Experiences of lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic: descriptive findings from a survey of families in the Born in Bradford study

Dickerson, Josie; Kelly, Brian; Lockyer, Bridget; Bridges, Sally; Cartwright, Christopher; Willan, Kathryn; Shire, Katy; Crossley, Kirsty; Bryant, Maria; Sheldon, Trevor; Lawlor, Deborah A; Wright, John; McEachan, Rosemary; Pickett, Kate E.

doi:10.12688/wellcomeopenres.16317.1

Cited by 37 publications

(54 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…Questions were selected from validated questionnaires, from previous Born in Bradford questionnaires or were devised specifically for this survey. The full questionnaire is available on our website 14 and as Extended data 15 , key domains were:…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Experiences of lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic: descriptive findings from a survey of families in the Born in Bradford study

Dickerson

Kelly²,

Lockyer³

et al. 2021

Wellcome Open Res

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Background: Lockdown measures implemented to contain the Covid-19 virus have increased health inequalities, with families from deprived and ethnically diverse backgrounds most likely to be adversely affected. This paper describes the experiences of families living in the multi-ethnic and deprived city of Bradford, England. Methods: A wave of survey data collection using a combination of email, text and phone with postal follow-up during the first Covid-19 UK lockdown (10th April to 30th June 2020) with parents participating in two longitudinal studies. Cross tabulations explored variation by ethnicity and financial insecurity. Text from open questions was analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Of 7,652 families invited, 2,144 (28%) participated. The results presented are based on the 2,043 (95%) mothers’ responses: 957 (47%) of whom were of Pakistani heritage, 715 (35%) White British and 356 (18%) other ethnicity 971 (46%) lived in the most deprived decile of material deprivation in England. and 738 (37%) were financially insecure. Many families lived in poor quality (N=574, 28%), overcrowded (N=364, 19%) housing. Food (N=396, 20%), employment (N=728, 37%) and housing (N=204, 10%) insecurities were common, particularly in those who were furloughed, self-employed not working or unemployed. Clinically important depression and anxiety were reported by 372 (19%) and 318 (16%) mothers. Ethnic minority and financially insecure families had a worse experience during the lockdown across all domains, with the exception of mental health which appeared worse in White British mothers. Open text responses corroborated these findings and highlighted high levels of anxiety and fear about Covid-19. Conclusions: There is a need for policy makers and commissioners to better support vulnerable families during and after the pandemic. Future work will use longitudinal data from before the pandemic, and from future surveys during the pandemic, to describe trajectories and the long-term consequences of the pandemic on vulnerable populations.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Harvard Dataverse: Extended data for this paper: Experiences of lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic: descriptive findings from a survey of families in the Born in Bradford study. https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/BS28KA 15 .…”

Section: Data Availabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Experiences of lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic: descriptive findings from a survey of families in the Born in Bradford study

Dickerson

Kelly²,

Lockyer³

et al. 2021

Wellcome Open Res

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“…The Covid-19 survey and recruitment approach were tested through our established research advisory groups. The findings of the study were also shared with these groups to enhance interpretation and ensure useful dissemination back to the community 14 .…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We were able to explore these questions in depth by building on the Born in Bradford research programme which includes two longitudinal birth cohorts of ethnically diverse families living in the city of Bradford, many in deprived circumstances. These cohorts have recent in-depth information on the demographics, socioeconomic status and mental health of participants before the Covid-19 pandemic, 11-13 as well as mental health during the March-June 2020 Covid-19 lockdown 14 , and so offer a unique opportunity to assess the impact of Covid-19 and lockdown longitudinally in a deprived and ethnically diverse population.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“When will this end? Will it end?” The impact of the March-June 2020 UK Covid-19 lockdown response on mental health: a longitudinal survey of mothers in the Born in Bradford study

Dickerson

Kelly

Lockyer

et al. 2020

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Objectives To determine clinically important change in anxiety and depression from before to during the first UK Covid-19 lockdown and factors related to this change, including ethnic differences. Design Pre-Covid and lockdown surveys nested within two longitudinal Born in Bradford cohort studies. Participants 1,860 mothers with a child aged 0-4 or 9-13, 48% Pakistani heritage Main outcome measures Odds ratios (OR) for a clinically important increase (5 points) in depression (PHQ-8) and anxiety (GAD-7) in unadjusted regression analyses, parsimonious multivariate modelling to explore ethnicity and mental ill health and lived experience of mothers captured in open text questions. Results Clinically important depression and anxiety increased from 11% to 19%, and 10% to 16% respectively from before to during the first Covid-19 lockdown. Loneliness during lockdown was most strongly associated with increases in depression (OR: 8.37, 95% CIs: 5.70-12.27) and anxiety (8.50, 5.71-12.65), followed by financial insecurity (6.23, 3.96-9.80; 6.03, 3.82-9.51). Other strongly associated variables included food and housing insecurity, a lack of physical activity and a poor partner relationship. When level of financial insecurity was taken into account, Pakistani heritage mothers were less likely than White British mothers to experience an increase in depression (0.67, 0.51-0.89) and anxiety (0.73, 0.55-0.97). Responses to open text highlighted a complex inter-play of health anxieties, mental load, loss of social support and coping strategies, and financial insecurity contributing to mental ill health. Positive aspects of lockdown were also reported, including a more relaxed pace of life. Conclusions Mental ill health has worsened with the Covid-19 lockdown, particularly in those who are lonely, economically insecure and/or of White British ethnicity. Mental health problems may have longer term consequences for public health. Strategies to mitigate adverse impacts of future lockdowns on mental health should focus on those factors we highlight as associated with worsening mental health.

