little I’d actually been eating… I don’t even think [my mum] noticed until it got to the point where it was, like, you’re… tiny.” (Aged 21)

In some cases online content was also felt to have affected feelings about body image (see Online behaviours). One young person described how seeing images of perfection online directly affected her relationship with eating during the pandemic.

“I think if it wasn’t for the pandemic I don’t think I would have… had the eating disorder. Because I downloaded TikTok because of the pandemic. Like, I was so bored and, like, I was tired of Instagram. So that’s why I downloaded TikTok. And then I see all that content about, like, people [with] like perfect bodies and that kind of stuff and it’s like, oh… I think over the past few years, like, since the pandemic since, like, 2022 I’ve been fine with myself. So, yes. I think without the pandemic I wouldn’t have had it.” (Aged 18)

Another young person who was diagnosed with an eating disorder during the pandemic described how while her parents were very supportive, she felt under her mum’s watch at home, which affected their relationship and left her feeling isolated.

“It definitely put a strain on me and my mum’s relationship. Because I didn’t necessarily have the doctor’s support after CAMHS [Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services] or during CAMHS, and because it was at home and everything and I would be eating at home and stuff, my mum always took the role of the doctor and we had huge falling outs about everything.” (Aged 20)

Supporting health and wellbeing during the pandemic

Below we detail how children and young people found ways to support their health and wellbeing during the pandemic. We explore the role that being active and having social support played in this. Please note that experiences of accessing formal health and wellbeing support are covered in Health services. 

Ways to be active

Children and young people often found new ways to stay active during the pandemic, particularly during lockdown. Activities included walking, cycling, running, and doing online workouts such as Joe Wicks’ YouTube videos. Some of those interviewed enjoyed doing challenges set by their school or sports team – for example, at one Gaelic football club in Northern Ireland the coaches sent out challenges like doing planks, running up and down the stairs, and doing keepy-uppies with a ball, and the children taking part shared videos on their group chat.

Those who stayed physically active or increased their levels of activity during the pandemic described feeling positive about their fitness levels and reported a positive impact on their mental health as a result. 

“My physical health was good, and that would probably tie in with my mental health. Even though my mental health was bad… I think the physical health side of it helped my mental health not completely dive.” (Aged 16) “I definitely was a lot fitter than I had been and I think it was definitely a positive thing, like, being able like, you know, having a lot of time to focus on my health fitness. And as well as doing the runs, you know, we were going on daily walks as well.” (Aged 22)

Some children who were primary school-aged during the pandemic and had access to a garden (which was not the case for everyone) also described playing there as a way to keep active, including trampolining, playing with siblings, and playing with pets, and feeling that their activity levels stayed the same.

Children and young people who were used to exercising outside the home found it more challenging to keep up activity levels. However, some saw having more time in the day to prioritise exercise as an opportunity. Lockdown was also seen as the catalyst for some to start exercising out of school for those who had not previously, especially girls. Following Joe Wicks workouts online was referenced as a starting point for doing exercise at home, as well as starting to walk, run, or cycle locally. 

“Me and my dad we would put a video on and we would do a really long [Joe Wicks] exercise every morning.” (Aged 10) “I didn’t run before and then I started running. Because I was – it was just something to do… [I was] definitely more active during lockdown.” (Aged 19)

In some cases, becoming more active during lockdown led to positive changes to eating habits too.

“At the beginning it was crisps and stuff all the time but then I started getting apples and healthier things. I lost loads of weight and I started doing more in the garden a lot more and doing more things that I enjoyed doing outside.” (Aged 12)

Ways to cope with difficult feelings

These ways to stay active were also mentioned as ways to cope with difficult feelings during the pandemic. Doing exercise, going for walks, and spending time outside, especially when it was sunny during the first lockdown, were all seen by children and young people as ways to feel better. 

“I would finish schoolwork and then I’d go down and be on my paddle board literally from about 2 o’clock in the afternoon till about 6 in the evening.” (Aged 16) “I think for me that [being able to go out walking] really helped me, because my mental health did, like, really deteriorate when I was just stuck in my house. I think just the lack of seeing people and doing things and being active, just, I don’t think it’s good for any human.” (Aged 15)

In addition to talking to or spending time with friends and family (described below in Social support), children and young people also mentioned spending time with pets as a valuable source of comfort. 

“I would make like games up and stuff… I used to like do my own little magic shows with my cat. She didn’t really get involved that much, though.” (Aged 11) “I was living on my own [at university] with my guinea pigs. That helped [my depression], probably didn’t cure it, but it helps to have that support system… They were there to cuddle and to talk to.” (Aged 22)

Spending time on new or existing hobbies was also described as a way to cope with negative feelings. These included baking, sewing, doing art and crafts, playing an instrument, and singing. Some learned new skills and set themselves specific challenges, from finishing a Rubik’s Cube to doing keepie uppies with a toilet roll, often inspired by online trends and tutorials. Being able to do something that they found rewarding helped children and young people to avoid the feeling of time being “empty” and “wasted”.

“We’d just, like, bake or just do stuff to keep us distracted. Like, me and my sisters… crafts and art or just painting, all stuff like that.” (Aged 18) “I learned how to play chess. I learned a lot of weird things. I learned a bit of Ukrainian… Bit of Albanian, I learned as well. What else did I learn, how to do keepie uppies, like kick ups with toilet roll, I learned how to do that because that was a bit of a trend.” (Aged 17) “At the time I didn’t really have that much interests except that I really wanted to be a YouTuber. It was really random, me and my dad made this massive YouTube channel during Covid time… We once tried to make a massive slime bucket, but it all just came out really liquidy. And I think my dad poured it over my head.” (Aged 14)

Children and young people of all ages also described finding it relaxing and comforting to listen to music and to read or watch something distracting. Reading, watching TV, and going online (see Online behaviours) were all mentioned as ways to escape the stresses of the pandemic and feel a bit better.

“Whenever I would read my books I would use them to escape. My books don’t have Covid in them. My books are not experiencing Covid. The characters don’t have Covid. They’re not ill.” (Aged 12) “You just kind of feel as though you are buried in the book, like you’re not actually thinking about anything else.” (Aged 15) “[My book] gave me something to like distract my mind from like everything that was going on… The writing style was like really… lyrical and poetic… it’s something I just like to read a lot, to like keep me calm and just like soothe me and stuff like that.” (Aged 18)

Some children and young people also mentioned faith as a support to their wellbeing, although they had to adapt with places of worship being closed. Some found ways to meet with their faith community online and appreciated this contact during the pandemic. One young person discussed how taking part more actively in their religion helped support their wellbeing in the first lockdown. 

“I was raised in a Christian family of faith in Christianity and I think it’s a real key thing and it somewhat links into mental health… Because I think for a lot of people during the pandemic it was difficult and they would have turned to something such as faith or their religion to help them, to get them through it or to improve their mental health… Certainly for our family our faith helped us and helped our mental health. And it was difficult because the churches were shut and we would [normally] go to church every Sunday.” (Aged 15) “So, literally during [the first] lockdown [it] was Ramadan, so a month of just abstaining from things that now are coming out to be bad for your mental health… religion was a big part [of that], starting to pray five times a day.” (Aged 20)

Managing their consumption of the news was mentioned by those in their teens during the pandemic as a way to moderate negative feelings, for example by avoiding listening to statistics of Covid-19 deaths.

Beyond these specific ways of coping, the ability to reflect on and manage emotions, and recognise when it was time to take action to support their wellbeing, appeared key to dealing with negative feelings and experiences for children and young people during lockdowns. This sometimes involved putting a routine in place and planning activities. 

“There wasn’t really any routine for a while, at the beginning I was also dwelling on the fact that I couldn’t do my exams… But after a month or so, when I got over dwelling in my sorrows… I went out for a daily walk and, I was cooking a lot as well, so got my life back together a little.” (Aged 20)

Some children and young people reflected that their way of trying to cope was largely to do with a mindset of taking each day as it comes and to carry on because there was no other option. Some children and young people described “just getting on with things” in relation to trying to cope with the stresses of school and relationships. One young person described how she tried to cope with traumatic feelings by trying to shut out her feelings. Another young person, who was a young carer, shared how she felt she had no choice but to carry on and try to cope in order to take care of her parent’s needs, who also struggled with their mental health.

“Typically with traumatic events or people… I kind of go into autopilot. So I don’t really think about how I feel in that moment… Because I’m mostly trying to just, you know, go through the thing as opposed to feeling the thing… So if people asked how I felt I don’t really remember. Probably just getting – got on with it.” (Aged 20) “When it’s your mum and someone you love more than anything you just do it. It’s not a question of, oh, I can’t cope with this; I have to cope with this because [my mum] needs me to do it.” (Aged 21)

Social support

Children and young people of all ages described how family and friends made the pandemic easier for them to cope with. Having a supportive family meant that children and young people avoided some of the challenges of lockdown experienced by those facing tensions at home and could benefit from activities and fun together (see Home and family). Staying in touch with extended family and family activities at home were mentioned as a source of support, in particular by children who were too young to be online with their friends during the pandemic.

“We only had family, so we just spoke to family and we would video call like my grandad and my other family… it would make you feel a bit better.” (Aged 10) “We were all together, constantly together, all in the same place… I think we all got a lot closer from that… We did a lot of baking, which is something we’d never done before lockdown… I think I was quite happy and just living the life really.” (Aged 15)

For those who could stay in touch with friends during the pandemic, or find new friends and communities online, this contact was a valuable source of support (see Social contact and connection û Online behaviours). Children and young people also discussed the importance of having good friendships during the pandemic in being able to share their feelings when they were struggling.

“We only had family, so we just spoke to family and we would video call like my grandad and my other family… it would make you feel a bit better.” (Aged 10) “We were all together, constantly together, all in the same place… I think we all got a lot closer from that… We did a lot of baking, which is something we’d never done before lockdown… I think I was quite happy and just living the life really.” (Aged 15)

Concluding remarks

Children and young people’s accounts across interviews illustrate a wide variety of experiences in relation to physical health. While some missed exercise and active play, others took the opportunity to try new ways to be active. Similarly, while some struggled to eat healthily, others benefitted from more home-cooked meals. However, disruption to sleep was a key theme, particularly given difficulties managing time spent online.

These findings also highlight a number of factors that were described by children and young people as having an impact on their wellbeing and mental health. It should be noted that these align closely with the overarching factors identified that shaped the pandemic experience, reinforcing the importance of learning from these for the future. 

Finding boredom and isolation difficult to cope with was also a key theme across those interviewed. Findings also highlight the benefit of routine and how some children and young people struggled without this. 

This research also identifies a number of ways in which children and young people managed to keep active and protect and support their mental health and wellbeing during the pandemic. This reinforces the importance of online contact and content for children and young people during lockdown, while being mindful of the potential risks of this. 

Children and young people with Covid-related post-viral conditions shared a wide spectrum of health experiences they believed to be the result of these. Health experiences varied in terms of the symptoms described, the severity of symptoms and how long they lasted, and the degree to which they affected the day-to-day lives of children and young people. These findings illustrate how some of those with a post-viral condition faced not only long-term effects of the condition itself but also lasting negative impacts on their education and opportunities. It is important to note that for some the effects are still felt. 

3.7 Clinically vulnerable families

Têgihiştinî

This section explores the experiences of children and young people in families who were shielding (following government advice to stay at home in order to minimise the risk of exposure). Please note that this research included interviews with both children and young people with clinically vulnerable³⁷ family members, including those who were clinically extremely vulnerable, and those who were clinically vulnerable themselves, including those who were clinically extremely vulnerable. Please note that we refer throughout to ‘clinically vulnerable’ as those interviewed did not make the distinction. 

We explore the practical and emotional challenges experienced by those in clinically vulnerable families during lockdown and once restrictions eased. We also highlight that, for some children and young people, there have been continuing impacts affecting health, wellbeing, and education.

Chapter Summary
Challenges for those in clinically vulnerable families Continuing impacts Concluding remarks	Challenges during lockdown Challenges once restrictions eased

Challenges for those in clinically vulnerable families

Challenges during lockdown

Children and young people in families who were shielding described experiencing specific challenges at home during the pandemic. These related both to practical tasks associated with shielding and to the emotional impact of feeling afraid about what would happen to themselves or their loved ones if someone at home contracted Covid-19. This meant that children and young people in this cohort were affected by two of the key factors that made the pandemic harder for some: weight of responsibility and heightened fear. Added to these, those who could not leave the house at all recognised that this made things particularly hard for them, mentally and physically. 

“Obviously we couldn’t go out and we had to get the things delivered and I was bored most of the time and lonely.” (Aged 10)  “It was kind of depressing to stay inside a lot. And I didn’t realise it at the time but I actually need to go outside.” (Aged 15)  “It was really hard to get like physical like activity in because me and [my mum] were like completely aware our muscles are like deteriorating, but… what can you do in a small house when we were too scared to leave the house, you know?” (Aged 19)

The need to take specific precautions during lockdown, and for some throughout the pandemic, was described by children and young people in clinically vulnerable families. These included sanitising shopping, sanitising shared living spaces, washing hands frequently, wearing gloves to prepare food, and keeping distance from each other. As well as finding these precautions time-consuming, some felt pressure from having to be as careful as possible.

“[My dad] would always, like, wipe down, like, the food… we would always, like, make sure everything was, like, clean and, like, we would wash our hands, like, very often… try and, like, reduce the risk of, like, the spread of germs… as much as possible.” (Aged 16)  “If anything from the outside came into the house I would be so scared and over clean anything because I did not want it to enter my house because I’m so terrified that I would lose my mum… clean everything with antibacterial and hand sanitiser and then bring it into the house and then even then my mum wouldn’t touch it like and I would have to like wash my hands thoroughly or anything that touched it.” (Aged 19)  “It felt like I was carrying toxic waste the way you had to be so diligent about things [when disinfecting the shopping].” (Aged 21)  “When we were making food and stuff, like we would sometimes wear gloves, in case. And like all of us were all very careful, we tried not to hug, even though we were only in the house, like we didn’t know if it could get in through the window.” (Aged 12)

Children and young people also recalled how sharing a room with a clinically vulnerable sibling affected them. One child described sanitising their shared room and having to sleep apart from his brother when he caught a cold. Some also described taking particular care to isolate when someone in the household caught Covid-19. This was particularly stressful for those in overcrowded accommodation, particularly if they were sharing a bedroom with someone who was chronically unwell and had no ability to “get away” from the situation or leave the house. This reflects how being in overcrowded accommodation could amplify other pressures at home.

“I had to be really careful. I had to be the most careful out of everyone in the house… I remember my mum ordered a box of gloves. So we had to wipe down everything… especially around his area of the room. [My brother’s] side of the room had to be germ-free because he was at risk… I think it was about April time I came home and I caught a cold. And I couldn’t sleep in the same room as him, I’d sleep in the living room.” (16 salî)  “[My brother] was up a lot. He was up a lot during the night and he had complications from the chemo so he couldn’t walk sometimes and mum would have to be up during the night… It was quite hard and it was quite sad because obviously he was so young… We would just be upstairs while he would be downstairs and he will just be screaming because he hates injections, so it was quite hard; it’s not that we could go on walks and not hear that, so we would have to hear it.” (Aged 16)

Food shopping while shielding could also be a challenge. Children and young people described their families finding it hard to get delivery slots for online shopping as well as experiencing difficulties with products being available. Going to the supermarket was hard, due to the risks of being out as well as the stress of queueing to get in or shelves being empty, but some households felt there was no choice. Some children and young people described food supplies at home being limited and having fewer snacks. Those who received food boxes³⁸ at home appreciated this support.

“There were points where there weren’t a lot to eat, not because of financially, but there was no one to go, to go to the supermarket.” (Aged 22)  “We couldn’t go out [to shop]; we had to go online. So many things were, like, fully booked because, you know, everyone’s ordering; everyone’s scared to go out. So when we did get stock we had to do, like, double and order more than we would normally budget for. So I think financially it was definitely a strain as well.” (Parent of child aged 10)  “Stressful like going out in the morning to get the food and like the long line… we kind of – not rationed – I don’t know the word for it, like not as many snacks and stuff.” (Aged 12)  “There was enough food in the house but I think without the [food] boxes I think it probably would have been more of a struggle to get food from the shops.” (Aged 16)

It is important to note that for some children and young people these adjustments were being made during what was already a stressful time at home due to the circumstances that led to shielding – such as family members who had recently become ill or had surgery, or if an unwell relative had recently moved in. 

“There was still that stress of, you know, everything else was going on inside, and then the stress of everything going on outside as well.” (Aged 19)

Children and young people in clinically vulnerable families were also affected by fear and worry about what would happen if they or their loved ones caught Covid-19. For some, these feelings were made worse by confusion around which precautions to take and whether they would be enough. Some had family members going into hospital and were very worried that this might put them at greater risk of catching Covid-19.

“I felt anxious a lot [when I was shielding due to my heart condition], hearing stories of like other people who had like relatives maybe pass away or just people who are really sick with Covid. And I felt a bit anxious of like oh, what if this is just the start and it gets so much worse.” (Aged 14)  “Being at home all together, I used to help take [my dad’s] blood pressure and I didn’t really like it, like, seeing how high it was and stuff and then you, like, go online and you hear people dying of Covid and you just get worried.” (Aged 18)  “You were worried in the sense of, like… we take extra precautions but is that enough? … you were kind of just kind of confused of how do I catch Covid? If I caught Covid, how do I know? It was just like the anxiousness and sort of the confusion and that.” (Aged 22) “Because [my mum has] got so many health problems she sort of had to go to the hospital all the time, which was bad at that time because obviously hospitals, as much as they heal you and they try and help you, they’re also not the best place because they’ve got a lot of germs everywhere. I tell that to my mum whenever we’d come back from an appointment. I’m like, disinfect, please.” (Aged 21)  “Long story short I was just very, very worried about my mum… I remember thinking, actually, I could lose my mum.” (Aged 19)

One young person described the specific challenges of being clinically vulnerable herself and having to avoid contact with her mum, who was going out to work in hospitals.

“So my mum was a key worker which made things even more difficult because I was having to shield from her as well because she worked in hospitals and obviously I wasn’t supposed to be around that, so it made like getting food a lot harder as well because like she couldn’t make it. Like it had to be one of my siblings making it and because they were quite young at the time like it was just a lot of problems. So what ended up happening was I just like, then we got a fridge to put in my room so that I would just be like getting stuff out of there.” (Aged 19)

Some children and young people found it difficult when adults in their household were advised to shield themselves but chose to keep going out to work in spite of the risks. This added to their fear of a loved one suffering badly from Covid-19. One young person also described feeling worried about her mum working when her sibling had been told to shield. Conversely, some children and young people gave up opportunities to work themselves to minimise the risks for their family. Although they did not feel that missing out on these had a long-term impact, it was disappointing at the time.

“[My mum] didn’t want to take time off work because she was, like, kind of the main earner in the household. But then she had to be really careful because if she did get ill it could kind of turn out quite badly for her.” (Aged 18)  “I remember I was telling my mum. I was like, you know, should you be going to work… But, you know, in that period I think for her she just needed to do the work. So there was just – there wasn’t much that I could say.” (Aged 21)

Challenges once restrictions eased

Those interviewed also described challenges they faced beyond lockdown when restrictions eased for others but they had to continue taking greater precautions. For some, this entailed taking extra precautions when coming home, such as washing hands and changing clothes after school and socially distancing in the house.

