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Parents and carers reported that behavioural, emotional and attentional difficulties in their children changed considerably throughout the past year, increasing in times of national lockdown and decreasing as restrictions eased and schools reopened, according to the latest Co-SPACE (COVID-19 Supporting Parents, Adolescents, and Children in Epidemics) study, led by experts at the University of Oxford.

A boy and a girl with their backs turned looking out a glass paned door. © Kelly Sikkema on @Unsplash

Summary of Co-SPACE Study Findings

  • Co-SPACE children and young people experienced highest levels of mental health issues in June 2020 and February 2021, when restrictions were most stringent
  • Overall, primary school children have had greater changes in levels of mental health difficulties throughout the pandemic compared to secondary school aged children
  • Average mental health difficulties among primary and secondary school aged children have decreased again since schools reopened and restrictions started easing

Read the full story on the Department of Psychiatry website