Restrictions implemented by the UK Government during the COVID-19 pandemic have served to worsen mental health outcomes, particularly amongst younger adults, women, those living with chronic health conditions, and parents of young children. Studies looking at the impact for ethnic minorities have reported inconsistent findings. This paper describes the mental health experiences of mothers from a large and highly ethnically diverse population during the pandemic, using secondary analysis of existing data from three COVID-19 research studies completed in Bradford and London (Tower Hamlets and Newham). A total of 2807 mothers participated in this study with 44% White British, 23% Asian/Asian British Pakistani, 8% Other White and 7% Asian/Asian British Bangladeshi backgrounds. We found that 28% of mothers experienced clinically important depressive symptoms and 21% anxiety symptoms during the pandemic. In unadjusted analyses, mothers from White Other, and Asian/Asian British Bangladeshi backgrounds had higher odds of experiencing symptoms, whilst mothers from Asian/Asian British Indian backgrounds were the least likely to experience symptoms. Once loneliness, social support and financial insecurity were controlled for, there were no statistically significant differences in depression and anxiety by ethnicity. Mental health problems experienced during the pandemic may have longer term consequences for public health. Policy and decision makers must have an understanding of the high risk of financial insecurity, loneliness and a lack of social support on mother’s mental health, and also recognise that some ethnic groups are far more likely to experience these issues and are, therefore, more vulnerable to poor mental health as a consequence.

Background The COVID-19 pandemic led to a multitude of immediate social restrictions for many across the world. In the UK, the lives of children and young people were quickly impacted when COVID-19 restrictions led to school closures for most children and restrictions on social interactions. The Born in Bradford COVID-19 longitudinal research study explored the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the lives of children and their families living in Bradford. Methods Surveys were administered during the first wave of the pandemic (March to June 2020) and compared to findings from before the pandemic. The current study examined the social and emotional wellbeing of children from before to during the pandemic, measured using the parent completed Strengths and Difficulties questionnaire (SDQ). Regression analyses looked at associations between a range of social determinants of health and changes in SDQ scores. Results The results showed that those children most likely to experience difficulties during the pandemic were boys, younger children, those from White British ethnicity (compared to Pakistani heritage children) and those living in the most deprived areas. There were associations between experiencing difficulties and: food insecurity; financial worry; getting below recommended levels of physical activity; and having less than the recommended amount of sleep. Conclusions The effect of COVID-19 restrictions are likely to have had negative consequences on children that could, in time, have long-lasting impacts on the health, wellbeing and development of children in the UK.

The COVID-19 pandemic led to a multitude of immediate social restrictions for many across the world. In the UK, the lives of children and young people were quickly impacted when COVID-19 restrictions led to school closures for most children and restrictions on social interactions. The Born in Bradford COVID-19 longitudinal research study explored the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the lives of children and their families living in Bradford. Surveys were administered during the first wave of the pandemic (March to June 2020) and compared to findings from before the pandemic (February 2017 to March 2020). The current study examined the social and emotional wellbeing of children (M age: 10.5 years) from before to during the pandemic, measured using the parent completed Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Regression analyses looked at associations between a range of social determinants of health and changes in SDQ scores. The results showed that the odds of experiencing difficulties were lower for children of Pakistani heritage compared to White British children (OR 0.55, 95% CI 0.35-0.86). Girls were less likely to experience difficulties compared to boys (OR 0.60, 95% CI 0.41-0.88), as were older, compared to younger children (per year: OR 0.81, 95% CI 0.68-0.96) and those living in the most deprived quintile of IMD (OR 3.03, 95% CI 1.79-5.15). There were associations between experiencing difficulties and: food insecurity; financial worry; getting below recommended levels of physical activity; and having less than the recommended amount of sleep. These findings raise concerns about the longer-term impacts of the pandemic on children’s wellbeing and increasing inequity in child outcomes. The increased impact on the most disadvantaged, underscores the importance of recognising and meeting the support needs of children and families to ensure that inequalities are not widened further, and children are given the opportunity to reach their full potential.

Background The number of adolescents identifying as Transgender and Gender Diverse (TGD) are thought to be growing. However, robust data detailing the rates for self-identification is lacking for those under 16 years of age. Moreover, there are few studies which have characterised the socio-demographic and health information of this community to inform service planning. The current study reports the proportion of 12 to 15 years olds within an ethnically diverse population cohort dataset who were classified as TGD, as well as their socio-demographic and health profile. Methods A cross-sectional observational study was conducted using the Born in Bradford, Age of Wonder cohort dataset. This includes 4,954 adolescents from 15 schools in the Bradford District (UK). Data were provided on adolescents’ assigned sex at birth and gender identity, other socio-demographic variables, and health proxies (e.g. anxiety and depression symptoms) which were stratified by those who were categorised as TGD and those as cisgender. Results Of the sample, 1.40% identified as TGD. There was a higher frequency of individuals identifying as a transgender boy (female assigned sex; 0.50%) and nonbinary (female assigned sex; 0.50%) compared to transgender girls (male assigned sex; 0.20%) and nonbinary (male assigned sex; 0.20%). The TGD group were more likely to be from a White ethnicity background, have no practiced religion, have access to free school meals, have special educational needs (SEN), and self-report the presence of physical or mental illness. TGD young people also scored significantly higher on anxiety and depression symptoms. There were no significant differences between groups in age indices, country of birth, or national deprivation quartiles. Conclusions This study provides an insight into the socio-demographic composition of the TGD group compared to cisgender group, within this population cohort dataset. This study also suggests increased health inequalities within TGD populations compared to cisgender populations.