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“…As the economic impact of the pandemic is increasing child poverty, income insecurity, food and housing insecurity, parental mental health challenges and family violence, the need for attention to the identification and amelioration of vulnerability is heightened. 22 The International Society for Social Pediatrics and Child Health has called for the adoption of “a Child Rights Based Approach (CRBA) to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, and to advance a future in which the health, development and well-being of children and youth are prioritised with explicit strategies to reduce health inequities and advance social justice” (https://www.issop.org/2020/06/01/issop-covid-19-declaration/). Such an approach can underpin and inform services and policy making at all levels.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vulnerabilities in child wellbeing among primary school children: a cross-sectional study in Bradford, UK

Pickett

Hou

Kelly

et al. 2021

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ObjectiveTo describe the prevalence of factors related to wellbeing among primary school children in a deprived multi-ethnic community.Design and participantsCross-sectional survey of 15,641 children aged 7-10 years in Born in Bradford’s Primary School Years study: whole-classroom samples in 89 Bradford primary schools between 2016 and 2019.Main outcome measuresPrevalence estimates by ethnicity (%, 95% CI) of single and multiple vulnerabilities in child wellbeing within and across four domains (home, family, relationships; material resources; friends and school; subjective wellbeing).ResultsOnly 10% of children have no vulnerabilities in any domain of wellbeing; 10% have one or more vulnerabilities in all four domains. The highest prevalence estimates were for being bullied some or all of the time (52.7%, 51.9 to 53.4%), keeping worries to oneself (31.2%, 30.5 to 31.9%), having no park near home (30.8%, 30.1 to 31.5%) and worrying all the time about how much money their family has (26.3%, 25.6 to 27%).Boys were consistently significantly more likely than girls to report all of the vulnerabilities in the Home, Family and Family Relationships domain, and the majority of indicators in the other domains, and in all domains except Friends and School, boys were significantly more likely to have at least one vulnerability. Girls were significantly more likely to report not having many friends (16.7%, 95% CI: 15.9 to 17.6% vs. 12.5%, 95% CI: 11.8 to 13.2%), being bullied some or all of the time (55.8%, 95% CI: 54.7 to 56.9% vs. 49.7%, 95% CI: 48.6 to 50.8%) and feeling left out all the time (12.1%, 95% CI: 11.4 to 12.8%) vs. 10.3%, 95% CI: 9.7 to 11.0%).Variations in vulnerabilities by ethnicity were complex, with children in Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic groups sometimes reporting more vulnerabilities and sometimes fewer than White British children. For example, compared to children of Pakistani heritage, White British children were more likely to say that their family never gets along well (6.3%,5.6 to 7.1% vs. 4.1%,3.6 to 4.6%) and to have no access to the internet at home (22.3%,21 to 23.6% vs. 18%,17 to 18.9%). Children with Pakistani heritage were more likely than White British children to say they had no park near their home where they can play with friends (32.7%,31.6 to 33.9% vs. 29.9%,28.6 to 31.3%), to report not having three meals a day (17.9%,16.9 to 18.8% vs. 11.9%,10.9 to 12.9%) and to worry all the time about how much money their families have (29.3%,28.2 to 30.3%) vs. 21.6%,20.4 to 22.9%). Gypsy/Irish Traveller children were less likely than White British children to say they were bullied some or all of the time (42.2%,35.4 to 49.4% vs. 53.8%,52.3 to 55.3%), but more likely to say they were mean to others all the time (9.9%,6.3 to 15.2% vs. 4%,3.5 to 4.7%) and can never work out what to do when things are hard (15.2%,10.6 to 21.2% vs. 9%, 8.2 to 9.9%).We considered six vulnerabilities to be of particular concern during the current Covid-19 pandemic and associated national and local lockdowns: family never gets along well together; no garden where child can play; no nearby park where they can play; not having 3 meals a day; no internet at home; worried about money all the time. Pre-pandemic, 37.4% (36.6 to 38.3%) of Bradford children had one of these vulnerabilities and a further 29.6% (28.9 to 30.4%) had more than one.ConclusionsAlthough most primary school children aged 7-10 in our study have good levels of wellbeing on most indicators across multiple domains, fewer than 10% have no vulnerabilities at all, a worrying 10% have at least one vulnerability in all the four domains we studied and two thirds have vulnerabilities of concern during the Covid-19 lockdowns.

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Experiences of lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic: descriptive findings from a survey of families in the Born in Bradford study

Cited by 37 publications

References 18 publications

Experiences of lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic: descriptive findings from a survey of families in the Born in Bradford study

Experiences of lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic: descriptive findings from a survey of families in the Born in Bradford study

“When will this end? Will it end?” The impact of the March-June 2020 UK Covid-19 lockdown response on mental health: a longitudinal survey of mothers in the Born in Bradford study

Vulnerabilities in child wellbeing among primary school children: a cross-sectional study in Bradford, UK

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