Polly Waite - Youth mental health during COVID-19 lockdown: an update from the Co-Space study

Children show increase in mental health difficulties over COVID-19 Lockdown – but same pattern not seen in teenagers Over a one-month period in lockdown: • Parents/carers of primary school age children taking part in the survey report an increase in their child’s emotional, behavioural, and restless/attentional difficulties. • Parents/carers of secondary school age children report a reduction in their child’s emotional difficulties, but an increase in restless/attentional behaviours. • Adolescents taking part in the survey report no change in their own emotional or behavioural, and restless/attentional difficulties. • Parents/carers of children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and those with a pre-existing mental health difficulty report a reduction in their child’s emotional difficulties and no change in behavioural or restless/attentional difficulties. Parents/carers of children aged 4-10 years of age reported that over a one-month period in lockdown, they saw increases in their child’s emotional difficulties, such as feeling unhappy, worried, being clingy and experiencing physical symptoms associated with worry, according to early results from the Co-SPACE study, asking parents and carers about their children’s mental health through the COVID-19 crisis. More than 10,000 parents have now taken part in the Co-SPACE (COVID-19 Supporting Parents, Adolescents, and Children in Epidemics) survey led by experts at the University of Oxford. Parents/carers also reported that their children’s behaviour had got worse over time, with an increase in behaviours such as temper tantrums, arguments and children not doing what they are asked. Parents/carers in the survey also reported that their children showed greater levels of restlessness/fidgety behaviour and difficulties concentrating over the one month period. Perhaps surprisingly, the same pattern was not seen in the older age group of 11-16 year olds. Teenagers themselves reported no change in their emotional difficulties between the two time points and the