“I had to like socially distance like two metres because I obviously I’d been with people at school, and I hated that because I’m really close with my grandparents… I could still talk to them, but I had to like be on the other side of the house talking to them which was not good because they’re not that good at hearing.” (Aged 12)

It is notable that during lockdown some felt that “everyone was in the same boat” and did not have a reference point for what other families were doing. However, once restrictions eased for others, those interviewed described becoming more aware of what they still could not do and feeling more negatively about shielding requirements and the fact that they were more restricted than other people.

“When we came out of [lockdown] but then we were still expected to shield… while everybody else was out and doing stuff, they seemed to have forgotten about people who were shielding, especially if they weren’t like old people.” (Aged 15)  “I remember being really, really frustrated at the rules, again I think this was kind of nearer the later stages of restrictions in Covid… nearer the end when everyone else was taking it less seriously, granted they didn’t have a shielding parent, but everyone else was taking it less seriously, the rules were getting quite contradictory and I was just growing more and more resentful of the rules, because obviously it had been going on for so long. I think I more just felt frustrated that I had to follow them.” (Aged 21)

The need to keep taking precautions once restrictions had been reduced for others also led to feelings of exclusion for some children and young people. Not being able to see friends was felt to be particularly hard, and some described having to be much stricter about social distancing than others when they did meet up – one young person recalled her dad tying a stick onto a rake so that it was exactly two metres long and asking her to use this to keep apart from her friend. Some children and young people felt frustrated that they had to keep to the rules when others had more freedom.

“I had to be a lot more careful than everyone else, not many people had someone at home that they were… extra worried about, so I had to be a lot more careful than most people… A few of my friends could join bubbles but I was too scared to do that. And then a lot of my friends would still like go to the shops and stuff but I didn’t do that.” (Aged 14)  “We had some celebration in a field thing [to mark the last day of primary school] and everybody else was like around everyone… I had to sit on a chair with loads of chairs around me and a mask, and nobody could come like near me.” (Aged 15)  “I was a lot more cautious, and it took me a long time to be closer to my mates; they were all like, ‘come and do this, come and do that,’ and I was like, ‘yes, but I will do it from back here or no I will be fine, you lot do that’… I always wanted to do stuff with my mates but then I had that thought of, I don’t want the risk of passing it back.” (Aged 15)

In some cases, friends’ lack of understanding or empathy about the situation was upsetting and some friendships ended over this.

“I think one or two [friends] did get a bit distant and were always asking, ‘what are you doing that for?’ ‘Why are you doing this, you don’t need to,’ they don’t have to worry about what I had to worry about… they thought I was just being overprotective and overcautious when really, I was just looking after the ones I love.” (Aged 15)  “I remember actually losing some friends over it because they had very strong opinions… We’re very big on free will in this country and the idea that the government telling you to stay home was very foreign and a lot of people in my life, kind of friends of friends didn’t like that… they didn’t want to get the vaccine; they were going out; they were breaking lockdown rules all the time. So my circle got a lot smaller.” (Aged 21)

Feelings of exclusion were compounded where children and young people also felt that society was freeing up more widely, without thought for those who were still vulnerable. Some described feeling “forgotten” as well as feeling anxious about the ongoing risk. In this context some also expressed anger at others in society, for example “Covid deniers”, “anti-vaxxers” and those breaking lockdown rules, as well as anger at the government.

“Once everybody else was out of like [the first] lockdown or had relaxed a bit… we still couldn’t do things whilst everybody else was able to and we were just forgotten.” (15 salî)  “[I felt angry] being told we’re allowed to do one thing and then not being able to do it and then us abiding by the rules but the people higher up weren’t doing it, if you know what I mean, like we were all isolating and keeping our distance and stuff but they weren’t.” (Aged 19) “I was very disappointed when [the first] lockdown got lifted because I don’t think it should have been… and like the numbers got really bad again and I got increasingly more anxious and scared and everything, it was not pleasant. I was angry, I was very angry… because there was just like people like not taking it seriously, like they were anti-vaxxers, they were like people who don’t even believe that it was a real thing when like the evidence is right there.” (Aged 19)   “Then [the government] started opening up schools, pushing for everyone to go back into schools… and to everyone who was immunocompromised or everyone who couldn’t go into school because they were clinically vulnerable to Covid, they essentially turned a blind eye. They didn’t care. They pretended like we didn’t exist… There wasn’t a need to remove guidelines or regulations to protect those critically vulnerable. But they did it anyway because they wanted to… There was no need at all to announce Victory Day and to scrap – officially scrap across the entirety of the country every single medical protection and regulation for isolation guidance due to Covid at all… All this suffering, all this damage that they have done, was not necessary.” (Aged 19)

Taking precautions when others were not was felt to be particularly tough on the return to school. Some children and young people felt conscious of wearing a mask, using hand sanitiser, or social distancing when others were not and found it upsetting having to justify this to others. One child recalled a school assembly to raise awareness around mask wearing and prevent bullying. However, another child described her experience of being bullied, including a distressing incident of being physically attacked by other pupils for wearing a mask, and felt that her school did not deal with this or support her as they should have. The same young person also described requesting better ventilation at school but not being allowed to open a window in her classroom and feeling that the school did not take this request seriously.

“I was wearing a mask and some people weren’t… I felt embarrassed because I felt like everyone had moved past it by that point.” (Aged 19)  “Because I was like the only one really there [wearing a mask at school], people weren’t very nice about it.” (Aged 15)

Children and young people also described being affected by feelings of anxiety about the risk of infection when returning to school. These could be triggered by being around so many other people, touching things other people had touched, using the toilets at school, and using transport to get to school. Some children and young people also felt at risk from other students coming to school unwell, and that their needs were not being taken into account.

“I think it was a bit of a… I want to go back [to school] but how do I know if someone’s not going to kill me?” (Aged 14)  “I didn’t really use the toilets in the school. I used to wait to lunchtime, kind of, and go home and do the toilet because I was scared in case I’d catch Covid.” (Aged 19)  “People would… even go to school with Covid, and I was expected just to sit around by them, and accept it… I think there were a lot of times where I didn’t go to school because there were so many people going to school with Covid.” (Aged 15)

Some children and young people had to delay their return to school because the risks of catching Covid-19 were felt to be too high, and others went back but attended intermittently. In some cases, they asked their school to find a way for them to attend online, but were unsuccessful and had to resort to learning from home on their own, or in one case finding a fully online school. These children and young people described how excluded and unsupported they felt by their school and their local authority and how hard it was to be in dispute over their attendance.

“My mum kept me off because of my dad’s condition… [When I went back] I just felt like I was new to the school again… Like been off school for so long and also school wasn’t my main priority then because of my dad’s condition… I was just really, really cautious… I didn’t want to be around people until my dad was 100 percent better.” (Aged 18) “[School] were like oh, yes, you should go and do home learning like and not attend our school anymore because you’re just not in… There should have been tighter restrictions on what the school could have said to you because the school said some horrible stuff like urging me to leave, like that should not have been a thing and like they were trying to take legal action, I think that should not be a thing either.” (Aged 19)  “They did make me deregister because I had so many absences… I had to go into home school because we couldn’t register me for another school while I was shielding… I didn’t go back into school after that until I started secondary.” (Aged 13)  “Lockdown didn’t change much but when government guidance changed just a few months later… online schooling wasn’t really allowed and people had to go back into schools, that’s when sort of things changed. Previously, my secondary school was willing to accommodate online learning and when we asked them about it when the government guidance changed they originally were like, yep, you can continue online schooling, because you have a heart condition… But then just a few weeks later they changed their mind and decided, no, you have to go back into school. It doesn’t matter if you have a heart condition. It doesn’t matter if you have clinical vulnerabilities. It doesn’t matter if your entire family is in danger of catching Covid and it could cause serious harm to you and your family; you have to go into school… They threatened to [fine us]. If we weren’t willing to go into school it was well over 120 pounds per person in the family per day. So we – so that was at the point where, well, I was withdrawn from the national schooling system and then we had to look at other options. And that was a nightmare-and-a-half trying to figure everything out.” (Aged 19)

One young person described how feelings of exclusion persisted when he managed to secure a place at an online school.

“You’re not surrounded by peers or people who you know or you – or you can develop friendships and, you know, things with… You can’t exactly get to know them. It’s an isolating experience and it’s quite soul-sucking in a way… It’s very isolating. Very isolating.” (Aged 19)

Continuing impacts

Some of those interviewed highlighted ongoing impacts for them, affecting health, wellbeing, and education. Those who had been unable to return to secondary school after lockdowns described the ongoing impacts of having their education disrupted, including taking an extra year to complete secondary education, being disappointed in the grades they achieved, and feeling more limited in their options for further education.

“I couldn’t get the grades that I wanted… Now I am in college later, way later than I’d like to be because I could be going into uni… but no I’m stuck in the college… doing a course that isn’t the thing that I really wanted to do… I’m very bitter about it.” (Aged 19)

One young person described his frustration at how much he felt his education was compromised by not being able to stay in mainstream education and having to find an online school, and his doubts about being able to go to university in the future.

“There should have been options to continue that sort of hybrid online learning system within regular schools. But the government advice for education after the first lockdown was, come along, everyone back into schools, no more online learning, none of this online learning business, you all need to go into schools… a one-size-fits-all policy and for a lot of people, particularly a lot of people that I know of, particularly those who have different conditions, who have different health things… you know, that doesn’t work. It doesn’t work at all…. I thought at one point before the pandemic I once knew what I wanted to try and do. Then everything’s kind of changed… It’s not like I can go into university because if I can’t even go outside and go to a hospital, what chance do I have at a university with thousands of other people intermingling in an entire single campus sharing a dorm with someone and things like that?” (Aged 19)

In some cases, those interviewed who were clinically vulnerable were still taking health precautions and experiencing restrictions due to being vulnerable themselves or having a vulnerable family member. They described the ongoing challenge of dealing with the risk of catching Covid-19, especially when facing a lack of understanding from others.

“When people talk about the pandemic as if it’s in the past tense, I have to remind them that, well, for them it may be in the past tense, for us it’s currently ongoing. It hasn’t stopped. You know? The dangers haven’t stopped. The risks haven’t stopped. They haven’t ceased to exist. They are still there.” (Aged 19)  “We’ve had strangers come up to us and in the street, when we’ve taken our masks off after being in a shop… saying ‘Covid’s gone now, it’s not real, it was a hoax’.” (Aged 15)  “I’ve had to explain myself so many times it’s just frustrating and exhausting because no matter how many times I explain it and how many new ways I find a way to explain it, people just don’t understand.” (Aged 19)  “Now kids are going to school with Covid, full of cold etc., so we don’t even have that almost community protection because the, their focus is solely on children’s attendance at school… which makes it far more difficult for us as a family to manage because yes, people don’t see the issues that it could cause to other families.” (Parent of child aged 13)  “Effectively I think it’s got worse… you’ve actually got people competing in the Olympics with [Covid], bragging about it. So in a way it’s much worse… I think the risks are higher now… nobody stays home when they’re ill anymore.” (Parent of child aged 15)

Concluding remarks

These findings highlight how children and young people in clinically vulnerable families, or who were clinically vulnerable themselves, were affected by both practical and emotional challenges during the pandemic. The need to be diligent in taking precautions, and the ongoing worry of what might happen if someone at home caught Covid-19, meant that these children and young people could be affected both by weight of responsibility and heightened fear. 

Children and young people in these circumstances were also affected by experiences of exclusion once restrictions eased. Findings highlight instances where those interviewed described experiencing a lack of understanding from friends, a lack of support from their schools, and in some cases a feeling of being “forgotten” by others in society. These accounts also underline that for some the pandemic continues to have life-changing impacts. Some of those interviewed highlighted ongoing impacts for them, affecting health, wellbeing, and education. Those who had been unable to return to secondary school after lockdowns described the ongoing impacts of having their education disrupted, including taking an extra year to complete secondary education, being disappointed in the grades they achieved, and feeling more limited in their options for further education.

3.8 Development and identity

Têgihiştinî

This section explores how children and young people felt their self-development and identity were affected during the pandemic, in terms of both challenges and opportunities. We share their reflections on where the pandemic was felt to stall their progress and independence, but we also highlight where the pandemic provided opportunities for self-development and discovery and how valuable this could be. We also include reflections from the oldest in the sample, who are adults now, on how the pandemic has given them a different perspective on life.

Chapter Summary
Challenges to progress and independence Opportunities for self-development and discovery Concluding remarks	Diminished independence Missing milestones and rites of passage Loss of opportunities to develop skills Loss of opportunities to work Skills and passions Identity and sexuality Self-reflection and resilience

Challenges to progress and independence

Below we explore children and young people’s feelings about having their independence diminished during the pandemic, the impact of missing milestones and rites of passage and their experiences of not having opportunities to develop skills and to work.

Diminished independence

Children and young people, particularly those who were secondary school-aged or older during the pandemic, spoke about the fact that they were unable to explore the sense of independence and freedom that they felt others normally had at their age. This tended to be associated with feeling “trapped at home” because they were entering a stage of their lives where they were starting to spend more time outside the home independently. Where children and young people had planned to be working, learning to drive, or travelling, not having these opportunities was felt particularly keenly as a loss of independence.

“When I was 18/19/20, like years that are like your prime years and it was almost like I felt like I was living a retired old person’s life. Well I didn’t want to be doing that.” (Aged 22) “I was missing all of these milestones. I was missing passing my driving test… I am a very independent person and so to not be able to have that next level of freedom when I’m supposed to have it was quite frustrating.” (Aged 20) “I kind of feel like I did miss out on kind of being, like, a bit more carefree but still having independence… like, being allowed to go and do stuff with my friends… I do feel like I missed out on, like, that stage of my life.” (Aged 21) “I never really got to… I was planning on, like, working a bit and travelling a bit before uni but I never got to do either of those, really.” (Aged 22)

Frustration at this loss of independence was sometimes directed towards the government where children and young people felt angry about lockdown restrictions and being deprived of their freedom. Some also felt angry when they heard of the restrictions being broken by other people, including those in government.

“You’re going to be angry and frustrated when you’re told you have to stay in your house and you can’t go see your friends… a fundamental part of growing up is having social interaction.” (Aged 21) “[I felt] angry. I understand why we were put into lockdown because [Covid] was killing a lot of people. Why did we have to be locked in the house constantly? A lot of people lost their lives to it but a lot of people probably lost people to suicide as well during that. On the news [there was] a young girl when the pandemic started who took her own life because she didn’t want to go through it. That really got to us.” (Aged 21) “I was disappointed with people in general for not sticking with [the rules], you know, I remember hearing things about people partying and just being disgusted.” (Aged 20)

Some also reflected that the lack of ‘normal’ social interactions had affected their development, particularly those on the cusp of adulthood.

“I think the effect that the pandemic has had on me and other people my age is probably a lack of growth in… personal development.” (Aged 15)  “My personal development and identity kind of took a standstill.” (Aged 18) “I used to be very like outgoing and bubbly and then after the pandemic it… I was so not used to seeing people anymore, or getting close to people and stuff like that. So I think it did really affect… my personality… I feel like I’ve missed the majority of like the beginning of my adulthood.” (Aged 22)

Missing milestones and rites of passage

A key theme for children and young people who were set to mark specific milestones was the unfairness of having these compromised by the pandemic. Some described missing out on specific rites of passage and “crucial years” that would never come again, or on school trips or events that their year group would normally have experienced. This sense of injustice was felt particularly strongly by those making educational transitions during the pandemic, such as leaving primary and secondary school.

“I just think like I never got to experience like my transition from primary seven to S1 and I’ll never get that back, like I’ll never be able to like have my leavers’ assembly and like getting piped out the school like every other year had.” (Aged 15) “I feel like I missed out on so many opportunities, so much fun, so many activities I could have done in Year Six and I think I missed out on my crucial years, which is like Year Seven, the start of high school.” (Aged 15) “Obviously I missed out on my GCSEs, but I missed out on the secondary school leavers’ party, the secondary school prom… I was kind of angry because why does it happen to our year group and not happen to anyone else, because all my siblings got to do it, my younger brother, my older brother got to do it and they, what do you call it? And they enjoyed it and everything, but then I can’t, I’m not able to do it and also the leavers’ party and everything, I didn’t get to do it, it made me, yes, it made me angry.” (Aged 19) “I think for young people, I don’t think a lot of, like, adults understand how hard it was for us because we did give up things like prom and exams and stuff like that and even though those, like, are silly 16-year-old things they’re things that are really important and those memories, like, that we’ve lost out on. You know? I’m never going to have, like, a shirt signed by everyone I went to school with… Like, I think more people including the government need to kind of appreciate the sacrifice that people from, like, 14 to 20 made. Because then not only think about 16; when you’re thinking about 18-year-olds who didn’t get their 18th birthday. You know? Stuff like that. They didn’t get to learn how to drive a car at 17 and those are huge milestones for people at that age. And even though, like, 40-year-olds probably think, oh, that’s so silly how would they feel if they lost out on those things? Do you know what I mean?… I think they need to appreciate how difficult it was for us.” (Aged 20)

Young people who turned 18 during lockdown, or had friends who did, also felt that the pandemic had unfairly deprived them of an important time in their life.

“I missed out on just a lot. Like, people’s birthdays and stuff. It was just quick Facebook, hey, happy birthday, bro. Hope you have a good one. Where before… we’d have been having, like, a memory that I’d be remembering to this day. And it kind of feels like I’ve been cheated out of life for a few years.” (Aged 22) “Going from being 18 and being in the pandemic to coming out of it at 20, that’s crucial years that you’ve missed all of the development. So, then I feel like I missed out on opportunities and different like events that would have happened… do you know like when you turn 18, you’re normally like, you’re going out quite a bit. You’re meeting your friend, you’re going to the pub… You’re doing all that. All your friends are turning 18 at the same time, so it’s all fun. Like I turned 18 in the November, a lot of my friends’ birthdays were like the May time. So, then I wouldn’t go to the pub and the nightclubs on my own. So, I was waiting for them and then that was during the lockdown. So, then it was like you didn’t have that time to do anything.” (Aged 22) “I was missing all of these milestones… just in terms of being able to socialise and go out and, you know, go clubbing with your friends and things like that, and even just going to the pub or, that was all something that was taken from me because of the pandemic and I never had the opportunity to do that at the age of 18 and, you know, go to the shop and buy, I don’t know, some form of alcohol on your birthday and see if you get ID’d or not.” (Aged 20)

Some of those interviewed who were at university or knew other students also raised the injustice of paying for a university education that was disrupted by the pandemic, not only affecting their learning but also depriving them of the “university experience”.

“[The pandemic] definitely basically ruined most of my degree [in event management]… [The impact was] terrible. Because when it comes to third year… my dissertation was the only event I’d ever put on. And they said basically sorry, but if you don’t pass this, this assignment as a dissertation, you’ll fail the whole course… And I was like, well, I have never put an event on before and they said we’ve got no [choice], I’m sorry, but that’s the way it is… Now I have to laugh about it to get me through it. But it was kind of… it made me angry. And also it was gut-wrenching that we’ve put all this time into a degree. You go for the experience of uni. I’ve lost that out and the only event I get to do, I’ve got to pass. No pressure.” (Aged 22) “I feel like, I was a little bit let down as well, so then I didn’t really get the experience in the first two years [at university] that I should have had. And then I never felt like anything sort of came of that. So, I felt like I paid a lot of money to go to university, but I didn’t really receive what I was paying for, compared to other people before me.” (Aged 22) “There were times the police were quite often at the halls, like making sure everything was under control and that there wasn’t things like parties happening.” (Aged 22) “Young people, I think [the pandemic has] mainly affected them socially, definitely, and definitely education as well. University students paying all that money… especially paying for accommodation as well where you couldn’t even live in it, or where you were just sitting there on your laptop. That’s not a way to do a university course and get a degree.” (Aged 20)

Loss of opportunities to develop skills

Children and young people who had enjoyed organised activities prior to the pandemic often struggled with their cancellation. These were activities that had previously been an important part of their routine, given them opportunities to socialise with people outside of school, and given them confidence. Lockdowns were also seen as a setback to learning new skills, from swimming to driving.

