Information and advice about Covid-19
In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, we want to share links to organisations that offer information, mental health advice and support to children and young people, parents / carers, and others involved in supporting young people at this time.
If you know of other organisations offering support and advice to young people you would like us to share, please email the TRIUMPH team.
You can also read the latest evidence about the impact of Covid-19 on young people’s mental health.
Research and reports
If you have a research report related to young people’s mental health and Covid-19 that you would like to post here please email the TRIUMPH team
This briefing from the Scottish Government summarises the evidence from Scotland and the UK about the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the wellbeing of children, young people and families, including those with vulnerabilities and those experiencing disadvantage or discrimination.
The Scottish Recovery Network has published a new set of resources drawn from a series of twelve online conversation cafes sharing insights and inspiration from people across Scotland on staying well during and after COVID-19 lockdown.
Discussions in the conversation cafés highlighted that many people have been able to draw on their experiences of mental health crisis and recovery to support their wellbeing during this challenging time. This emphasises the need to draw on all expertise, including lived experience in our communities as we consider how best to support good mental health and wellbeing across our society now and in the future.
With funding secured from the National Lottery Awards for All scheme the Mental Health Foundation brought together a youth panel of young volunteers living with long term health conditions, during the Covid-19 pandemic. The panel developed a suite of campaign materials to show what life has been like for young people with a long term health condition.
A newly released report on the TeenCovidLife Survey looks at the health and well-being of young people in lockdown. 5,548 Scottish young people aged 12 - 17 years old completed the first TeenCovidLife Survey with 98% of participants identifying themselves as high school pupils. The survey was run by the Generation Scotland team at the University of Edinburgh, in collaboration with the Schools Health and Well-being Improvement Research Network (SHINE), at the University of Glasgow.
Barnardo’s worked with a group of 10 young people to produce a new report Mental Health and Covid-19: In Our Own Words. The report brings together insights gathered by young people – who surveyed nearly 150 children and young people – and by Barnardo’s through a national survey of over 100 children and young people they support, as well as 4,000 children and young people through a YouGov survey from the Big Conversation.
Results of two surveys conducted by Young Minds at the start of lockdown and in Summer as the Government announced measures to ease restrictions investigating the mental health impact of Coronavirus on young people with mental health needs. Findings reveal the pressure that the crisis has put on young people. many of whom are struggling to access the right support.
TELL is a research project led by The University of Manchester and Liverpool John Moores University which looks at life in lockdown for teenagers aged 16-19 in the UK. More than 100 young people shared a written account of their experiences of lockdown, what lockdown looked like for them, what it felt like, and how they managed it. Findings will be used to develop resources for young people, parents/carers, and mental health and wellbeing professionals.
A new report from the Mental Health Foundation highlights the divergence in people’s experiences of Covid-19 depending on their social and/or economic context in society. The report highlights young people as one of groups whose mental health is most likely to have been negatively affected.
Take the Temperature is a reactive research strand of the National Youth Trends research produced with young people age 14-25 across the UK, looking into how COVID-19 has affected their day to day, their attitudes towards social responsibility and their feelings on UK power dynamics and structures.
Research briefing from Girlguiding, the UK’s leading charity for girls and young women, based on a survey of 7,000 members revealing how girls and young women aged 4-18 in the UK are coping with the drastic changes to their daily lives during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Initial research findings on the impact of COVID-19 on the well-being of 2,002 young people age 13-24 from across the UK, including their physical health, mental health, and family relationships.
Findings from a survey of 1,022 16-25 year olds led by the Princes Trust and YouGov reveal the extent to which young people are concerned about their mental health and wellbeing and future employment prospects.
During April and May 2020, 270 community organisations that are based in the most deprived areas of England and Wales, and 188 young people who live in those neighbourhoods, shared their experiences, worries and opinions about life during and after the Covid lockdown in this report.
The ‘Coronavirus and Me’ consultation was launched in May 2020 to find out about the experiences of children and young people in Wales. The consultation captured information about the lives of over 23,700 children between the ages of 3–18, and ran for a two-week period during which restrictions to keep communities in Wales safe had been in place for two months. The survey was led between the Welsh Government, The Children’s Commissioner’s Officer for Wales, The Welsh Youth Parliament and Children in Wales.
You-COPE seeks to understand more about how young people aged 16-24 in the UK are being impacted by the current Coronavirus pandemic. It is a rapid study that comprises an initial web-based 20- minute survey, followed by subsequent on-line surveys every two weeks, asking questions about life, health and wellbeing, and daily activities. This briefing presents results from the first 1,274 respondents to the main initial survey.
Health Watch Suffolk explored the mental health and emotional wellbeing of 2,572 children, young people, parents/carers and education staff during the coronavirus lockdown, and their feelings about returning to school.
Led by the Essex Council for Voluntary Youth Services, this project was aimed at young people from voluntary youth settings who were currently engaging with their groups via Zoom or other social media platforms to learn how they were feeling about the pandemic, and what could be done to help them cope.
The Oxford ARC study investigates resilience and how adolescents age 13-18 and their parents/carers are coping with social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Scottish Children’s Parliament are providing reports from their monthly survey to find out how children aged 8-14 are coping with changes to their lives as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak.
A new survey of 2,500 young people in Scotland gives a clear picture of the impact Covid-19 is having on young people across Scotland. LockdownLowdown, commissioned by Scottish Youth Parliament, YouthLink Scotland and Young Scot, found that young people are worrying most about education, mental wellbeing, and financial support during the Covid-19 outbreak.
This report from UK Youth outlines the impact that COVID-19 is likely to have on young people and the youth sector during and after the pandemic.
The Co-SPACE study aims to understand how families with school-age children are coping with the challenges of Covid-19. The study has published regular reports on their findings throughout the pandemic
The Covid-19 Social Study is a panel study of the psychological and social experiences of adults in the UK during the outbreak of the novel coronavirus run by University College London. Over 80,000 people are currently participating in the study, completing weekly online surveys about their experiences and behaviours.
A new survivor-led report coordinated by Survivors’ Voices, with the Violence, Abuse and Mental Health Network and The McPin Foundation that contains relevant possible actions to support children who are ‘off-radar’ (unknown to any statutory services) during and post pandemic ‘lockdown’ periods.