Born in Bradford (BiB): Age of Wonder is a seven-year research programme documenting the experiences of adolescents growing up in a large, multi-ethnic city in the UK. It is an extension of the Born in Bradford birth cohort study (Wright et al. , 2013; McEachan et al. , 2024) and aims to expand the cohort to include all young people attending secondary schools in the Bradford local authority. Participants are recruited through their secondary school each year, where a range of measures are taken (Shire et al. , 2024). Each September/October, data from the previous academic year is processed, collated with data from earlier academic years, and released. This data note is updated with each release and describes the data contained therein. Firstly, we outline the full recruitment process, highlighting junctures where potential participants are lost. Secondly, we give a brief overview of the questionnaire and health measure data. Thirdly, cross-sectional profiles of measures collected for each academic year are provided. Finally, we present a longitudinal view of the data by cohort, detailing how many repeat measures have been obtained.

Background: Identifying and addressing long-term health and societal challenges after COVID-19 is a research priority. Objectives: To create an international, multidisciplinary COVID-19 database, and synthesise long-term outcomes, predictors and costs. Design: Systematic identification of COVID-19 data sets and meta-analysis of individual participant data on long-term outcomes after COVID-19. Setting: Contributed data were collected in clinical, community and research settings. Interventions: Interventions from original studies were included as covariates in models. Data sources: MEDLINE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, EMBASE, Web of Science, PsycInfo ^® (American Psychological Association, Washington, DC, USA), Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, World Health Organization Global Index Medicus, Epistemonikos, LitCOVID; World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform; ClinicalTrials.gov and supplementary searches for studies (November 2019–November 2021) were searched for studies on > 10 people from cohort, case-control, survey or randomised controlled trial studies, across any setting, describing validated assessment instruments, symptoms, hospitalisation, discharge destination or mortality beyond 28-days after COVID-19 onset. Data were extracted by two independent reviewers. Methods: Principal investigators contributed fully anonymised individual participant data. Demography, equity and symptoms were described. Assessment instruments were mapped to the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health. Factors associated with outcomes at 3–6 months, 9–12 months and beyond 12 months of index infection, for n > 500 individual participant data and > 1 data set were described using ratio of difference, point estimates, odds ratio and 95% confidence interval, as appropriate. The Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool described study quality; models were appraised using a Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation-informed approach; heterogeneity was described using I ² . Outcome measures: Included overall perception of health, multidomain cognitive function, anxiety, depression, stress, post-traumatic stress disorder, fatigue, strength, walking ability, mobility, coping with daily life, breathlessness, mortality, later hospitalisation and health-related quality of life. Results: PRECIOUS collated 116 data sets from 40 countries (individual participant data = 62,849), comprising 20 randomised controlled trials, 13 case-control, 60 cohort 2 longitudinal, 1 survey and 20 other study types. Participants’ median age was 58 years interquartile range (45–68); 34,185 (54.4%) were female; 158 unique symptoms and 137 unique assessment instruments were captured, predominantly describing International Classification of Function, Disability and Health-body functions. Women had poorer outcomes across 30/37 models, compared with men. In 15/37 models, pre-existing lung disease and increasing age were associated with poorer outcomes; hospitalisation, diabetes and chronic kidney disease were each associated with poorer outcomes in 8/37 models. Initial hospitalisation resulted in lower health-related quality of life that did not recover for up to 2 years after initial infection. Heterogeneity was low in 34/37 models; 22/37 models were of moderate and 11/37 were of low quality. Limitations: Use of secondary data limits available covariates, outcomes and time points to those included in primary data sets; evidence was primarily based on high-income countries. There was a lack of data on longer-term healthcare resource use to estimate the costs to the healthcare system. Conclusions: PRECIOUS contributes to the overall picture of long-term COVID-19 outcomes beyond the long-COVID condition and highlights poorer long-term outcomes in women and people with pre-existing comorbidities. Future work: Evidence gaps included healthcare resource use, isolation, loneliness, societal participation and return to work outcomes. Data are needed on the role of health inequity on long-term outcomes. Study registration: This study is registered as PROSPERO (CRD42020224323, IRAS ID: 293578). Funding: This award was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Health and Social Care Delivery Research programme (NIHR award ref: NIHR132895) and is published in full in Health and Social Care Delivery Research ; Vol. 14, No. 29. See the NIHR Funding and Awards website for further award information.