“I missed playing football like with my team, although I could go do it in the garden and whatever it just wasn’t the same as like going to training every night, like playing games at weekends, it just wasn’t like as good.” (Aged 15)  “I feel like if like the pandemic didn’t come I would have kept up circus because it was really fun, but then I kind of just like never went back to it.” (Aged 12)

Some children and young people then in secondary school or in higher education who were highly invested in an activity, also experienced feelings of a loss of identity once they were deprived of this. Examples of this included a university basketball player feeling lost when unable to play a sport “at the centre” of her life, and a young person who had danced for years feeling that she could no longer express herself. Particularly where young people reported that they had previously been high performers in a sport, they felt the impact of the disruption keenly and were left with feelings of frustration and ‘what if’ when they did not resume their sport at the previous level.

“I used to dance. I was a semi-professional dancer… Because of stopping dance during Covid, I then did not continue it… I really wanted to make it into a future [job], but because of Covid it really fizzled out. [I was] quite upset, to be honest… I felt quite deflated and disappointed. My dance teacher kept in contact with me and he kept asking me to come back. But I feel like because I hadn’t done it for so long… I’m quite an anxious person anyway, so trying to get back into it seemed more of a stress than it was to just not do it.” (Aged 22)  “I never really went back to [dance after the pandemic]… That all had to completely stop… [Dance] was the main thing whenever I was younger, that brought like the confidence out of me, because I feel like that’s what happens is like you go into dance and you learn to like express yourself. And even, like the performing arts side of it, you learn to express yourself, but not being able to do that, I remember feeling like, like I have no source of my self-confidence now because like I’m not able to do this. It was just like a really draining feeling being like well, this is something that I really loved and I’m not able to do it anymore.” (Aged 20)

In some cases, children and young people lost momentum and did not return to their activity when it resumed. Some described a loss of confidence in their ability to pick up an activity again, through a loss of skills or loss of fitness – this often affected physical activities, such as swimming, gymnastics, and dance.

“I did at least one or two [sports clubs] a week, on top of football club… I was doing quite a lot… Then it sort of just went and stopped… My football team before Covid were doing really well and we’d be in the league… and then afterwards we sort of didn’t do very well, to say the least… It sort of shows that some of us took care of ourselves over Covid and some of us didn’t, and I sort of didn’t… I was like disappointed with myself kind of thing.” (Aged 18)  “With my rugby as well I feel I could have got through in rugby, but obviously everything stopped… I had trials years ago and that all stopped because of the pandemic… I had my first trial before Covid happened and then I had my second trial when it was Covid so they cancelled that, so then we just put that on hold and then I just didn’t play rugby ever since that happened… Because I lost that, I was just like baffled [because it was a big part of my identity].” (Aged 18)

Loss of opportunities to work

Those interviewed who were able to work during the pandemic almost always highlighted this as a positive experience. This was related to earning and saving money as well as being able to “get out of the house” and have new experiences at a time when so many other experiences were unavailable.

“Luckily I worked at the time in a supermarket. So I was a key worker technically part time, which meant I got to go out throughout the entirety of Covid and see people… There were so many people my age that worked there because we all had it as a part-time job. And it felt a little bit like an afterschool club… It was a really, really fun experience, that… I hated being at home and locked up. I felt so claustrophobic all of the time.” (Aged 21) “I worked the whole way through the pandemic. I feel like people can see that I’m quite motivated to work… and I did want to carry on making money… I got to save lots of money and go travelling and do lots of things that I probably wouldn’t have done if we weren’t in the pandemic… Before the pandemic I couldn’t save money. I couldn’t even save £100… I ended up saving about £8,000 at the end throughout the year where I was just able to work so much, because there wasn’t any other commitments… Before the pandemic I would never work weekends because I’d want my weekends free to go out. But then there was no such thing as a weekend during [lockdown]… every day was the same thing because there wasn’t anything exciting happening on any other days. So I could make the most of working.” (Aged 22)  “Probably [my experience of the pandemic became less negative] when I started working [at a Covid test centre] and just seeing more people because when you’re on your own you get very bored with your own self, but working and getting to see people was getting a bit more normal than just spending every day in the house.” (Aged 22)  “I kept working the entire [pandemic]… quite a lot of my friends had to give up their part-time jobs, or just never had one [or] couldn’t get one… It definitely helped me… I valued the money that I was making. And I think I valued work – not that I was taking it too seriously, but… I really, really enjoyed the working and earning money aspect. I felt like an adult. Because I couldn’t do any of the other things that were making you independent… It taught me a lot about money and the importance of working.” (Aged 21)

In contrast, those who had to give up their job, or were unable to start looking for a job because of the pandemic, felt they had missed out on valuable opportunities as well as income. Some children and young people who were not already working before the pandemic felt that this affected their prospects subsequently and that it was tough for them to find work during and after the pandemic. This led to increased worry and uncertainty about finding work and having less savings for the future.

“To find my first job it was very difficult, actually… Because you’ve got nothing on your CV, and you know you’re young, you couldn’t develop your CV because you’ve been in a lockdown for the last two years. So, that, it was difficult at first.” (Aged 21) “I remember the first time I applied to a job, they asked me whether it was the first job, and they were like but you’re 20 something, like how come this is your first job and I was like, well Covid happened.” (Aged 22) “The first proper job I got was in my second year of uni… I think I was probably a lot more anxious to start working because I hadn’t really had much experience before… I started doing agency work in second year, like hospitality shifts, and it was just quite, yes, quite nerve-wracking. Because some people had been working, you know, since they were at school.” (Aged 22)

Difficulty finding work during and after the pandemic was also related to a perception that there was more competition for work since so many people had been made redundant, and this was felt to increase worry about securing employment, particularly if children and young people had not worked during the pandemic. For some, this shaped their world view and their feelings about their future lives, making them more conscious of the value of job security, wages, and the cost of living.

“I feel like… there’s not many jobs available, especially after Covid. And after Covid everything’s just gone so, so, so expensive, and it just makes it a lot more harder to budget and, you know, just spend money or even on food or whatever, electricity bills, and especially because, I still live with my mum and I put money in and help her but it’s still hard because of the cost of living crisis and stuff. I am looking to move my jobs, but again, I literally cannot find any. [I’m looking for] anything that pays good right now.” (Aged 21)

Those who were close to the legal working age of 16 at the onset of the pandemic were particularly impacted. They often felt that they had missed out, or were delayed, in gaining work experience, which they saw as a formative part of their transition to adulthood.

“I really struggled to get a job… And I think, like, if I had been free that summer, that was the lockdown, I probably would have ended up getting a barista job and yes… I was going to go travelling so I would have had to earn money for that.” (Aged 22)

This had further knock-on effects for those who were from lower income backgrounds or did not have a financial safety net from family or parents.

“If I [had been able to get] a job earlier… I would have had more time to save, more money. Then I wouldn’t be so stressed now at university… it is a domino effect really, I’ve now got to hold down a part-time job during university, manage my finances a lot more… rather than just, do what some students do, which is go out and drink. I can’t do that. I don’t really do that as much because I’ve got no money.” (Aged 20)  “Pre-pandemic I was working, only like a little part-time job, but it gave me money and like I was able to buy food, do what I wanted and obviously during the pandemic I wasn’t, it was just cash in hand, like I wasn’t getting any furlough from that, so I found that really hard… I just didn’t have money to do anything, buy food, just anything, like I was completely reliant on my family which I couldn’t really rely on.” (Aged 20)

Being furloughed from retail or hospitality jobs (e.g. ticketing for events, retail assistants, bar staff; working at fast-food restaurants, or other restaurant work) was also described as a setback. Although keeping an income during this time was seen as being extremely helpful, some saw furlough as a “slowdown” in their ability to save money for life experiences such as driving lessons, travelling, or university, as well as missing out on valuable work experience or losing motivation. 

“When I got back into work [after furlough]… my head was sort of like… just tired… I didn’t have that sort of drive in me… I spent so long being just complacent.” (Aged 22)

Children and young people also spoke about losing work placements (e.g. training placements in the health sector such as dental nursing) which could not go ahead. In some cases, this was a delay and they were offered the same placement once the employer was able to do so which mitigated any long-term impacts. However, others described not being able to do internships or work placements at all and worrying that this would impact their career prospects.

“It just delayed [my engineering apprenticeship] a little bit because I would have started earlier, but then they just didn’t actually take any apprentices on, so it just meant I was delayed by a year and a half, so it didn’t actually stop me getting the job I wanted, it just delayed it a little bit.” (Aged 22) “I was like volunteering at charity shops or like care homes or whatever, that got cancelled all of a sudden. All the medical schools definitely took into consideration that people from a certain period of time of the pandemic, would just not be able to do any volunteering specifically health care-related volunteering… Volunteering experience in hospitals – that’s really valuable experience. I didn’t manage to get any of that.” (20 salî)

Opportunities for self-development and discovery

Below we detail children and young people’s accounts of the pandemic providing opportunities for self-development and discovery. This covers experiences of developing new skills and passions, exploring identity and sexuality, and taking the opportunity for self-reflection more broadly.

Skills and passions

Across age groups, children and young people shared positive experiences of using the confinement of lockdown as an opportunity to explore and develop new skills and passions. Some were enthusiastic about exploring new interests or learning new skills at home together with family members (see Home and family). This included developing practical skills such as cooking, baking, sewing, woodwork, and developing an interest in nature through time spent exploring in the garden or on local walks. Lockdown was also the catalyst for some to start exercising out of school (see Health and wellbeing).

Children and young people also had positive experiences where the solitary nature of lockdown created an opportunity to explore and develop individual skills and interests on their own, which they might not have had time for in normal circumstances. This appeared to be driven by their own curiosity rather than being instigated by parents or contingent on their presence. These included challenging themselves to pick up a new skill, from yo-yo to magic to learning an instrument or language; spending time practising existing skills, especially related to music and art; and spending time really exploring a topic, from environmental issues to 3D printing.

“I got better at drumming a lot. Even though I had no lessons or anything. I just found a way to drum by myself. It’s weird because I was so young that I just heard about drumming and I absolutely loved it.” (Aged 10) “[During the pandemic] I ended up finding a bunch of new hobbies. So I started painting, I started DIY-ing certain clothes… I got into drawing, like art, started making YouTube videos, streaming, etc. … It was a horrible time, but at the same time it was like good in some ways. I remember lots of people like wishing to go back to that in a strange way because… you could sit down and think about things.” (Aged 17)  “I did get my interest in art a lot more… because it was something you could just do at home quietly and stuff. So my art skills became a lot better through that period because I had more time to focus on it.” (Aged 12)  “I painted… I don’t really know where that came from, to be honest. It came out of boredom. I was actually just drawing and stuff but I wanted to paint the drawings… But then they came out good so then I just wanted to do it… I did [know I could paint] but, like, not as well. I just don’t ever really have faith in myself so I never really try things… [I felt] weirdly proud.” (Aged 22) “My mum [got me a] box of beginners cross-stitch stuff [during lockdown] … I really enjoyed that and then, it’s, sort of, become something I like now.” (Aged 14)  “It definitely, like, gave me more time to practise… I think before Covid… it wasn’t like I really loved music… more like I did it out of an obligation [because my parents wanted me to]. But after and during Covid, like, I decided to, like, do, like, a Grade 8 exam for violin and then I spent loads of time just, like, playing. And that, like, made me, like, have a much stronger bond with music now.” (Aged 17)

Some children and young people reflected that this was a rich time for them creatively, when they could focus on writing music or creating artwork.

“This is actually one of the things that got me through the pandemic was I was writing a lot of music because I like to sing and, like, song-write. So I kind of gave myself a project of writing an album and, like, producing an album and singing it and that’s kind of actually what got me through those months as having this project to, like, sit down and do every day and that’s something that made me quite happy.” (Aged 22)  “I did pick up writing as well, like just writing little poetry, things like that, which I never did before. But because instead of like having a diary or like journalling, that was my kind of like outlet… and I do continue that to this day, just less frequently because I’ve got less big emotions.” (Aged 18) “I felt a bit more creative back then… I just came up with loads of ideas that I probably never would have thought of.” (Aged 10)

All of the activities mentioned above had a positive impact in the short term as ways for children and young people to combat boredom and support wellbeing by doing something rewarding (see Health and wellbeing). 

In some cases, using the time and space of lockdown to nurture skills and passions also had a positive longer-term impact for children and young people who were then in secondary school because it opened up new opportunities and directions for them. Positive examples include instances where this led to the discovery of a new talent such as singing or painting, helped them to choose which subjects to focus on in their education, or provided inspiration for future career directions. 

“I picked up DJing in Covid which was pretty cool to be fair, I just enjoyed doing it and you could do it for hours and hours… we started making a couple of beats and… I was like, ‘I quite enjoy this’ and just kept going.” (Aged 22)   “For me personally, it was positive because I did find what I wanted to do in my career. If it wasn’t for that time thinking, I wouldn’t have done that, because everything is so full on in life… that sort of died down. I had a chance to actually think, whereas most people that age, they go straight from school, college, uni; they don’t think about it, and then three years later, they are like, ‘I don’t want to do this job.’ So, I had the time that most people didn’t to just be like, ‘what do I really want to do?’” (Aged 20) “I’ve had all that time to think about what you actually want to do… [it] definitely did shape [my choices] for the better.” (Aged 21)  “It kind of motivated me to do more, I think. Seeing how many sort of small businesses flourished at the same time and developed themselves during the pandemic. Online people baking stuff; people making masks. Just, like, definitely boosted me to want to go out and have a side hustle and, like, especially with my art. Like, why can’t I go make a load of badges or make things and sell it and yes, it’s definitely pushed me.” (Aged 22)  “He spent almost the whole time singing and learning songs. And we discovered he had not just an aptitude for singing but an aptitude for picking up lyrics just like that. And now he’s probably going to become professional singer. And I just think that’s a really… we wouldn’t have known that or we might have known it later or something but it was… I think it accelerated that for him.” (Parent of child aged 14)

Identity and sexuality

This research also explored reflections on the impact of the pandemic amongst LGBTQ+ young people (those specifically asked questions about this topic were 18 or over at the time of their interview, although some who were younger also brought this up themselves). For many in this cohort, the fact that they were LGBTQ+ was not an important factor in their experience of the pandemic. However, some did highlight that lockdown provided an opportunity for reflection and self-expression, which is detailed below. Note that for some of those interviewed the pandemic was also a time of tension at home where their family was not supportive of them being LGBTQ+ ‒ these experiences are explored in Home and family. Some of those interviewed who were transitioning during the pandemic described experiencing delays to their care (see Health services).

A key theme from discussions with LGBTQ+ young people was that lockdown gave them time to reflect on their identity and sexuality. Young people described how they spent so much time alone that they were able to think about who they wanted to be and what was important to them.

“[Lockdown] gave me time to just sit and think about myself.” (Aged 21)  “I felt that I thought a lot about myself and how I wanted to kind of be.” (Aged 19)

Similarly, some reflected that not going to school helped them to avoid feeling judged by their peers and enabled them to experiment without fear of judgement or having to confront what society might think of them.

“That was one of the benefits of, like, thinking about having time to think about how my identity and stuff could look without the acknowledgement of having to confront it.” (Aged 22)  “[The pandemic] gave me a lot more time and room mentally to, like, figure myself out… sort of overanalyse a lot of aspects of myself… I came to a lot of realisations during the pandemic. It gave me a time to, like, express myself really without, like, the fear of judgement or the fear of, like, being perceived a lot.” (Aged 18)   “I think it might have been because I was able to explore myself a little bit more and not having to worry about what people think of me, like how they perceive me because I was strictly, I was just strictly me.” (Aged 19) “I realised I was LGBTQI+ in around about a year after the pandemic… So about 2021 I ended up pretty much just like realising. The reason for it, I genuinely believe the reason for it was that you had so much time to think… It was easier because during the pandemic I ended up learning loads about like online, finding loads of resources, because I hadn’t really used the internet pre that… And then I was also able to like find people who were more accepting online.” (Aged 16)

Spending more time online opened children and young people’s minds to perspectives and experiences to which they would not have otherwise been exposed, giving them cause for reflection. Some young people reflected that they were able to see other LGBTQ+ people talking about their experiences and recognise that these were what they had been experiencing.

“I watched enough TikToks about being bisexual that I started to think ‘well hold on, if an algorithm that’s like, I don’t know, very intelligent, can figure that out…’. It made me question [whether I was bisexual].” (Aged 20)

Some also joined online groups of LGBTQ+ people during this time, giving them the opportunity to make friends with groups they might not otherwise have met. These online communities helped them to think about their identity and gave them the encouragement they needed to accept themselves.

“I was very confused with my sexuality before it all, but I feel like being online and joining like a queer like community kind of, helped me bring out like be more confident.” (19 salî)  “I would say that Covid did have an effect because I met a lot of gay people, you know, lesbians, bi’s, everything which did help me find out how I felt about myself. So, that was a benefit, yes.” (Aged 18) “Me and my friend… always joke that Covid turned us gay because we went into the pandemic thinking we were both bisexual and came out realising we were homosexual… I started dating girls for the first time during Covid… It was probably easier because there was, it was kind of the norm to talk online.” (Aged 22)

These experiences were not universal, however, as one young person reflected that during the pandemic she was not able to talk to anyone about her sexuality and that made it more difficult for her to understand it.

“It was really difficult because, again, you can’t go meet people and talk about these things – you know, go into peer groups and that kind of thing in Covid.” (Aged 21)

Self-reflection and resilience

Some children and young people, particularly those who are now adults, thought that a key part of their pandemic experience was having the time to reflect as a result of being less busy and having more time to themselves. For some, this solitude was the source of self-development. Some also shared accounts of developing a new sense of their own resilience and greater maturity through the challenges of their pandemic experience. Amongst those who spoke about their negative experiences or losses, some also reflected on their own development and growth through this lens.

“Although during it [the pandemic], it was sort of like really depressing and sad, but like afterwards I look back at it and like I’m just thankful that that happened. Like maybe a lot of the stuff that happened was like a blessing in disguise. Like it was like a way for me to learn and grow from that experience and learn like skills like time management and stuff.” (Aged 20)  “I think it [the pandemic] has grown me as a person and I’d be very different if it wasn’t for it. But also I feel if I could go back in time I would try and stop it because it feels like a few years of my life kind of wasted.” (Aged 11)

The most positive accounts were often from those who had either managed to regain what they felt had been “on hold” or “lost” during the pandemic: work opportunities, saving money, travelling, friendships, hobbies, or interests; or those who had developed these in a different direction, which they were now happy or at peace with (e.g. developing new interests, changing career paths, or gaining a better understanding of their own sexuality or identity).

