Lead Organisation:
This aim of this consultation was to find out how the Covid Pandemic has affected young people aged 11 to 24 over the previous year and what support is needed. They had around 290, the majority of participants were from Wrexham with around 50 responses from children and young people in Flintshire. Most participants were school age, with about 8% aged 19 to 24.
Survey findings
Most young people, around 70%, knew where to get reliable information from about coronavirus. The places they usually look for support were family and/or friends, teachers/school, internet and Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).
Education was the biggest worry that young people had about the impact of coronavirus on their future. Participants said they worried about their grades, work missed, school years missed, their option, home learning, debt from university without the same learning experience, catching up, lack of routine and not being taught all the content needed.
Please, please, please I am begging you to give us some help for our GCSEs because it is completely unfair that we have had over a year without actually seeing friends and family and it’s taken a toll on our mental health.
The things that young people missed the most was family and friends, socialising and going out. Some also said that their relationships had improved, such as being closer to family and finding it easier to talk with friends in different schools.
Around 60% of participants said their mental health had changed in a negative way and 30% said they had needed support with mental health and well-being in the last year. For a small number (3%) of participants their mental health had improved.
I found it more difficult to manage stress, especially when I went back to school.
It has improved as I have less things to worry about with school and teachers. I have also become more confident.
The biggest worry of 17% of respondents was catching or spreading Covid-19 and the risks to their family and friends.
The thing that worries me most at the moment is myself or any of my family and friends catching the virus and getting very ill with it and having to go to hospital or potentially dying.
I had Covid and was living with my grandad. He caught it most likely from me and passed away. I now have this huge guilt on my shoulders that will be there forever.
A small number of participants, around 3%, said that the pandemic had affected their physical health, including eating and sleeping habits, missed health appointments and fitness. Around 12% of participants said that they or their family had needed financial support in the past year including benefits support. Less than 5 young people said they needed gambling advice and support.