“Because I’d just turned 18 when we went into the pandemic, everybody was sort of creeping into their adulthood and we all just sort of like lost our ways on how to be an adult because we’d missed such an important time in our life… It’s like character-building. The isolation and stuff like that and then going straight back into [socialising], it’s not something that you experience every day. And I don’t want to say that I’m grateful for… like I’m glad that the pandemic happened, but I’m definitely grateful for it because it’s made my personality now.” (Aged 22) “Though the pandemic felt like a dark force against me, I think I do appreciate it. I think that although the pandemic had its challenges, it kind of showed me it was a competition against myself and I ended up succeeding.” (Aged 21)  “Overall I don’t regret the lockdown being here… it’s definitely had a better impact on me now in the long run to work on myself… I understand what it’s like to have, like, not work. It’s made me realise gym-ing and work is the way of life rather [than to be] on the dole and just drink alcohol and be like that. So it’s helped me in that sense… I’ve learned a lot with myself during this sort of time.” (Aged 22) “I missed out on a year of my education, and I think it actually made me take my education more seriously because it was in my own hands after that… but [it] did delay it, and it did change my family dynamics to the point where we kind of did learn to live with each other and appreciate that year… I don’t think I’d change it now, because it’s made me who I am, and I wouldn’t have the people around me without it… The fact that I came to uni a year late meant that I met my housemates who I’ve now lived with for three years.” (Aged 22)

Some of those interviewed also reflected on changes in their perspective, particularly having a greater sense of appreciation for normality and the good things in their life, and perhaps a more mature outlook than they would have had otherwise. Some also described being more motivated to seize opportunities in the future, feeling more grateful for friendships, and feeling inspired to find new ways to work and save money.

“It’s made us see everything a different way. We never would have appreciated walking into a supermarket and having fully stocked shelves. Like, no one would normally appreciate that but because we’ve seen it so, like, empty and struggled to get, like, basic things, I was more appreciative of that.” (Aged 16) “I think it’s made me grateful for having freedom. I think. Because I was locked away for so long. I’ve appreciated being outside and actually doing things with my friends and family, I think.” (Aged 18)  “It’s made me definitely spend a lot more time in my own head. And it’s helped me figure out what’s more important in life and what’s not really, and it did definitely make me mature a lot faster than I probably would have if it didn’t happen.” (Aged 17) “My mindset probably changed [to be more motivated to work because of the pandemic]. I think I probably started thinking… life changed so quickly. Like just do what you can now, like find what you can, get all your experience because it could shut down and I need the experience, if anything happens.” (Aged 18)  “With my brother being ill and not being able to see him [in hospital] with the pandemic, it did bring everyone a lot closer, because when stuff like that happens, you realise the value of life, family, and friends.” (Aged 21) “I think it gave me this sense of feeling isolated… It gave me a better sense of what being alone is like, and I think that’s something that’s stuck with me… I don’t know if it’s to do with just development and appreciation, or whether it stems from the pandemic or both, but I feel like I’m a lot more appreciative for what I have, whether it’s just clothes or anything monetary or friendships, you know… So, I’m a lot more appreciative.” (Aged 17)

Concluding remarks

These findings highlight particular challenges for children and young people in their teens during the pandemic. Although children of all ages felt confined at home, and some younger children also missed out on milestones and rites of passage, this cohort felt an additional loss of independence from losing out on opportunities to socialise, travel, and work.

This research also highlights the impact of organised activities being unavailable at times during the pandemic, not only resulting in a loss of enjoyment and social contact but also affecting children and young people who felt they lost opportunities to learn and progress.

However, it should also be noted that for some, lockdown was an opportunity to find and develop new skills and passions. Being able to do something rewarding in this way was also an important factor in protecting and supporting children and young people’s wellbeing during the pandemic. 

Responses from children and young people, particularly those who are adults now, also highlight that the pandemic provided an opportunity to reflect and learn about themselves and what was important to them. For some of the LGBTQ+ young people interviewed, lockdown was an opportunity to reflect on their identity and sexuality. Some young people also reflected that their pandemic experience led them to grow, to become more resilient, and to appreciate what they have now. 

4. Experiences of systems and services during the pandemic

4.1 Overview

This section explores children and young people’s experiences of specific systems and services during the pandemic, exploring how they felt about any perceived changes to systems and service interactions during this time. Please note this is not intended to provide evidence of the specifics of how particular services changed, rather to capture children and young people’s perceptions of how they were affected and their feelings about this. 

It is important to note that some of those interviewed did not have a reference point from before the pandemic so were unsure to what extent their experience was affected by the pandemic. However, in some cases children and young people described thinking that certain practices were due to the pandemic and we have included their accounts. Some of those interviewed also attributed delays to the pandemic and we have also included their perceptions.

Although we captured experiences of a wide range of systems and services, a common thread in how children and young people felt about these experiences was uncertainty and a lack of consistency or control. Although this was not necessarily due to the pandemic, these feelings could be compounded by the general uncertainty and confusion around the pandemic.

Disruption to support was also a key factor in making life harder during the pandemic for children and young people. Experiencing delays and inconsistency in the frequency and quality of support received could make it more difficult to cope for those already in challenging circumstances.

4.2 Children’s social care

Têgihiştinî

This section explores children and young people’s perceptions and experiences of receiving support from children’s social care during the pandemic. This includes those who were in a care setting at the time as well as those in contact with children’s social care for other reasons. Experiences of those in a care setting in relation to tensions at home and disruption to contact with their birth family are explored in Home and family.

It should be noted that those who were in contact with children’s social care for the first time during the pandemic did not have a reference point for their experiences and did not perceive any impact due to the pandemic. Those who had received support prior to the pandemic shared their experiences of and feelings about specific changes to the quality, frequency, and nature of the support they received.

Chapter Summary
Perceived changes in support due to the pandemic Experiences of support for care leavers Concluding remarks	Changes in the quality of support Perceived delays to provision of support Lack of in-person provision Staff changes

Perceived changes in support due to the pandemic

Below we explore children and young people’s perceptions of how contact with and support from children’s social care were affected by the pandemic, covering changes in the quality of support, perceived delays to provision, lack of in-person provision, and staff changes.

Changes in the quality of support

A key theme for those with prior experience of support was the perception that support was offered less frequently and less proactively during the pandemic than before. Some described finding it difficult to access support from social workers as compared to before the pandemic and felt as though the service seemed to “not care” as much as before.

“Before lockdown I used to see the social worker… she’d take me to get like ice cream or something, go for a walk… After that it was like… it was a few phone calls. It wasn’t that bad at first because you didn’t know how long it was going to go on for… And then like, I’d say after a few weeks, there was just like no contact, nothing… They just said they would try and keep in contact as much as they could, but there was a backlog and… so it was kind of on the back burner.” (Aged 15)  “They didn’t come as much. Like, they weren’t really that involved in the pandemic. They didn’t really care.” (Aged 15)

Some children and young people felt that the quality of the support they received was better pre-pandemic. Some suggested that sometimes people who were not trained to conduct social work were stepping up during times of staff shortage. One young person suggested that because social workers themselves were not able to access the support they usually would, the quality of the service was reduced and he felt he did not receive the level of care he would have otherwise.

“Because everyone was so, like I said, isolated… no one had the ability to just go out and speak to people if they needed it. And I think it’s all good and well being able to communicate with the people that are there to help you but then they’re not able to communicate with anybody else either. So they’re not able to do their job to the best of their abilities… I wouldn’t have received the care that I would have received had it not been that time.” (Aged 19)

Perceived delays to provision of support

Perceived delays to provision were also referenced by children and young people. Some reflected that, due to the pandemic, they were unable to get the support they needed as quickly as they felt they should have been able to. One young person described not being able to get through to her social worker on the emergency line when she was experiencing difficulties with her foster placement, which she later left. She felt this would have been resolved much more quickly had it not happened during the pandemic.

“Someone did eventually go into the office and they found an influx of missed calls from me and voicemails and it was alarming for them to hear that… They obviously believed me and they moved me from that house in August of 2020… My social worker did as much as she could do. I admire that because she actually did try and help and it did help… If the pandemic wasn’t happening, I’m sure I would have been moved out way before then.” (Aged 19)

Lack of in-person provision

Being unable to receive in-person support at the start of the pandemic also had an impact on children and young people, who recalled how social workers used phone or video calls instead. Some reflected that they liked this change because they did not like talking to their social worker. Communicating with social workers was sometimes felt as a chore and, by moving this interaction online, they were able to avoid talking (although it should be noted that this may have impacted how effectively social workers were able to support them).

“So I’d just basically sit like how I’m sitting right now. My mum at the laptop and [my mum is] just sitting there and I’m just listening in and just hearing whatever and then when I’m done, when it’s done then it’s kind of over, I’d just have to peep my head in and be like, yes, bye and stuff like that… I couldn’t pin like the reason why I don’t like social workers. I just think that it’s quite pointless and that they’re just ticking a box kind of thing… I don’t know what it stems from, but I just never really liked those interactions really.” (Aged 17)

Other children and young people described finding communicating by phone positive because it gave them more opportunities to contact their social worker when they needed support or wanted to reach out, rather than having to wait until their social worker came to see them.

“So then I could text [my social worker] rather than like my foster carer having to text her, which was quite nice because we could build a relationship like that rather than talking through someone.” (Aged 18)

Conversely, some children and young people reflected that moving to phone or online contact prevented them from accessing the support they required, either because they did not enjoy these forms of communication or because they did not feel able to open up. Calls were described as being shorter than face-to-face visits and could feel less in depth. Some felt uncomfortable or unable to talk freely when others were present when talking to their social worker.

“When you’re on the phone, it just feels a bit lazy I guess and then you don’t say everything. You just want to end the phone call I guess but when they’re in front of you… you do want to say stuff.” (Aged 21)  “It was different… like talking on the phone to someone isn’t the same as actually going to see them. Like it’s just much shorter.” (Aged 15)  “It was just all generic, kind of like ‘how’s the kids, how’s everyone?’. I was like ‘yes, fine’. You can’t really go into detail when… when you’re on the phone rather than when you’re face-to-face.” (Parent of child aged 15)

In one case, not having in-person visits prevented one young person from reporting and being supported through the breakdown of the relationship with her foster parents (see Home and family).

Even once restrictions eased and in-person visits resumed, some children and young people recalled having to socially distance from a visiting social worker and that this made the interaction very strange and harder to talk in-depth.

“We had to stand on the windowsill in the living room and speak through the window to the social services.” (Aged 15)  “[My social worker was] at the end of my driveway while I was, like, in the porch. It was weird.” (Aged 16)

Staff changes

Some of those interviewed felt that there was little consistency in the staff who worked with them during the pandemic. This was felt to prevent them from being able to connect with or build a rapport with social workers, and to feel fully listened to. It also required them to recount potentially traumatic experiences repeatedly. Children and young people reflected that this lack of continuity affected the level and type of support that they received, as they felt that social workers were unable to fully understand their circumstances.

“[The social workers] were changing so much. We saw [Social Worker 1], like, three times; we saw [Social Worker 2] once. We saw [Social Worker 3] once or twice and we saw [Social Worker 4] once or twice as well… [We wanted children’s social care] to actually listen… about what we wanted; not what they wanted.” (Aged 15)  “I felt like every time I did meet someone it would be just like oh, just explain your situation and then they’d be around for like a month or two and then it would be someone else and it would just be the same conversation.” (Aged 20)

Experiences of support for care leavers

In some cases, children and young people who left care just before or during the pandemic found themselves in temporary accommodation and experiencing delays in being supported to find a longer-term solution. Their accounts also highlight some inadequacies in the accommodation in which they found themselves (although these may have existed pre-pandemic).

One care leaver discussed staying in various places during the pandemic, including at different family members’ houses, and spoke about her experience of delays in securing accommodation and being allocated emergency accommodation due to the pandemic.

“I was basically just jumping between everyone’s houses that I could until I went into like a supported living place… [When I moved into an emergency placement my room was] like a prison cell if that makes sense, like isolating, just stuck in a room… Initially I was put into like an emergency placement that was only supposed to be for a couple of days, but it ended up being for months because again Covid was going around everywhere. That wasn’t actually too bad; I was just obviously in like a very tiny room with all my stuff for quite a long time… I self-isolated for 14 days and I would say that was probably the hardest part because I had… no food or anything, I just had like a microwave. It just wasn’t organised very well at all.” (Aged 20)

One young person interviewed described living in temporary accommodation after leaving home in July 2020. Having initially stayed with a friend’s family, she moved temporarily into a hostel for young adults and described how challenging she found this, including due to pandemic restrictions. This young person was given support through this experience and was then supported to move to supported boarding lodgings through a Section 20 agreement.³⁹

“It was [hard] trying to find somewhere to go in the middle of a pandemic because obviously there was the restrictions of like not having people in your households and stuff like that… So I was on my mate’s sofa for around two [months and then] I managed to find accommodation… I think it was a hostel for young adults… I really struggled in there. I’m not going to lie… And due to kind of Covid and the impacts of Covid, and we had to stay in our room and because we had our own bathroom, it kind of classes, that’s like your own household. And because we had our own bathroom in our rooms, it wasn’t classed as a shared house… we wasn’t allowed to use a living room and all that was completely off. We have like a microwave and kettle in our rooms and with like a mini fridge with a little freezer… To use the kitchen we had to ring down and [if] someone were using it you couldn’t use the kitchen… you’d have to wait for them to be finished or just make sure no one was in that room when you entered… I had a social worker at the time. So I had a few workers around me at the time… [including] a CSE worker, a Child Sexual Exploitation worker. And she did a lot of fighting to kind of get me [moved], because she knew that I wasn’t coping in the hostel. So I made an attempt on life while I was there. I did that kind of all the way kind of through when I was at home. But I did it when I was there because I just couldn’t cope. I felt so rubbish being sat in a room like… there wasn’t even a chair so like the only place for me to kind of really sit was in bed.” (Aged 20)

One young person who had recently returned to live with her mother reported that their relationship broke down and as a result she had to leave. She then had to sleep on a neighbour’s sofa while waiting for a residential place and described being told by children’s social care to try and mend the relationship and move back in. She described being relieved when she was given a residential place, with support on hand.

“I moved into [a supported living facility] and I stayed there for, like, a year – just over a year… There was a member of staff there all the time… It was a lot better, actually. I felt a lot more supported there [than living with Mum or on a neighbour’s sofa].” (Aged 20)

Concluding remarks

Accounts from children and young people who were in contact with children’s social care before the pandemic highlight perceptions of support being compromised in a number of ways through delays and inconsistencies. In particular, the lack of in-person provision affected how well some children and young people were able to articulate their needs and how effectively support could be given. This disruption to support could make life during the pandemic harder for those already in challenging circumstances. 

4.3 Health services

Têgihiştinî

In this section we explore children and young people’s perceptions and experiences of interacting with health services during the pandemic. For more detail on how children and young people felt their physical and mental health was affected during the pandemic more broadly, please see Health and wellbeing.

Chapter Summary
Mental health services Other healthcare services Concluding remarks	Reasons for being in contact with mental health services Perceptions of accessing mental health support during the pandemic Experiences of mental health support during the pandemic Perceived delays in treatment or diagnoses  Delays in access to healthcare caused by the fear of catching Covid-19 Additional visiting restrictions when admitted to hospital

Mental health services

Across interviews, children and young people felt that their wellbeing was affected during the pandemic and particularly during lockdown. These experiences are explored in detail in Health and wellbeing. It should be noted that this research captured a wide spectrum of experiences in relation to wellbeing and mental health, from those who felt they coped well during the pandemic despite the challenges, to those who felt they struggled. This section focuses on the experiences of those who sought help either before or during the pandemic and were in contact with mental health services during this time.

We outline the reasons for children and young people being in contact with mental health services, and how experiences of the pandemic led some to seek support. We then explore children and young people’s perceptions and experiences of accessing and receiving formal and informal support during the pandemic, including experiences of accessing talking therapies online. 

Reasons for being in contact with mental health services

Children and young people described a wide range of reasons for accessing mental health services during the pandemic. Those interviewed who were already in contact with mental health services before the pandemic included those experiencing feelings of anxiety and depression, those experiencing self-harm and suicidal ideation, and those with diagnosed eating disorders. 

Amongst those children and young people contacting mental health services for the first time during the pandemic, two groups emerged – those who felt that they had previously struggled with their mental health in general and the pandemic exacerbated the problems, and those who felt that they did not struggle at all before the pandemic, but now had mental health challenges brought on by the experience of the pandemic itself (please note that the timing of accessing support for the first time varied, or was not recalled). 

Those interviewed who initiated contact with mental health services during the pandemic described feeling worried and overwhelmed about a range of different things at the time. These included feeling isolated and alone in their everyday life, feeling anxious about the safety of family and friends if they were to catch Covid-19, and feeling worried about online learning. Some described being affected by tension at home and strained relationships. Some children and young people sought help having been affected by family illness and bereavement which occurred during the pandemic. Children and young people in this group also described contacting mental health services during the pandemic due to the experience of developing difficulties with food, sometimes referred to as developing an eating disorder (see Health and wellbeing for a full description of these experiences). Reasons for seeking mental health support also echo the factors that made the pandemic harder for some children and young people (see Factors that shaped the pandemic experience).

Perceptions of accessing mental health support during the pandemic

Three key themes emerged from interviews with children and young people in relation to their experience of accessing mental health support and the perceived impact of the pandemic on this. Firstly, they described significant delays in receiving initial assessments and diagnoses for a range of mental health or neurodivergent conditions (and in some cases for a combination of these). Secondly, they had difficulty getting in contact with GPs for referral for mental health support. Thirdly, they perceived longer wait times for ongoing support with the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS).

Some children and young people perceived that their pursuit of an assessment for a range of mental health conditions, such as depression and anxiety, was severely delayed as a result of the pandemic. (Receiving an assessment for a range of neurodivergent conditions such as autism, ADHD, and dyslexia was also referred to by some as being delayed.) Both those who had begun to seek an assessment prior to the pandemic and those who started the process during the pandemic shared this view.

“Ever since, like, the pandemic, everything that has a waiting list is just so delayed and it affects it now. Like, even if you, like, refer yourself to a mental health service now you’re probably going to be, like, ages.” (Aged 21)

Children and young people also described negative experiences when trying to get in contact with their local GP for mental health support, such as long wait times on the telephone, and felt this was due to the demands of the pandemic on an already struggling health service.

“I remember feeling really helpless. Like I remember there was a point when I was trying to get on the phone with my GP and like I just had been trying for days and days, like every morning getting up and doing it, and I was getting so stressed by the fact that I just felt like I really needed to talk to somebody and I couldn’t, and I just was like I literally just don’t know what to do… it feels like I’m not going to get through to anybody.” (Aged 22)

Some children and young people thought that CAMHS was very understaffed, and that alongside increased demand due to the pandemic, this resulted in difficulty getting appointments and long wait times. One young person described her experience of being on the waiting list to receive cognitive behavioural therapy from CAMHS for three years, having initially been told six months, and felt this left her struggling for longer. 

Another young person described how he tried for months to receive mental health support from CAMHS but did not receive any support until after he attempted suicide. He then received one appointment, which he described as a therapy session, but was told he would need to wait a further six months for ongoing support.

“Even though it was a crisis case you still had to wait six months.” (Aged 21)

One young person in a care setting during the pandemic reflected that people in her circumstances should not have had to wait for so long.

“People in and out of care like care leavers or people that are in care, are some of the most vulnerable children, people. I feel like we should have had maybe like a separate access to mental health services or you know had a lot more opportunity to access support because I think a lot of people would have benefited from that.” (Aged 20)

Experiences of mental health support during the pandemic

Children and young people shared a range of views on their experiences of receiving mental health support during the pandemic, particularly in relation to how helpful they found online talking therapy sessions. One-to-one talking therapies were described as the main form of support received prior to the pandemic as well as during the pandemic, either with a CAMHS therapist or in some cases with a private therapist. In most cases, those interviewed did not specify the type of therapy they received.

For those who received mental health support prior to the pandemic, several changes to mode and frequency were recalled as a result of the pandemic. Firstly, children and young people described the transition from face-to-face sessions to sessions online (via Zoom or Teams) or via telephone. Those interviewed had mostly negative views on this. Some described online therapy as more challenging as they preferred to speak in person and found it hard to speak openly about their feelings and connect with their therapist through a computer screen. They described online sessions as more impersonal and less effective for them, particularly where they had a strong pre-existing relationship with their therapist. Some children and young people who accessed mental health support for the first time during the pandemic, without a point of comparison, also described finding online sessions challenging. Some also cited practical reasons for this, such as dealing with a weak internet connection and experiencing a lack of privacy due to family members being in the house.  

“I think because I was in a very dissociated mindset it made me feel like I wasn’t talking to a real person. So it was kind of difficult to connect.” (Aged 22)  “The community care I have now versus what I had then, well there’s a massive difference… you can talk to people properly… Especially as an autistic person… a lot of the time I can’t really tell what people are saying and what tone when I’m in a bad head space, I’m not going to say ‘oh yes, like I’m not doing great right now’. It would be like ‘yes, I’m fine, cool’, especially over the phone.” (Aged 22)

The role of parental involvement in online support was also discussed. Some children and young people described how they felt the support they accessed became more parent-led during the pandemic compared to before, and they would have preferred for their parents not to be as involved. 

“It was just really them talking at my mum rather than me, because my mum was next to me at the time, and she was the one asking questions, so I just didn’t really get a word in.” (Aged 19)

However, some children and young people felt positive about the experience of receiving support online. They found it easier to communicate by being at home in a familiar environment and appreciated the flexibility of online support.

“It was just as good as it was going to them in person, because I think also I was more comfortable talking to them if I was just sitting in my kitchen… I used to feel nervous going down… now I still feel a bit nervous when I go down. I feel like if I’m just sitting in my own house I felt more comfortable.” (Aged 15)

Some of those interviewed reported changes to the frequency of mental health support during the pandemic; for example weekly sessions moved to fortnightly, and some were cancelled due to illness. In some cases it was felt that a smaller number of sessions had been offered (for example, six) than would have been suggested in normal circumstances. In some cases, children and young people described missing out on specific mental health support entirely. For example, one young person described how he was supposed to start counselling at school but once the pandemic started, this fell through and he was not offered counselling in school again. Another young person shared how she was supposed to be going on a residential trip for those with body dysmorphia and eating disorders organised by CAMHS and was disappointed when this did not happen due to the pandemic.

Other healthcare services

Children and young people described how they felt their experiences of accessing physical health services had been impacted by the pandemic in a number of ways. Below we explore their perceptions of extra delays in accessing treatment or diagnoses due to the pressure on the NHS, fears of catching Covid-19 affecting access to healthcare, and the additional visiting restrictions experienced when admitted to hospital. 

Perceived delays in treatment or diagnoses

Some children and young people recalled delays in treatments or check-ups that they perceived to be caused by wider delays in the NHS during the pandemic. This was particularly salient in accounts from physically disabled children and young people who described a variety of emotions caused by the delays experienced, including stress, frustration, worry, and fear about the longer-term impacts on their physical health.

Some of those interviewed recalled experiencing inconvenience and some stress when the pandemic had caused a delay in regular check-ups or appointments but said that nothing significant changed in their physical health as a result. This was felt by those whose regular health check-ups or health support fittings (such as hearing aids, accessing physiotherapy, or getting braces) were affected.

“I was meant to get my braces during, like, when Covid happened, but of course it was held up because of Covid, so I missed getting braces for like two years. So, yes, I had to wait another two years to even be put back on the list and then get it done again… I was a bit annoyed because I did need them, so it was just long waiting for them.” (Aged 19)

Some children and young people interviewed were more concerned about the delay in their care, although did not feel that this had longer-term consequences. For example, one child explained how pre-pandemic she would see a doctor every year for her heart condition. She did not see a doctor for a review in nearly two years throughout the pandemic which was described as “stressful” and “scary”, although she did not think her health was affected by it. 

“I didn’t really see much of the doctors all of Covid, so that also stressed me out a bit, because I was supposed to have a review, I think, and I never got it because of Covid. So that was a bit scary.” (Aged 14)

Some children and young people experienced delays in check-ups or procedures, which had implications for their physical health. One young person with scoliosis described how the pandemic coincided with her growth spurt.⁴⁰ Whilst in non-pandemic times she would have been seen by the doctors two to three times a year, she was not seen during the pandemic. Her scoliosis progressed much faster in this time due to her growth spurt and she was not able to be fitted with a brace or have X-rays to monitor progress. Due to the delay in the fitting of the brace, she felt that her scoliosis got worse than it would have been without the pandemic, if she had been able to access a brace and have closer monitoring of her condition. Her operation was also very delayed due to the pandemic. This left her in a lot of pain, and she found it “annoying” and “frustrating” that she could not access the support she needed to manage her condition.

“Before lockdown I was having like regular X-rays like every four to six months to just check how [my scoliosis] was progressing, but that had to stop over lockdown so they couldn’t monitor. And then with the growth spurt, when it did get worse they weren’t able to see that, so yes… it was a bit frustrating because I was in a lot of pain, so it was just like, I couldn’t have anything to help me so it was just quite annoying and frustrating.” (Aged 18)

Another young person described how she still faces back problems that developed in the pandemic due to not getting the proper treatment at the time. Due to the delays in NHS treatment, she decided to speak with a private consultant about her back issues. Whilst she was seen very quickly for an MRI scan and diagnosis, she was not given any follow-up treatment, and was left to deal with her back problem alone. She was still facing back issues when interviewed and had to leave work because of the back pain she was experiencing.

“I was quite fortunate; I managed to get an appointment really early [privately] and [the consultant] booked me in for an MRI in a week’s time, which was just amazing considering that time, found out it had been a bulging disk which no one had really expected. He said it’s very rare for a young person from what I’d done. But then after that it was really difficult to get another appointment and so we just sort of left it and a lot happened with this particular consultant who did a lot of things I think he shouldn’t have. But then recently having to go back through the NHS they said to me this shouldn’t have happened on the private system, if you’d have come by the NHS we would have kept chasing you about this for a few months, we’d have done proper physio, it would have been ongoing, we wouldn’t have just left you in the way that consultant did. So then now I’d rather go with the NHS than the private, but then it’s tricky because the NHS got really long waiting list, like now I’m on a waiting list, which is really frustrating. So that is one thing to come out the pandemic; the soaring waiting lists are very frustrating.” (Aged 20)

This research also included interviews with young people who experienced delays in accessing gender-affirming healthcare during the pandemic. This led to these young people reflecting that their mental health was impacted negatively as their plans to feel comfortable in their bodies were delayed (other aspects of the pandemic experience for LGBTQ+ children and young people are explored in Home and family û Development and identity).

“So, just because of, like, you know [the pandemic], I had very limited doctor’s appointments.” (Aged 21)  “All of these things I think just made… transition so much worse. And I already was feeling depressed… Also I think again not having the distractions of normal life I already felt trapped in my body… And then I also [felt] trapped in… life and stuff.” (Aged 21)

Delays in access to healthcare caused by the fear of catching Covid-19

At times, fear about the risks of catching Covid-19 on the part of children and young people themselves and/or their health professionals, stopped children or young people from accessing help for their health conditions. This occurred when they were unable to access medication or support without entering a hospital or healthcare space, or had their appointments cancelled for fear of the impact of Covid-19. For example, one young person described being unable to access medication for her bone condition as visiting hospital for tests was felt by medical staff to be too risky, leaving her in pain. 

“I was supposed to be having like appointments during the Covid time, so my appointments had to be cancelled quite a lot… Because they don’t want me, because I was at risk of getting Covid, so they didn’t want me to get Covid and then they didn’t know what the effects of Covid would be on someone with like a condition like mine… I was supposed to be getting medication, but I couldn’t get medication without going to the appointments.” (Aged 19)

One clinically vulnerable young person recalled the impact of restrictions easing in medical settings, describing how the removal of isolation protocols made it risky for him to go to a doctor’s surgery or hospital – making it impossible for him to be vaccinated.

“We were told by our own doctor it was not safe to enter GPs’ surgeries or hospitals at the time because we could be vulnerable and it would have killed us.” (Aged 19)

Another young person’s parent shared that when her child, who was severely disabled, removed his feeding tube she was told not to go to hospital to fix the issue, and to feed him another way. The parent was later referred to social care due to not using the feeding tube, and described feeling unfairly treated by having a safeguarding concern raised for this. She shared that it was later accepted by social care that she was following medical advice on this.  

“[My son] pulled his peg out and because I couldn’t take him to hospital they put a safeguarding in place even though I phoned the hospital and said he’s pulled his tube out… They said, well, there’s no point coming in because we’re in Covid. He’ll have to stay in the hospital for 10 days. And we don’t want that for you. So we just left it at that. We got him drinking. We got him eating. But then when he did go up to [institution deleted] they then put me in safeguarding because I didn’t take him to get him checked out at the hospital. But I got told not to check him out because of Covid.” (Parent of young person aged 21)

Additional visiting restrictions when admitted to hospital

Children and young people who were admitted to hospital during the pandemic described the challenges they faced due to the visiting restrictions. 

One child admitted to hospital during the pandemic for a couple of weeks, who was allowed just one visitor, described how she missed being able to see her siblings during this time when only her mum was allowed to stay with her in the hospital. She also found the whole experience of being in hospital during the pandemic “scary”.

“It was quite scary because like there would be a lot of people there dealing with things from the pandemic and dealing with things like what happened and stuff and it was quite busy, but I [was] still in the hospital and I knew I needed to go because it was very bad… It was just very different and staying in hospital for a long time seeing all like the nurses and doctors in masks and not being able to really like go home and my little brother and my sister couldn’t see me a lot because I was in hospital and stuff.” (Aged 10)

For young people who had just turned 18, the experience of being admitted to hospital in the pandemic was expressed as being made more challenging, confusing and “weird” due to the restrictions on any visitors at all, which meant their parents could not be there with them. Those interviewed referred to the confusion they faced in understanding what the doctors were saying, interpreting their treatment plans, and having to deal with their health discussions on their own. They also described how a parent had joined their health appointments before the pandemic, and how they felt rushed into behaving like an adult now, and found this distressing.

“I just turned 18 before the pandemic and I got admitted to hospital for about a week and, like, I couldn’t have any visitors. I had to deal with it all on my own… like, all the doctors and people coming in to talk to me… Before that my mum still came to my doctor’s appointments… and so that was a real sort of eye opener to ‘I can do things on my own, I’m a bit of an adult now. Wow. Everything feels a bit real’. Like, it was a really weird experience.” (Aged 22) “And all I wanted was my mum, [who] couldn’t come with me… [I was] sat in the hospital on my own because as far as the NHS and the doctors and the nurses were concerned, ‘she is an adult, she can make her own decisions’, when I didn’t understand half of what they were saying. You know, ‘you’ve got this, you’ve got that, and we need to do this and this and that and you need to go on and see this consultant, that consultant, you need to have this operation, this operation, risks are this, this and this’. And it kind of just went through one ear and out the other because I had no idea what they were even talking about, like I didn’t even know I had, I didn’t even know what a gallbladder was.”  (Aged 22)

Concluding remarks

Accounts reflect how children and young people in a variety of circumstances experienced difficulties in accessing healthcare services during the pandemic. In particular those in contact with mental health services felt they had been affected by delays and changes to the frequency of support.

Findings also highlight the impact of disruption to in-person talking therapy where children where young people found it difficult taking part in online and telephone sessions. This loss of in-person support made it harder for them to cope during the pandemic. 

For those in contact with physical healthcare services, accounts reflect how delays to healthcare, including due to pressure on the NHS and due to the fear of catching Covid-19 in healthcare settings, could lead to short- and longer-term health impacts. 

4.4 Seeking asylum

Têgihiştinî

This section explores the experiences of the pandemic among children and young people seeking asylum. We spoke to children and young people who had been in a range of circumstances in relation to seeking asylum during the pandemic. The group included both those who had been living in the UK before the pandemic and those who arrived during lockdown. Of this second group, most arrived with other family members, although our sample included some older children and young people who arrived on their own during the pandemic. Where younger children were unable to recall specific details around the process of applying for asylum, their parents provided input where possible.

We first detail the experiences of those who arrived during lockdown, highlighting feelings of isolation and fear at this time as well as specific challenges, such as delays to accessing English lessons. We also explore perceived disruptions to the asylum-seeking process and some support services that were felt to be related to the pandemic context.

Chapter Summary
Arriving in the UK during the pandemic Experiences of temporary accommodation Experiences of asylum processes and support Concluding remarks	Delays to the application process Support during the pandemic

Arriving in the UK during the pandemic

The experience of moving to the UK during the pandemic was overwhelmingly described negatively, as “frightening”, “stressful”, and “lonely”, by children and young people seeking asylum, particularly by those who were held in detention centres or arrived alone (see Detention and secure settings). Children and young people felt unable to start developing their new life in the UK during the pandemic because of lockdowns and social isolation. They described this as a very lonely and difficult period for them and some described a longer-term impact on their mental health as a result. 

“I couldn’t really do normal basic stuff that I needed to do to like develop myself… So like for example like learn English, make friends, seeing new people, just like improve my language, you know, it was hard for me at the start.” (Aged 20)  “When I came it was like in the beginning or the middle of Covid-19; I had to stay I think it was 15 days alone without contact. Because I came to the UK without no one, like I was alone, I was sad because I was missing people. You feel lonely, sometimes depressed and yeah… I was scared. Yeah. You don’t know no one. You don’t know who to trust… I still feel some, you know, sad sometimes because I came to the UK without no one.” (Aged 21)

A key theme for those arriving in the UK during the pandemic was disruption to opportunities to learn English. Children and young people discussed how learning English was an extremely important part of settling into life in the UK, and those who came to the UK during the pandemic felt that the pandemic made it much harder for them to do this. Some were unable to access English lessons initially and so tried to teach themselves. Some also found that they had fewer opportunities to improve their English through informal interactions such as at school, in the shops, or socialising with friends. Those who were able to access online learning found it difficult to engage with and to understand what was going on.

“I had no English definitely, so school time is vital for me to catch up with my English and actually keep up with the people around me and like who are just born here and just know fluent English and what not… when you go to school you also have communication with other people, with friends.” (Aged 17)

One young person was unable to access any sort of education when she first arrived in the UK at the start of the pandemic and described the stress she experienced, as well as boredom.

“I didn’t have any sort of education in this country because I just have arrived at that time and I was just thinking I’d be able to register for a class. Due to the pandemic, I couldn’t do it all, I didn’t have that education… because I wasn’t able to attend classes during the pandemic time, so I got very angry and also got depressed like having a stress feeling too.” (Aged 21)

Other opportunities were also felt to be compromised by the pandemic. Some of those interviewed were frustrated that they were unable to access certain volunteering opportunities or youth groups during the pandemic. This was seen as a way to improve their English as well as to meet new people.  

“I was angry; I wanted to do volunteering… a volunteer group to set events for people and kids, couldn’t do that. It was some perfect opportunity for me to learn English as well, I couldn’t do that.” (Aged 20)

Delays to learning English also meant children and young people found it harder to understand what was going on in the news or to understand the progress with their asylum-seeking application.

“Even the news was difficult to understand, sometimes because it’s in English. I had to use Google to translate the things… to make sure that I know what’s going on because I was so isolated.” (Aged 21)

Experiences of temporary accommodation

Children and young people seeking asylum during the pandemic described varied experiences with temporary accommodation that were specific to their circumstances (for example, whether they had come with their family and whether they were placed in emergency accommodation). These included being housed in a hostel, hotel, or student accommodation, with varying levels of security and limits to movement depending on location and lockdown rules when they arrived. 

Some of those interviewed who were in temporary accommodation due to seeking asylum described their frustration over cramped living conditions, the lack of personal space, and the uncertainty they experienced around their length of stay (see also Detention and secure settings).

“I think if we knew at the start, okay, it’s going to be like this for one year, or however long, that would have been easier than just not knowing at all… We just had no control over the uncertainty. Like I remember being like, ‘just tell me the amount of time, because I can deal with it if I know how long it will be, even if it’s ages’.” (Aged 20)

Some younger children interviewed recalled sharing rooms with siblings in temporary accommodation, but did not have a clear memory of the situation and were less likely to recall direct impacts of the pandemic on their living situation. However, some of those interviewed in their late teens and twenties now, and some parents, described how delays in processing asylum claims had affected their living situation, creating an atmosphere of stress and worry.

Experiences of asylum processes and support

Below we explore how children and young people seeking asylum experienced the application process and access to support during the pandemic. 

Delays to the application process

Children and young people perceived that there were delays to the asylum-seeking process during the pandemic, which affected both those who arrived in the UK before and during the pandemic.⁴¹ While those already in the UK did not describe difficulties in accessing healthcare or education, they did perceive disruption in this area. Children and young people interviewed, or their parents, felt that it was more difficult to contact the Home Office or other organisations to get an update on their application, and that it took longer to get a response. Some children and young people felt that the process was always slow, but the pandemic delayed it further.

“I’m not sure if they [the Home Office] completely stopped working but like the response process was slowed all the way down so we weren’t hearing from them for like almost a year. Or like let’s say we had like to send a letter back to them… it will take months for them to get back to us. So Covid slowed that all the way down. I feel like even if Covid never happened, we’d probably got our papers two years before.” (Aged 21)  “It was just quiet, which is stressful for the family… It’s hard to contact them, I mean to receive any update about the communication. And I’d write to my MP… a lot of times… was not successful at all. So just wait, which is stressful.” (Parent of child aged 17)

Those who moved to the UK to seek asylum during the pandemic spoke about delays to their interviews with the Home Office and meetings with solicitors. Such delays made some children and young people worried that their application would not be accepted. Interviews and communications with the Home Office tended to be over the phone rather than in-person, which some found frustrating and disappointing.

“I was just waiting for the thing that they called the big interview, like the one that you had to meet with the staff from the Home Office to make sure that they understand what’s going on and if they accept me in the UK or not… I had to wait for the first interview, which was delayed by six months, and then I had to wait for the second one… Also, I had some meetings with my solicitor. I think those meetings also took time to get started… Feels like maybe they don’t want me here; they had to find like reasons why they’re taking so long to reply. Yeah, it was a lot of things on my mind.” (Aged 21)  “I think because of the Covid they were not giving us, like, getting an interview… it was taking so long. Even after we complained, it was just we didn’t get interviewed as soon. Even we did interview not by, like, physically; this was – everything was, like, on internet. Yes. It’s on – everything is on call, which made it more difficult and it was just disappointing after waiting for so long.” (Aged 20)

Some of those interviewed noticed that their parents were more worried or anxious during the pandemic because of the delays to their application and lack of communication from the Home Office. They described the emotional impact on them of being exposed to their parents’ worries. This reflects broader findings on how being exposed to adult stress could make the pandemic additionally challenging for some children and young people. 

“My mum was the one that went through a lot of, like, mental health issues like depression and anxiety… she’s a single mother as well… The process obviously slowed down, so it was just when is it gonna happen? We were waiting already and then we had to wait even longer because Covid came. She would be like, ‘oh, help me check my email. Have they said anything?’ So she was always kind of worried about it [the application process] in a way.” (Aged 21)  “The asylum process impacted my mum a lot because I remember when she’ll be crying because she didn’t know what the response was going to be from the lawyer, she would be upset… You’d just see her crying, like [she was] a single mum of five. So yes, it really impacted my mum negatively. And that also had an impact on me as well because every time I see my mum crying, I’ll start crying as well.” (Aged 19)

However, in some cases the delays were described as having some positive aspects for children and young people and their parents. One young person said the delays meant there was more time for her mum to gather evidence to improve their application. One parent liked that she was able to have “a break” during the pandemic due to not having to “report” (attend regular meetings with their caseworker) as often.

It is interesting to note that some children and young people were conscious of media coverage in relation to asylum seekers during this time. Some of those interviewed who were in their teens during the pandemic perceived negative messages in the news around asylum seekers getting worse during the pandemic period. As a result, they described feeling more fearful and worried that they could be deported. Those living in the UK prior to the pandemic typically described having had an underlying fear that this could happen. However, some believed this was heightened during the pandemic period both through the media and within asylum-seeking communities. For example, one young person noticed more articles in the media about asylum seekers being deported after their application was refused. 

"You would just see in the media or you would see someone’s case or a situation that was happening… My mum would ask me to translate an article where there’s like 500 people waiting to be deported because the Home Office don’t know what to do with them or like there’s a high chance that your application can get refused… It was just always that fear of the unknown… articles and stuff were [from] online people [who] would forward them to my mum and I think she was like in a couple of group chats.” (Aged 21)  “There was a lot of news that asylum [seekers] were going to be sent back to their own countries or a different country. I think that was a negative thing about that because it was quite scary… we’re coming for refugee status and to feel safe; it’s important to not spread that fear that we’re going to be sent back.” (Aged 18)

Support during the pandemic

Charities were mentioned as sources of great support for children and young people seeking asylum and their families, organising online calls for asylum seeker groups to keep in touch, activities to help home learning, and food supplies. One young person mentioned that a charity also helped in providing advice on applications and reassurance for those concerned about media reports on deportation.

"So [the charity] would put on these things just so that women could like feel like they were still there together. I think maybe it was even twice a week just so that people could come together, get help from each other… I remember like my mum would be in the kitchen cooking and she’ll just have her phone in one corner [and] would probably be singing, just talking to each other… They actually did things online for kids, especially at young kids to keep them engaged whilst they’re at home… They’d give out food as well, so that people struggling during that week have supplies to take home.” (Aged 21)

The few who were interviewed who arrived alone in the UK during the pandemic spoke about receiving individual support, from a key worker as well as a mental health professional in one case. This support was felt to be important from a practical perspective in helping progress their application, providing advice, and booking appointments, and that for those in detention settings it was some of their only social contact. 

“[My key worker] was the one who was responsible [for] bring[ing] food and things that I needed and for other people like all the organisations [such as children’s social care].” (Aged 21) “The best support at that time [was] my supporter. Because at that time, one of my supporters speaks my language. I asked her everything. Yes. Most of the support came from her… [she would] book me doctor appointments, dentists, and everything like that.” (Aged 20)

Some children and young people seeking asylum described the support they received from their schools to enable them to do online learning, such as being sent laptops and Wi-Fi dongles. 

One young person also described receiving support from her housing association, who provided additional financial support and transport to medical appointments for her family.

“During Covid, we were still financially dependent on the housing association… When Covid had been announced, they gave us an emergency payment of like 100 pounds… We also had to go to [city] twice… to go and see a doctor there… someone from [the housing association] picked us up and they provided us with transportation.” (Aged 21)

However, those interviewed also described support services being limited during the pandemic. As well as delays to accessing English-language classes, some children and young people and their families who relied on libraries to access laptops and printers were affected by the closure of libraries. This could further delay asylum applications due to not being able to print out certain forms or access documents online.

“Let’s say the lawyer told my mum ‘you need to print this out and then come and give it to me in my office’. She wasn’t really able to do that because we didn’t really have a laptop at home. So we would usually go to the library to go do this. But we weren’t really allowed to go out. So it was like, oh, what am I supposed to do?” (Aged 19)

Concluding remarks

Accounts of seeking asylum during the pandemic highlight the feelings of uncertainty experienced by children and young people during this time, including worry about perceived delays and difficulties in receiving information on their application. Although it is difficult to pinpoint to the extent to which these were due to the pandemic, these findings reflect the challenges of not knowing what the outcome of a process would be while also dealing with the uncertainties of the pandemic.

For those who moved to the UK during the pandemic, these findings also reveal difficulties starting a life in the UK, including as a result of disruption to opportunities to learn English and difficulties accessing education.

4.5 The criminal justice system

Têgihiştinî

We spoke to children and young people who had been in contact with the criminal justice system (CJS) in a range of ways during the pandemic. Those interviewed were victims and witnesses of crimes, as well as defendants. Some children and young people had contact with the CJS due to an incident that had taken place prior to the pandemic or an ongoing issue, whilst others had contact due to incidents that took place during the pandemic.      

In this section, we explore experiences of contact with the police and of court hearings. It should be noted that those interviewed were often unsure whether their experience of the CJS at this time was impacted by the pandemic as they had no prior experience to compare it with. Some also had limited recall of the timing of events or were reluctant to discuss these in detail. However, there was a perception that court proceedings were delayed due to the pandemic.

Chapter Summary
Reasons for contact with the CJS Experiences of contact with the CJS Concluding remarks	Experiences of contact with the police Experiences of delays to court hearings

Reasons for contact with the CJS

Some children and young people had experienced abuse where a parent or carer had caused harm to them and/or other family members. In this case, their contact with the CJS involved being a victim or a witness, or both. Some of these cases were linked to abuse that started prior to the pandemic but accounts suggest they may have been exacerbated or resumed due to the circumstances of being in lockdown. For example, one child described how a parent with a no-contact order made unwanted contact during this time.

“That’s when [my father] started [visiting our home despite having a no-contact order] again. Because I think, you know, he knows he was bored during lockdown, obviously. He thought let’s give us a bit of entertainment. So, yes, it all started. It started back up. Because before that I hadn’t even spoken to him since I was, like, five.” (Aged 16)

Some children and young people interviewed reported that they were victims in a range of crimes during the pandemic, including having a mobile phone stolen while being outside in a park, being assaulted, being stalked (which took place prior to the pandemic but court proceedings were due to happen during the pandemic), and being racially abused via anonymous phone calls.

“I just got like a phone call by some random numbers, like threatening to attack me and call me a [racial slur]… they were belling me up like a lot… telling me they’re gonna attack me, assault me, call me a [racial slur], and I just was like, what the ****, who is this? So then I ended up, I didn’t actually want to contact the police [in case they took my phone]; I wanted to find out who it was and then I needed to make some sort of report to do that.” (Aged 20)

Some were witnesses to crimes and had contact with the CJS when asked to make a statement or called to appear in court.

“So a week, two weeks before Covid, my friend was sexually assaulted on a night out. So obviously that immediate evening we went to the police and I was a witness. So we did witness statements. [The perpetrator] was immediately arrested two weeks later. It’s obvious. Obviously [he] kind of got bailed and it was like due to go to court. My father was actually involved in the police anyway, so I knew kind of how the system ran. I knew it would all be impacted by Covid [i.e. deprioritised]. The nature of assault, it was pretty low level. I knew it was never going to be quick.” (Aged 22)

One young person experienced being arrested during the pandemic because of breaking lockdown restrictions. He described being stopped by police in a skate park (this had been fenced off during lockdown, but the fences had been taken down by some of the skaters) and feeling shocked that this incident resulted in him appearing in court.

“My mum had told me this – that I was one of the only people in the UK period to be taken to court over breaking Covid laws, which I had no idea about. And I’m sitting there being like, what am I doing here? Like, I’ve done nothing… They’re having this whole court hearing about me all for it to be dismissed. Because in reality everyone knew fine, right, that it wasn’t going to be amounting to anything.” (Aged 20)

Note that some of those interviewed who were in contact with the CJS received support from social workers (see Children’s social care). 

Experiences of contact with the CJS

Below we detail children and young people’s experiences of contact with the police during the pandemic before exploring experiences of perceived delays to court hearings. 

Experiences of contact with the police

Children and young people reported a range of experiences of interacting with the police during the pandemic. Some felt that early in the pandemic the police were less busy and had more time to deal with issues than previously, but thought that this changed as police spent more time enforcing restrictions. Some felt that police resources were stretched during the pandemic and that this impacted the speed at which their case progressed.

“So the starting process… everything was like a ghost town at that point. It was literally so empty. So I think that that was when it was a lot easier for people to get in [to the CJS] and that’s why everything moved so quickly. I think throughout Covid, as you look through the timeline, as everything got a bit more relaxed but then heightened again everything was kind of few and far between and all the resources were just dispersed everywhere. And that’s when everything started slowing down.” (Aged 19)  “We were just sitting waiting for the police my whole birthday and it just took, like – it was like the end of the evening they finally turned up. But obviously they’re busy… because in lockdown, like, domestic abuse and all of that was going up.” (Aged 16)  “With it being during Covid, I think that resources were heavily reduced. And that went for all public sectors. But the police itself, their systems are already quite backwards. They’re quite failed. But during that time everything was quite slow… communication-wise there wasn’t much going on. And so I didn’t really know about what was going on with my case and it took a lot longer than it should have, realistically.” (Aged 19)

Interactions with the police happened both at home and at the police station during the pandemic. Children and young people were unsure whether home visits were conducted due to the pandemic context. Those interviewed were sometimes confused about the specific timing of these events and the link to restrictions. 

Experience of delays to court hearings

Some children and young people experienced delays to court hearings that they attributed to the pandemic. This was frustrating and caused feelings of anxiety for some.

“It was supposed to be a court case I think in 2020. It was supposed to be in July… but then they couldn’t really go forward and it just kept getting pushed… The court date was constantly pushed back because even after Covid interpreters were, like, not available.” (Aged 18)  “Going to court and everything: that took longer because of the pandemic.” (Aged 15)  “So this whole process has been extended not just from Covid but obviously then just new things coming in and they want to investigate that to the full so they can get as much of a charge and sentences as they can so that [my dad is] away for longer. But obviously a good chunk of that was because of delays with Covid and they’re still working through that backlog, as they’ve said to me.” (Aged 21)  “Covid did take an effect in terms of it delaying [the hearing] by over a year and a half really and kind of little things like that, the court proceedings and just things like that; it all just would have been a lot more quicker and more efficient if Covid wasn’t around… I appreciate the nature of the criminal justice system, it’s not super quick by the scale of it, but definitely a year and a half.” (Aged 22)

One young person who had reported a stalker to the police prior to the pandemic found the court delays particularly challenging as she felt she was in significant potential danger.

“He ended up getting arrested, I think for like harassment and a couple of other charges, which was kind of a few months before Covid happened. Obviously he kind of got released… he was meant to get given a court date and that kind of thing, but then that just kind of all like went out the window as soon as Covid like started and lockdown happened… the fact that it did get pushed back so much made me feel like I was in a lot more danger for a long time… violent threats from him for such a long time.” (Aged 22)

Concluding remarks

Children and young people’s accounts of being in touch with the CJS during the pandemic for a range of reasons highlight feelings of confusion and uncertainty about what was going on and perceptions of delays to court hearings. These experiences reflect how feeling unsure and worried about a process or outcome could be compounded by the uncertainty created by the pandemic itself. 

4.6 Detention and secure settings

Têgihiştinî

This section explores the experiences of children and young people who were in a detention setting or secure facility during the pandemic. Those interviewed were in a range of secure settings for varied reasons. These settings included Young Offender Institutions (YOIs), secure children’s homes, secure mental health units, and asylum detention.

It should be noted that as those interviewed largely entered secure settings for the first time during the pandemic period of 2020‒21, they typically did not have a direct comparison against which to judge their experience. However, they did share their perceptions of where they felt their experience had been affected by the pandemic context.

Chapter Summary
Feelings of increased isolation in secure settings Perceived impact of the pandemic in secure settings Catching Covid-19 and self-isolation Concluding remarks	Experiences with staff Experiences of increased visiting restrictions Impact on education and learning

Feelings of increased isolation in secure settings

A consistent theme in how children and young people in secure settings and contexts experienced the pandemic was a feeling of being especially and excessively isolated from others, including those within their setting, family and friends, as well as reduced opportunities for activity and exercise.  

These feelings appeared to be the result of additional restrictions, such as on leaving their confined settings and visits from loved ones, and quarantine measures to reduce the risk of Covid-19 spreading. Children and young people in secure settings described having to follow the Covid-19 guidance especially strictly or being allowed out of their rooms for much shorter periods than at other times. The impact of these restrictions, and the reasons children and young people perceived additional restrictions to be in place, including the timing of lockdowns, the rules of specific settings, and more limited staff availability, are described below.

“[I had] half an hour of fresh air every day and the rest [of the time] I was just in my room, because I couldn’t come out… I think just at least give me some, just some more time outside, for fresh air instead of just half an hour. Obviously, I get you’ve got to keep everyone safe and that but if I don’t have Covid at the end of the day, what’s the real issue [you are solving] I would think?” (Aged 17, in a secure children’s home during the pandemic)

Feelings of increased isolation were felt to contribute to children and young people’s sense of frustration and loneliness. Some described themselves as active, sociable people feeling “helpless” in confinement, which was made worse in the Covid-19 context. This was particularly the case when the situation was felt to be unjust or unnecessary and to limit their opportunities and enjoyment of life. For example, a young person seeking asylum was angry about feeling that her life was on hold because of rules she felt were “unnecessary”. Another young person in an asylum detention setting described how he believed his extended period of isolation contributed to him developing depression and physical symptoms.

“I was never a home person, like I never wanted to stay home or like just stay inside because I liked going out, go on walks, go shopping, do anything, anything outside the house, just stay active, but I felt isolated, especially when I had Covid as well, like you’d just be like, you were left alone in there… My whole life was on pause, like it was my time, days to learn English, to do this, to do that, to make new friends, to meet new people; it stopped everything, like I couldn’t do absolutely nothing.” (Aged 20, in an asylum detention setting during the pandemic) “When I was in [location deleted] I got depression. I contacted many organisations to help me. After a few months, I went to a GP and told my doctor, please find for me mental health support because at that time, I couldn’t sleep for a couple of nights, for five, six nights, I was still up at that time. My hand was shaking and my legs… it was not too useful… I got to see one doctor… they didn’t prescribe anything.” (Aged 20, in an asylum detention setting during the pandemic – a different individual from the quotation above)

Perceived impact of the pandemic in secure settings

Below we detail perceptions of how the pandemic context affected the reported availability and behaviour of staff in the secure settings that children and young people were in during the pandemic, as well as the ability of loved ones to visit. We also outline ways in which this was felt to negatively affect their experiences and the quality of their rehabilitation.

Experiences with staff

Some recalled issues with staff availability and levels of professionalism in their secure settings. They described a range of negative knock-on effects on their experiences from these issues. They often felt they were made worse by the pandemic and lockdown context.

Some of those interviewed described how the pandemic led to them being supervised by smaller numbers of non-specialist staff, due to layoffs and resignations. For example, one young person in a YOI setting from 2021 to 2023 described that the time he was allowed out of his cell or to exercise was reduced. From his perspective, this was due to staff “taking advantage” of the Covid-19 context to take time off work. He said he could only spend an hour outside his cell per day and exercise once a week, which he felt had a detrimental effect on his mental health and made him feel unable to get the support he needed. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, young people in YOIs in the England and Wales were typically allowed at least one hour of outdoor exercise per day based on minimum standards, although in practice allowances could vary.⁴²

“I’d just come out of general hospital admission anyway from asthma for seven days, so then I think it was about two weeks later I was taken into [the private mental health facility], and at that point it was complete lockdown, like that was when it was all really like strict… I don’t think I saw anyone… only the healthcare assistants and the support workers and nurses were allowed to be in the building… it was really hard to get any kind of therapeutic input… [It affected my recovery] a hundred percent… it got to the point where I was like ‘I can’t stay here any longer because I’m going mad, like it’s actually making things worse’.” (Aged 22, in a mental health facility during the pandemic)

Another young person described observing and experiencing troubling instances of mistreatment of patients at her mental health facility and speculated that this could have been due to a lack of sufficient oversight during the pandemic. This included observing an excessive use of force on an elderly patient and being given an opportunity to leave the facility in exchange for not complaining. She reported all these instances, and believed they were due to the institution having a lack of oversight and relying on agency staff.

“I got transferred to a closed hospital… considering those places are meant to be rehabilitation places, I think… there was no focus on regulations… obviously [the staff] must have been qualified, but I think that because there wasn’t, again, you know, the eyes on them, which is normally the like [Care Quality Commission] and whatnot. And they got away with a lot of things that they shouldn’t of. And the treatment… the treatment that they were treating patients was… not great at all. [The person whose behaviour I felt was inappropriate] didn’t seem like permanent staff.” (Aged 22, in a mental health facility during the pandemic)

Experiences of increased visiting restrictions

Those interviewed felt that increased restrictions on contact and visiting during the pandemic made their experiences more difficult than they would have been otherwise. This reflects the stories shared more widely across interviews where children and young people struggled when contact with loved ones was reduced. 

Those in secure mental health facilities described feeling especially isolated from family members and believed this was exacerbated by pandemic restrictions. One child described how her experiences at this time had made her feel more antisocial and worried following the pandemic. Restrictions in her facility meant that family members could not visit her bedroom. Feeling alone and unsupervised for the first time made it harder for her to keep her room tidy, and she felt a lack of control in her life as a result. She discussed how she felt too nervous to ask for help from staff who wore Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and therefore seemed unapproachable.

“I missed my nana a lot… I was kind of just launched into this year of independence where my parents weren’t even allowed in the bedroom… One example is, like I got a bunch of flowers and I put them in a cup and I put water in them… and they died really quickly and I had no idea why. It was because they’d used all the water… it was more scary because all the people were in like PPE kit. You couldn’t see who they were… it was quite disconnecting really.” (Aged 15, in a mental health facility during the pandemic)

Another young person who voluntarily admitted herself to a mental health facility was particularly upset and surprised that she was not allowed to see her baby daughter during this time.

“I couldn’t see my daughter, I couldn’t see anyone.” (Aged 22, in a mental health facility during the pandemic)

One young person with inpatient experience prior to and during the pandemic described how movement and visiting restrictions were more limited across both lockdowns in 2020. With limited opportunities for contact with family members, this made it harder for him to understand why he was in the facility, and to get the support he needed from advocacy services, which he felt affected his speed of recovery.

“When I was in hospital before Covid… everyone was able to go on the grounds… If they had Section 17 leave43, they could go off the grounds. All of that stopped in Covid, like you couldn’t leave, I think for at least three months… [There was]… no outside contact… I was using Skype and like Zoom on my phone, and messaging [family] every day and calling them. But they couldn’t actually come though because at the time it was strict… and there [were] police at the end of the road asking people where they were going.” (Aged 22, in a mental health facility during the pandemic)

Those in other secure settings also discussed the emotional impact of additional visiting restrictions. Some children in secure children’s homes described missing seeing family members for longer periods of time and developing worries about socialising as a result. Others described the number of visits allowed being reduced during the pandemic and how the contact they could have with family members depended on which staff were on shift at the time.

“It was like a thing where I didn’t get to see [my mum] for a long, long time. And then when I did get to see her in the end, it was like I wasn’t allowed to hug her. I had to just see her from a distance and then say goodbye… where we [were] located was literally in the middle of nowhere. I think that’s what made everyone feel a certain way. We [were] locked inside a house basically… I think it was impacting a lot of everyone’s mental health in there… as soon as I started getting back out, I started getting really, really bad anxiety… I’m still getting tested for it, but it’s a massive waiting list. So it’s going to take a long, long time… [I still get] panic attacks.” (Aged 17, in a secure children’s home during the pandemic)

One young person in a YOI also shared his frustration with existing visitor restrictions being made stricter, contributing to increased feelings of stress. This was said to add to feelings of frustration about limited existing allowances around contact such as phone calls. 

“I would say that [I was frustrated] because [I couldn’t see] family members and just… it just was out of the ordinary, family, also, like, having visits was, like, limited as well… I’m a person who likes to do things so if I can’t do things that, kind of, stresses me out… they should have upped how much [family] were able to call. Like I said, you were only allowed one hour call a day.” (Aged 20, in a YOI during the pandemic)

Impact on education and learning

Children and young people in secure settings described how the pandemic context affected the education they received. This was particularly the case for those in secure children’s homes and secure units. Those interviewed recognised that they were being educated differently from their peers in mainstream settings but experiences of this were mixed.

Some of those interviewed described reduced schoolwork and enjoying no one checking up on them, while recognising potentially negative longer-term effects of this. 

“At the time I was in a secure unit school thing, obviously no one could attend the school… And I don’t think anyone really generally got like the schooling that they needed because everyone was just more than mucking around because [they were] at home… we were getting written work and stuff in our rooms to do. Nobody [did] it, but you know, it was just, it was just to say that we’ve got it.” (Aged 17, in a secure children’s home/secure unit during the pandemic) “But education stopped while Covid was going on. They [did] things like more enrichment activities, so things like more board games, things like building, crafts, that kind of thing, rather than the academic just because all schools got laid off including this one, really…. It’s better, isn’t it, when you’re doing less work, so it was all right for us. We all enjoyed it, really.” (Aged 17, in a secure children’s home during the pandemic)

In contrast, one child in a secure unit described her education becoming more enjoyable over this time. Her workload got easier and she liked learning with others in her unit and receiving more support than she had previously. It is unclear whether this experience was different from how it would otherwise have been because of the pandemic context.

“Our forms would be in their own little bubble. So when we’d switch classes, it’d just be like our form basically. And it was quite easy because the work wasn’t as tough as a mainstream school. There was like its own like help and support, which I got a lot of, which was absolutely brilliant. And yes, there was just a lot of support, which I really liked about it.” (Aged 16, in a secure unit during the pandemic)

Catching Covid-19 and self-isolation

Children and young people in secure settings felt that specific rules applicable after contracting Covid-19 and relating to quarantine were particularly isolating and punitive. Those interviewed in a range of secure settings, including YOIs and secure children’s homes, described the experience of additional seclusion felt by being made to isolate for ten days without contact. This was either in relation to contracting Covid-19, or a precautionary quarantine measure taken on arrival in periods of increased spread of the virus, for example in autumn 2020. One person who stayed on in a secure setting past 2021 described this as being reduced to three days of isolation by 2022. 

One young person described being aware of how, in a mental health facility specifically, the experience of being confined to their rooms could severely exacerbate some patients’ existing conditions, for example for those dealing with psychosis or bipolar disorder.

“If you had Covid, you had to isolate in your room. For people with mental health, it’s basically torture. That’s what the regulations were… To be there for seven days straight with bipolar is undoable, so they were trying to escape.” (Aged 22, in a mental health facility during the pandemic)

Those interviewed also described heightened fear of catching Covid-19 in secure settings. This included worries about shared spaces and feeling that facilities such as showers were unclean and could easily transmit germs. This was particularly the case in cramped conditions. One young person sharing one room of a hotel with three others while being processed for asylum discussed how he constantly worried about catching Covid-19 again and described having nowhere to go to self-isolate.

“Even after Covid hit me and after I recovered, like I was still sharing a room with three people so I would never know when I had Covid or not… everything you touched we would have to think about it, like, but yes, like, ‘oh did I touch this, did I not, did I do this?’, you know, you would overthink everything.” (Aged 20, in an asylum detention setting during the pandemic)

Concluding remarks

Accounts from children and young people in detention settings during the pandemic highlight their heightened feelings of isolation and exclusion during this period due to experience of increased restrictions, including quarantine measures, confinement and reduced contact with family and friends. The accounts also highlight a perceived reduction on the availability and professionalism of staff due to the pandemic, and resulting disruption that was felt by some make their recovery and reintegration more challenging.

5. Conclusions

This report has explored the diverse experiences of children and young people throughout the pandemic, identifying common themes alongside distinct differences. The findings highlight the wide variety of pandemic experiences and perspectives among children and young people. Through capturing individual voices and stories, it emphasises the importance of recognising children’s unique experiences as distinct from adults, and cautions against broad generalisations.

The report has discussed the range of specific circumstances that contributed to especially challenging or more positive experiences. As has been seen, it was uncommon for accounts from those interviewed to be wholeheartedly positive or negative. While children and young people described challenges they faced, they also felt there were positive aspects to the experience or at least things that made it easier to cope. Drawing on these, our analysis has identified a number of factors that made the pandemic particularly hard for some as well as the factors that helped children and young people to cope during this time. 

Factors that made the pandemic harder for children and young people, and affected their wellbeing during this time, were: living with tension at home, experiencing a weight of responsibility for others in the family, lacking resources such as space and consistent access to the internet, experiencing feelings of heightened fear, being affected by heightened restrictions and experiencing bereavement. Disruption to formal support that children and young people had relied on pre-pandemic also made the pandemic harder for some. 

Factors that helped children and young people to cope, and in some cases to thrive during the pandemic were: having supportive relationships with family or friends, finding ways to support their wellbeing, doing something rewarding and being able to continue learning. 

In planning for the future, it will be important to consider where support and resources could be put in place to protect those most affected by the ‘risk factors’ described, as well as to promote the benefits of and facilitate access to the factors that made the experience less harmful or more positive.

Factors that made the pandemic harder for some children and young people

Tension at home made the pandemic hard for some children and young people. In some cases this pre-dated the pandemic and was exacerbated by lockdown, while in other cases tensions arose when everyone was stuck at home together, particularly where living space felt cramped. Experiences of this could be extremely varied. While some experienced occasional friction, others lived in households where conflict or emotional strain was ongoing or escalated. Children and young people described the impact of arguing with or feeling uncomfortable with their siblings or parents or witnessing tension between adults in the household. These tensions meant that for some home was not experienced as a safe or supportive place to be during the pandemic, which in itself was an important factor in being able to cope with lockdown.

Weight of responsibility: Some children and young people took on responsibilities at home during the pandemic. As well as carrying the load of practical tasks that needed to be done, such as looking after someone who was ill, taking care of siblings, or sanitising shopping for someone who was clinically vulnerable, some also felt the emotional weight of supporting their family through this time, particularly where people outside of the household could not come and help. Some children and young people were also affected by an awareness of difficulties the adults were going through, including worsening mental health, worries about finances and experiences of bereavement. This exposure to adult responsibility and stress meant that some children and young people “grew up fast” during the pandemic.

Lack of resources: A lack of external resources made the pandemic harder to cope with for some children and young people from families with limited financial resources. Living in overcrowded accommodation created tension from feeling “on top of each other” and made it harder to cope with Covid-19 in the household or to protect clinically vulnerable family members, as well as making it difficult to find the space to do schoolwork. Not having consistent access to Wi-Fi or devices also made home learning harder, as well as limiting opportunities to connect with others, relax or learn new things online. While children and young people without outside space did not largely raise this as an issue, those with a garden described ways to boost wellbeing and have fun that those without a garden would not have been able to benefit from.

Heightened fear: Physically disabled children and young people and those with health conditions, and those who were clinically vulnerable themselves or in clinically vulnerable families, described their feelings of uncertainty, fear and anxiety about the risk of catching Covid-19 and the serious – and in some cases life-threatening – implications this could have for them or their loved ones. Children and young people in secure settings also felt vulnerable and afraid of catching Covid-19 when sharing common spaces with other people during the pandemic. Experiencing bereavement during the pandemic could also lead to feelings of heightened fear.

Heightened restrictions: Some children and young people were affected by experiencing restrictions differently from and more intensely than other people due to their circumstances. For some this was due to having a health condition or being physically disabled, being clinically vulnerable themselves, or in a clinically vulnerable family. For some this was due to being in a secure setting or specific care setting and feeling that they had to follow rules more strictly than others. Being affected by additional restrictions was particularly emotionally challenging when restrictions eased for others, and those who were clinically vulnerable themselves or in clinically vulnerable families described feeling excluded and “forgotten” when society and school opened up for other people.  

Disruption to support: Some children and young people were affected by disruption to formal support and healthcare services, particularly mental health services, during the pandemic, as well as losing school as a source of support or escape from any difficulties at home. While some adapted to the loss of in-person contact, others found phone and online contact difficult to engage with and felt less well supported. These differences reflect how individual preferences, needs, and usage shaped whether remote forms of support felt accessible or alienating. Those interviewed also described experiencing delays and inconsistency in the frequency and quality of support and thinking that the services they relied on were under pressure. This disruption could make it harder to cope with the pandemic for those already in challenging circumstances.

Experiencing bereavement: Those who were bereaved during the pandemic experienced particular difficulties where pandemic restrictions prevented them from seeing loved ones before they died, stopped them from mourning as they would have in normal times, or made it harder to see family and friends and feel supported in their grief. Some described weighing up the guilt and fear of breaking rules in order to see a loved one before they died, versus the guilt of not seeing them and fearing that they might die alone. Some of those who had a loved one who died due to Covid-19 described the additional shock of their death happening so fast, making them fearful for themselves and others. 

Compound impact: In some cases, being affected by a combination of these factors aggravated the impact of the pandemic for children and young people who experienced multiple challenges simultaneously. The difficulties they faced could also be compounded by the interaction of these factors, such as disruption to support when experiencing new or increased challenges at home. In some cases their experience of the pandemic was overwhelmingly negative and having supportive relationships to draw on and ways to look after their own wellbeing was particularly important. This experience of compound negative factors may be reflected in other data showing that the pandemic widened inequalities.

Other challenging aspects of the pandemic

Beyond this, the sudden move to lockdown affected wellbeing in a number of ways: children and young people described feeling confused, worried, bored and lonely. Not being able to see friends and classmates could come as a shock and this research highlights how important school is for social contact, not only learning. 

Lockdown also meant adapting to new ways of learning and children and young people’s accounts illustrate the sheer variety of learning approaches used by schools across this period. Adapting to these new approaches, particularly learning from home, unstructured school days, online lessons, and reduced teacher support and guidance, could affect motivation, academic progress and wellbeing. 

Some of those interviewed with SEN or who were physically disabled found learning during the pandemic particularly challenging. This research highlights specific difficulties faced during the pandemic around the loss of learning support and reliance on parents as a result, heightened experiences of the challenges faced by their peers, and unique difficulties for some when learning from home, including around comprehension, information processing and understanding social cues. 

Some of those interviewed expressed feelings of anger and frustration about their experiences of disrupted education, including exams. In some cases young people described feeling less inclined or able to go to university due not only to lower grades than expected but also to feeling less engaged in learning as a result of the pandemic.

In addition to their learning being affected, some children and young people felt that the pandemic stalled their progress in other areas of life. This included making progress in a sport, working and having an independent social life. 

Some felt that the pandemic affected them particularly acutely because of milestones they were set to mark during this time. These included transitioning from primary to secondary school, from school to a different sixth form or college, and from sixth form or college to university. Some who missed out on starting work when they turned 16, learning to drive when they turned 17, or celebrating when they turned 18 also felt that they had been unfairly deprived of opportunities and rites of passage.

As well as the loss of social contact through school, some children and young people missed seeing others through organised activities and team sports, underlining the importance of these environments for social interaction. This lack of social contact meant that some felt less confident to interact with others after lockdown, and some described experiencing feelings of anxiety around being with other people again. 

Missing family members when movement between households was restricted could also be challenging. This affected those with separated parents, those in care who could not see their birth family, and those with a parent in a detention setting. Children and young people who were close to extended family members were also affected by this.

Children and young people described their wellbeing being affected by all of the factors and challenges above. Across interviews, accounts reflected a spectrum of experiences in relation to the impact of the pandemic on mental health and wellbeing. This included those who felt they coped well during the pandemic despite the challenges. For some, fear and worry led to feelings of anxiety. Some also struggled with a lack of routine and a loss of motivation during the “empty time” of lockdown. Interviews with those who were already receiving support from mental health services or sought this when struggling during the pandemic, highlighted difficulties faced during this time including depression, anxiety, self-harm and suicidal ideation. The breadth of response also highlights the diversity of existing mental health needs, new challenges faced and different ways of coping among children and young people

In addition, the amount of time spent online during the pandemic, although valuable in many ways, did put children and young people at risk of experiencing online harm, from exposure to misinformation, contact with strangers, and negative experiences of social media. While none of these online risks are confined to the pandemic, responses suggest that some children and young people may have felt particularly vulnerable to making contact with strangers and feeling upset by social media given the isolation of lockdown. 

Some also experienced difficulties in managing their time online, given the circumstances of lockdown. This could affect concentration and capacity to study when children and young people returned to school, as well as affecting their sleep patterns at the time.

In addition to disruption to sleep, some missed exercise and active play and felt their physical health was affected by the pandemic. Some also struggled to eat healthily, particularly without a routine during lockdown. However, it should be noted that some children and young people did find new ways to be active and felt their eating habits were unchanged or improved during lockdown. 

Experiences of catching Covid-19 varied but it is worth noting that the emotional impact of worrying about the consequences as well as trying to self-isolate could feel more severe than the physical symptoms.

However, those who developed Covid-related post-viral conditions shared a wide spectrum of health experiences as a result of these. Health experiences varied in terms of the symptoms described, the severity of symptoms and how long they lasted, and the degree to which they affected the day-to-day lives of children and young people. It is important to note that for some the effects are still felt, impacting day-to-day life as well as future opportunities.

Experiencing challenges during the pandemic could lead to feelings of anger and injustice. Continuing to feel restricted while the rest of society opened up was particularly difficult, leading to feelings of being forgotten and unfairly excluded. Some children and young people shared feelings of anger in relation to their own experiences of loss due to the pandemic, which could relate to the loss of a loved one or loss of milestones and opportunities. These included anger at others in society, including “Covid deniers”, “anti-vaxxers” and those breaking lockdown rules, as well as anger at the government for both the way decisions were made and communicated, and for their reported rule-breaking during the pandemic. More widely, children and young people expressed a range of views in relation to the handling of the pandemic by those in authority.

This research also captured children and young people’s experiences of specific systems and services during the pandemic, including healthcare services, children’s social care and the criminal justice system, as well as experiences of being in different secure settings and seeking asylum. Accounts reflect a range of experiences but highlight a common theme of uncertainty and inconsistency during this time. Even though these feelings might have been experienced in normal times, they could be compounded by the general sense of uncertainty and confusion around the pandemic.

Factors that helped children and young people to cope

Given all of the challenges detailed above, it is important to consider the factors that made it easier for children and young people to cope during the pandemic, deal with changes and challenges, and even thrive during this time. In planning for the future, it will be important to consider where support and resources could be put in place to promote the benefits of and facilitate access to the factors that made the experience less harmful or more positive.

Supportive relationships: Children and young people of all ages described how friends, family and wider communities helped them get through the pandemic. For some this meant having friends and family on hand – or online – to combat the boredom and isolation of lockdown. Some became part of new communities online during the pandemic and found these valuable. In some cases, friends and family provided invaluable support when children and young people were struggling. Having a safe and supportive family environment was an important factor in creating positive experiences during the pandemic.

Finding ways to support wellbeing: Children and young people of all ages described things they did at home during the pandemic to consciously protect their wellbeing and feel better when they were struggling. From getting fresh air and exercise, to spending time with pets, to watching or reading something escapist, having the capacity to do something positive or comforting for themselves was hugely important for children and young people during the pandemic. Some also found that putting in place a routine could help them to stave off boredom and lethargy. 

Doing something rewarding: Being able to do something rewarding during the pandemic – sometimes unexpectedly – helped children and young people to cope with boredom, take their mind off worries, and feel more motivated during what was referred to as the “empty time” of lockdown. This included developing existing skills and interests and discovering new passions and talents. This could also have exciting consequences where finding something to do inspired new hobbies or unlocked future academic or career directions. 

Ability to continue learning: Children and young people described how if they were able to carry on learning during the pandemic, in spite of the widespread disruption to education and the challenges of remote learning, this allowed them to feel positive and that they could achieve what they wanted to in school, work and life. This could be due to receiving the help they needed from parents or teaching staff, being able to go to school while others were at home (for vulnerable children and children of key workers), or enjoying a more flexible and independent approach to learning. Successful remote learning was also supported by having access to appropriate devices for learning and in some cases by following a routine at home. Alongside the disruption, some children and young people highlighted aspects of learning in this period that they enjoyed or had carried forward. 

It is important to note that many of these factors were underpinned by spending time online – from contact with friends, to playing games, to learning new things from online tutorials. Despite the difficulties that some had in managing the amount of time they spent online, and the risk of exposure to online harm, being online could be a valuable source of social contact, comfort, escapism and inspiration for children and young people during the pandemic.

Some of those young people interviewed who are adults now, looked back on the pandemic and felt that there were positive aspects to going through this. For some, this meant being thankful for what they have in life, given what was taken away during the pandemic. For some, this was about benefitting from a period in their life when they had time to reflect on who they were and what mattered to them. Some of those who had faced specific challenges during the pandemic felt they had grown through adversity during a tough time, and now felt more resilient for the future as a result.  

Life-changing impacts

Finally, this research highlights that the pandemic has had enduring impacts for children and young people in a range of circumstances. Some of those with a post-viral condition have faced not only long-term effects of the condition itself but also negative impacts on their education and opportunities. Some children and young people who are clinically vulnerable themselves, or in clinically vulnerable families, have also experienced disruption to their education and some continue to feel excluded now that restrictions have eased. Other children and young people felt that the pandemic had a lasting impact on their education for a range of different reasons, including being unable to return to school, losing motivation to stay in school and not getting the grades they felt they could have achieved in normal times, all with implications for future opportunities. Finally, accounts from those who had a loved one who died due to Covid-19 also illustrate the life-changing impact of the pandemic.

6. Appendix A: Research questions and key aspects to explore

Research questions were defined by the Inquiry to feed into the design of Verian research materials. Researchers sought to explore and probe these topics where relevant to the participant.   

The section below sets out the research questions that interviews with the general and targeted samples sought to answer. These research questions were developed during the scoping phase of the project with the Inquiry’s Module 8 legal team and research team. They were adapted from the Key Lines of Enquiry (KLOE) for the module to answer specific evidence gaps through a qualitative approach. These research questions are followed by the key aspects agreed with the Inquiry to be explored for the targeted sample groups. In addition to the research questions, all interviews explored other experiences and impacts of the pandemic that children and young people felt were important to them.  

6.1 Research questions

Wellbeing and development

Generally, what impact did the pandemic have on children and young people’s day to day lives and wellbeing? Were they aware of the news and what was happening and how did this make them feel? Did they think that there were communications about the pandemic that were accessible to them and comprehensible or did they feel confused or some other feeling about it? Did they spend more or less time outdoors? Were there any lasting effects from this change?

What impact did the closures of schools (and other educational settings) have on children and young people, including impact on their personal, social, emotional development (including sexuality and identity); impact on their mental health and emotional wellbeing; any particular impact on those from economically and socially disadvantaged backgrounds?

What was the broader impact of lockdowns and other Covid-19 restrictions? Including:

• Impact on relationships with friends and on opportunities for play, including specific impact on those without siblings.
• Impact of losing access to leisure activities or hobbies or sport or friendships outside of school.
• Impact of spending time within the home or within the family unit owing to restrictions but without access to education or peers (save, for example, by being online). 
• Impact of increased use of the internet.
• Impact on the family unit and relationships with parents and siblings or others living in the home (for example, foster carers or foster siblings if separated out, and impact on those with no siblings). 

To what extent did children experience exposure to abuse or to parental addiction or mental ill health during the pandemic?

Was there any particular impact on children from economically and socially disadvantaged backgrounds?

Health

What impact did Covid-19 experiences have on children and young people’s feelings of emotional wellbeing/happiness/safety?

What additional impact did Covid-19 have on children and young people who were clinically vulnerable or already experiencing long-term illnesses?

What were the particular health impacts on children and young people of the pandemic? Has it impacted in any way on physical health (for example, on childhood obesity or fitness)?

What has the impact been on children and young people’s mental health and ability to access services to support them? 

Did food insecurity impact children and young people? Did children have less access to food either through not being at school, or not being able to access charity services or otherwise?

What impact did it have on children and young people’s ability to access healthcare, including for mental health (for example, GP or hospital) or on their ability to have conditions investigated (if applicable) or monitored? 

Education

What was the impact of education closures on children’s experiences of learning?

What was the impact on children with special education needs and disabilities (SEND) including access to materials, learning and support (including any positive impact)?  

To what extent were children from economically and socially disadvantaged backgrounds able to access education? 

Has there been any ongoing impact – for example on attendance? 

What was the impact on attainment and children’s achievement (and any longer-term consequences of this on children’s lives)?

What was the impact on diagnosis related to education, including access to an appropriate assessment and the time taken/delay between referral for assessment and diagnosis, of any emotional or learning conditions where additional support would be needed (for example, received education, health and care (EHC) plans or individualised education programmes)?

6.2 Key aspects to explore for targeted groups

The key aspects the research sought to explore for each targeted group are detailed below. These were developed and agreed between Verian and the Inquiry’s research team based on the Research Questions above as well as specific questions from the Inquiry’s Module 8 legal team. 

Research with the targeted sample explored the experience and impact of the pandemic on children and young people, with particular consideration to how they felt they were affected given their specific needs and circumstances. Where relevant, Verian explored experiences of specific services and processes during the pandemic – for example, children and young people in contact with mental health services were asked how they felt about receiving support online, and children and young people with a parent or caregiver in a detention setting were asked about their experience of visiting restrictions. 

Interviews with participants who met recruitment criteria for only one group tended also to cover the topics and probes laid out in the general topic guide. Interviews with participants with the characteristics of several targeted groups devoted more time to exploration of the aspects detailed below. 

7. Appendix B: Research Methodology

7.1 Research approach

The research approach for this project comprised four stages:

1. Adult focus groups with parents and teachers contributed to the design of interview guides (three focus groups).
2. Children and young people’s reference groups fed into the design of interview guides and informed reporting styles appropriate to young people (four groups convened twice).
3. Depth⁴⁴ interviews phase 1: interviews with the general sample (300 interviews). ‘General’ refers to participants broadly reflective of the UK population. 
4. Depth interviews phase 2: interviews with the targeted sample (300 interviews). ‘Targeted’ refers to specific groups chosen based on evidence that they were especially negatively impacted by the pandemic. 

Adult focus groups and children and young people’s reference groups

Adult focus groups

Verian conducted three 90-minute online focus groups with adults in January 2024 to gather insights into how those aged 5-6 experienced the pandemic and to help inform the design of the topic guide and to tailor research materials for younger children. Each session included five participants. They comprised one group of parents whose children attended school in person during lockdowns, one group whose children took part in home learning during lockdowns, and one group of teachers who taught 5–6-year-olds during lockdowns.

Children and young people’s reference groups

Verian convened four in-person reference groups with children and young people in Manchester, Glasgow, Cardiff, and Belfast. Each group met twice during the project, in February 2024 and again in June or July 2024.  

The first session informed the development of research materials and explored pandemic-related themes and appropriate language for each age group. Participants also contributed FAQs to shape participant information sheets. The second session focused on exploring children and young people’s views and preferences to inform the design of a child-friendly version of the findings. 

The reference groups comprised children aged 10-11 years, 13-14 years, 16-17 years and young adults aged 19-22 years, recruited to ensure diversity in age, gender, location, ethnicity, socio-economic background, and lockdown experiences. A counsellor with expertise in working with children and young people was available during all sessions.

Depth interviews

Verian carried out 600 depth interviews with children and young people in the general and targeted samples, with each interview lasting up to one hour. The majority of these were carried out in person but online interviews were included where needed to facilitate participation. Interviews used a semi-structured ‘participant-led’ approach: they referred to prepared questions and topics, but interviewers were encouraged to be responsive to what the child or young person wanted to speak about rather than following a strict order. Interviews were designed using a trauma-informed approach, as described below. Verian worked with two emotional support organisations as partners, who provided a comprehensive emotional support offer to children and young people. See Appendix E for more detail.   

Phase 1: 300 depth interviews with the general sample

The set-up period for conducting interviews with the general sample group ran from January to March 2024. This period involved development of a discussion guide and stimulus material based on the findings from the children and young people’s reference groups and development of recruitment materials and emotional support resources and tools. Interviews were carried out from 18 March to 8 August 2024. Verian conducted interviews with children and young people aged between 9-22 years old in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. 20 participants were recruited for each year of age from 9-18 years old and 25 were recruited for each year of age from 19-22. The sample was designed to be broadly reflective of the UK population while ensuring sufficient representation of demographics and circumstances to address the research questions, for example those without access to outdoor space at home. More detailed sample criteria are outlined in Appendix C, below. 

Phase 2: 300 depth interviews with the targeted sample

The set-up period for conducting interviews with the targeted sample group ran from February to April 2024. This involved agreeing key aspects to explore with these groups to supplement existing discussion guides, tailoring recruitment materials, and briefing researchers on key considerations in speaking to these audiences. Interviews were carried out from 30 May to 27 November 2024. Interviews were conducted with children and young people, aged 9-22, from 15 ‘targeted’ groups expected to have been especially impacted by the pandemic in England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Groups included those defined by need and others by circumstances during the pandemic. Appendix A sets out the aspects explored in discussions. Appendix C outlines the group composition and numbers interviewed.

The targeted sample was slightly older than the general sample (mean age: targeted 17 years, general 16 years) with a standard deviation of 3 for the targeted group and 4 for the general group, indicating less age variation in the targeted sample. This age difference was largely because the recruitment criteria were designed to explore specific circumstances, such as living in secure settings, less likely to be experienced by younger children. Note that for discussions on LGBTQ+ experiences of the pandemic, only those aged 18 and over at the time of carrying out the research were recruited. 

7.2 Trauma-informed approach

A trauma-informed approach was used throughout the research project to ensure that participation did not inadvertently cause re-traumatisation or distress. The Verian research team and recruitment partner Acumen received dedicated training from the Inquiry’s Chief Psychologist. See Appendix D for the recruitment approach in full. Recruitment and research materials were reviewed by the Inquiry’s Support and Safeguarding team to ensure they were consistent with this approach. See Support whilst engaging with the Inquiry – UK Covid-19 Inquiry for detail on how the UK Covid-19 Inquiry follows a trauma informed approach more broadly. Participants were given the opportunity to talk to a counsellor before, during or after their interview, as well as having access to resources online provided by two emotional support providers. Verian worked closely with the Inquiry to put in place a robust safeguarding process across partner organisations. See Appendix E for the provision of emotional support. 

Interviews were participant-led and topics were explored in an order that was appropriate to each participant, starting with aspects of their pandemic experience that were top of mind for them. During the interview, participants were also given the choice to skip or avoid talking about any topics they did not want to talk about.

To assure the quality and sensitivity of interviews and identify any issues, every child and young person was invited to complete a short optional feedback survey after their interview about their experience. They could do this on paper or online. Parents were encouraged to help their children complete the survey if needed. This survey asked about how children and young people experienced the recruitment process, the information they received, the emotional support provision, and the interview itself. Data and responses were used to monitor the wellbeing of children and young people throughout and to make adjustments if needed. More detail on the feedback survey is in Appendix H.

7.3 Parental involvement in interviews

Across interviews with both the general and targeted sample groups, children and young people aged between 9-12 were asked to have a responsible adult such as a parent or caregiver sit in on the interview with them to support them. Children aged 13 and over were given the option to have a parent or other adult sit in for support if preferred. The interview remained primarily focused on the child or young person, but parents were given the opportunity to share their reflections at the end. Where parents were present during interviews, they sometimes helped to prompt their child with recall of memories they may have forgotten or helped those who found it difficult to communicate to share their story. Therefore, while the report primarily features quotes from children and young people, quotes from parents are occasionally included, for example in cases where the child or young person faced communication challenges or did not explain the situation fully. It is important to acknowledge that the presence of parents in some interviews may have affected a child or young person’s ability to be completely candid. However, as the research approach was designed to support participant wellbeing this was unavoidable.

7.4 Approach to data analysis

Analysis followed an inductive approach, allowing themes and patterns to be identified directly through the data without being constrained by pre-existing frameworks or hypotheses. To ensure consistency and reliability in coding and identifying themes, the research team employed collaborative strategies, including regular reflective analysis sessions to collectively interpret the data and align on key insights. These sessions were complemented by frequent check-ins between members of the research team during the analysis phase to identify and resolve any variability in interpretation. 

Analysis included consideration of different sub-groups. Within the general sample, the research team investigated any differences in response which could be linked to demographics, such as age, gender, household income, location and ethnicity. Additional sample quotas also enabled sub-group analysis according to what type of school was attended, whether participants had consistent access to Wi-Fi and devices, and whether participants had access to a garden. Within the targeted sample, analysis focused on the impact of specific circumstances in the selection criteria, as well as the combination of these where participants met the criteria for two or more targeted groups.   

Positionality was taken into consideration by including researchers from different backgrounds and with experience of research amongst diverse audiences, enabling multiple perspectives to inform the analysis and minimise the influence of individual biases. This supported a more nuanced and inclusive approach to interviewing as well as understanding the findings.

8. Appendix C: Sample

8.1 General sample stratification

The research aimed to recruit 300 participants in total for the general sample, using the sample stratification below.   

Primary Criteria			Achieved
Age	9-18	20 per year age	✔
	19-22	25 per year age	✔
Gender	Male / Female	Min. 130 each	✔
Region	All 12 regions of the UK	Plus / minus 4 in each location Scotland: 32 Northern Ireland: 32 Wales: 32 England – 204 (9 regions): North West: 24 North East: 24 Yorks and Humber: 20 E Midlands: 20 W Midlands: 20 East of England: 20 South East: 24 South West: 20 London: 28	Scotland: ✔ Northern Ireland: ✔ Wales: ✔ England: ✔
Secondary Criteria			Achieved
Household income – weekly gross income brackets	Under £600 £601-1000 £1001-1600 Above £1600	Min. 30 per bracket for participants under 18	✔
Disadvantage	Free school meal eligibility at the onset of the pandemic	Min. 40	✔
Household composition	Family type (dual / single parent) at the onset of the pandemic	Min. 30 with single parent	✔
	Number of dependent children at the onset of the pandemic	Min. 50 only child	✔
Education status	School type (state, independent, alternative) at the onset of the pandemic	Min. 230 state / alternative provision Min. 30 independent (min. 10 at primary school, min. 10 at secondary school)	✔
	Current status for 18-22	Min. 10 NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training)	✔
Household facilities	Access to garden at the onset of the pandemic	Min. 20 with no access to garden	✔
	Access to technological equipment at the onset of the pandemic	Min. 20 lacking consistent access to a suitable device and/or Wi-Fi for online home learning during lockdowns	✔
Family health	Family health and wellbeing	Min. 20 to have had a family member shielding	✔
Rural / urban classification	Urban / rural at the onset of the pandemic	Min. 50 rural	✔
Ethnicity		Min. 20 Mixed Min. 20 Asian Min. 20 Black Min. 10 Other	✔
Deprivation index	For England, Wales, Scotland, code 1-10 Index of multiple deprivation (IMD) deciles are allocated to postcodes	Min. 30 per quintile (1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8, 9-10)	✔

8.2 Targeted sample groups

The research aimed to recruit a minimum of 20 participants for each of the 15 targeted groups outlined below and a total of 300 participants. Due to overlapping characteristics among the targeted sample, some groups had higher numbers of interviews conducted than others. While significant efforts were made to reach all groups, including through dedicated charities and outreach groups (see Recruitment approach for more detail on this) three groups (group 8: those in a detention setting or secure accommodation, group 9: those with a parent/primary caregiver in detention, and group 10: those seeking asylum during the pandemic) had fewer than 20 interviews completed. This was agreed with the Inquiry, recognising both the extensive efforts made by recruiters and the particular barriers to accessing these individuals. These included the challenge of identifying individuals whose circumstances had changed since the pandemic – making them less visible to services – as well as limitations to contact with those still in restricted settings. In some cases, individuals may also have been reluctant to revisit difficult or traumatic experiences. Despite the smaller sample size, the interviews conducted provided rich insight and the data gathered was sufficient to address the core research questions for these groups.

9. Appendix D: Recruitment approach

9.1 Recruitment partners

This research was conducted by Verian with recruitment led by Acumen, a specialist recruitment agency. For some seldom heard and vulnerable audiences from the targeted sample, Verian also enlisted the support of Core Participants and organisations through the CYP forum set up by the Inquiry. 

9.2 Recruitment approach in detail

A structured and ethically informed approach was designed to ensure diverse and meaningful participation from a broad range of children and young people, including those from seldom heard audiences. The research inclusion criteria required participants to be children and young people aged between 9 and 22 who were present in the UK during the pandemic years of 2020-21. The targeted sample focused on 15 specific groups of interest. More detail on the sample stratification can be found in Appendix C.

The Market Research Society (MRS) requires obtaining informed consent from a responsible adult when conducting research with individuals under 16. In this study, due to the sensitive nature of the research topic, participants were required to be aged 18 or over to provide informed consent independently. For participants under 18, a responsible adult (for example a parent, carer, or legal guardian) provided consent for the child’s participation. For these children, Acumen requested the child’s contact details with parental/guardian consent and, if details were shared, the child received participant information directly. If they were not, all pre-interview materials and emotional support information were provided to the parent/guardian to pass on. On the day of the interview, all children and young people were provided with age-, language-, and SEND-appropriate information before giving their assent to participate.

Acumen used a free-find recruitment strategy to identify and engage children and young participants. Free-find recruitment involves a range of proactive outreach approaches and in this case included panel recruitment, targeted social media campaigns, liaising with community groups and following up on leads and recommendations provided by the Inquiry. Children and young people and responsible adults were contacted by telephone to be invited to participate. Core Participants and members of the Inquiry’s CYP forum were also asked to share the opportunity to take part with their networks. Participants recruited through this approach received the same information, support and incentive as those recruited by Acumen. 

Eligible participants received a £60 thank you incentive as a token of appreciation for taking part and an additional £40 thank you incentive was available for all chaperones. 

Supporting and enabling children and young people’s participation

Participant information materials were designed with input from a practitioner psychologist with a specialism in child practice and Livity, experts in youth engagement. Materials were carefully designed to ensure sensitivity and clarity and to emphasise voluntary participation and the availability of emotional support and ensure alignment with principles of the trauma-informed approach. 

Prospective participants were provided with clear and accessible information on the purpose of the research (including what was required, the voluntary nature of participation, adherence to the Market Research Society Code of Conduct and data security). This outlined who their contact details would be shared with and for what purpose. 

Acumen and Verian worked to make all accommodations for accessibility needs such as offering flexible scheduling and ensuring physical and digital accessibility for all participants. Acumen also allowed time on each screening call to answer any queries the participants may have had. To protect participants’ wellbeing during recruitment, Acumen gave a warning before asking any questions of a more sensitive nature and reminded the participants of their right to skip or stop the screening questions at any point. Participants were also given the option to request the interview guide ahead of time.

Prospective participants (and parents/guardians of those under 18) were asked for two-stage consent regarding transcription and data use. First, participants were asked to consent to interview transcription, with transcripts being anonymised to remove any identifying details before being shared with the Inquiry and archived in The National Archives as part of the Inquiry’s historical record. This was a condition for participation in the research. Second, participants were also given the option of whether they consented to their anonymised data being made available for further research or analysis in line with data protection requirements. 

10. Appendix E: Provision of emotional support

10.1 Staff preparation training

All staff assigned to this project received training on trauma-informed practice provided by the Inquiry team, as well as additional coaching provided by Heads Up, a trauma expert organisation who provided additional ‘real-life’ examples of trauma identification and application of response techniques.

All Verian project staff and recruitment partners as well as interview support staff received training on the emotional support package and how this varied between the 9-12-year-old group and the 13 and over group as detailed below. 

Additional interview support staff were recruited to be present on the day of the interview. Their role was to meet and greet participants and their parents/carers and ensure they had copies of or access to the participant information and were aware of the emotional support provision. They were also on hand to provide any immediate practical support needed, including helping participants to make contact with the emotional support service if needed. 

10.2 Emotional support providers

The emotional support offered was from a collaboration between The Mix û The Exchange to ensure age-appropriate support was provided across the 9-22 age range by experts in the field: The Exchange provided emotional support for children between 9 and 12 years old and the parents, carers or legal guardians of these children (if needed). The Mix offered support for children and young people aged 13 or older. 

In addition to the regular service outlined below, counsellors from The Exchange were also present at the venues for the children and young people’s reference groups to support those taking part. 

Emotional support plan

Acumen conducted an initial wellbeing screening phone call at the point of recruitment, with parents and young people interested in taking part. This allowed researchers to understand any additional needs participants had and to reinforce signposting to the service and resources available to participants before and after their interview. 

Participants of all ages also had access to bespoke online interview support resources created for this research, as well as access to other materials and signposting available to all users of The Exchange and The Mix. 

All participants were invited by Acumen to take part in an optional pre-interview support call by telephone before the interview with clinically trained staff from The Exchange. This call was designed to ensure any new or unidentified needs could be understood, and if required, addressed before the interview. Participants were told that they might find thinking or talking about the pandemic upsetting, and that the purpose of this optional call would be to think about how they might feel in the interview and if there were any particular topics that might be difficult. Information from this call was only passed on to researchers if staff believed adjustments had to be made to the interview to help maximise participation quality and experience and mitigate risk of distress (for example topics to avoid, increased breaks or physical adjustments). This information was only shared with participants’ full knowledge and assent.  

The Exchange and The Mix were also scheduled to be ‘on call’ for interview support calls in alignment with the timing of interviews. Their role was to provide support in case taking part in an interview caused participants emotional distress due to recalling traumatic events connected to the pandemic. Interview support calls also offered the option for one or more one-to-one counselling sessions if requested by participants. Both The Exchange and The Mix offered up to four sessions where needed. On the day of the interview, interviewers also checked in with children and young people to support them to articulate any needs. The interviewers reiterated how adaptations could be made, the participant-led nature of the interview and their ability to stop at any time. With permission, interviewers also called to talk to children and young people or their parents a few days after the interview to check in on their wellbeing and signpost them to support again if needed.

The Mix and The Exchange monitored and logged use of their services by participants and provided feedback on the emotional support service from those who accessed it. Verian provided anonymised information on the emotional support intervention to the Inquiry team at regular and agreed timepoints throughout the fieldwork period.

11. Appendix F: UK Education Systems by age and stage

This is included for guidance as some quotes from children and young people include references to their school year.

Below is a detailed breakdown of the typical educational stages and corresponding ages across the four UK devolved administrations: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. It highlights the structure of each education system, including key stages and qualifications.^{45 46}