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COVID-19 Response: Impact on Children and Young People
Children, Education and Home Affairs Scrutiny Panel
Prepared by Dorothy Parker, Beatrice Speck & Xavier Barette May 2021
Aim and Objectives | ||||
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The research project aim was to provide information to help the Panel understand the impact that the response from the Government of Jersey has had on children and young people in the Island. This included the impact of school closures/lockdown/stay at home/work from home and the loss of the learning environment as well as the appropriateness, or not of the Government's decisions and actions taken that affect the broad spectrum of children and young people, (conception to age 25). The ethos, culture and processes within the other key decision making bodies in relation to children and their families were included too. |
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Specific objectives included assessing: • The main challenges/negative experiences for children, young people and their families during the pandemic • The main successes/positive experiences for children, young people and their families during the pandemic • The impact of the stay at home order/working from home on children, young people and their families • Whether the physical, emotional and mental wellbeing of children and young people has been at the heart of Government decision making in line with the priority to put children first • What impact the response to the pandemic had on existing inequalities for children and young people plus their families • The perceptions of how the needs of children, young people and their families were addressed at different stages of the pandemic response • Understanding of the work that is ongoing in order to protect the wellbeing of children, young people and their families as the pandemic response progresses • The perceptions of how children, young people and their families were communicated to by the Government about the response to the pandemic | ||||
Outcome: provide a report which will include the insights and key information to support Scrutiny's review | ||||
Project scope and sample
Scope:
Jersey children and young people, plus their parents and families
Sample:
The target sample were as follows:
• children/young people in Key Stages 1-4, aged 5 to 16 with parental consent. Parental assistance if aged 3-5
• young people aged 16-25 who were in education, higher education, working, unemployed etc
• parents/parents to be children 0 to 3 (critical early years)
• parents of nursery children, school children and young people
Invitations to participate in this independent research were developed together, sending potential respondents to 4insight and sent by various methods, all being GDPR compliant;
• by 4insight to their panel of over 3,800 islanders
• promotion in collaboration with Jersey Cares, Children Services and social workers, the Bridge etc
• promotion by the Scrutiny Panel on social and traditional media
When potential respondents contacted 4insight they were screened to an agreed screener questionnaire, which included a broad mix of socio-demographic questions including income level, ethnicity, family situations, age etc. The screening criteria were discussed at the kick off briefing meeting, along with the actual target structure for each group.
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Methodology – 9 focus groups
To meet the aim and objectives independent qualitative research was conducted in the form of focus groups. This enabled us to ensure that we truly got the level of depth and understanding needed from BOTH the rational and importantly the emotional perspectives of how COVID has impacted children and young people. A sample size of over 40 participants is regarded as a good representative sample for qualitative research.
We ran 9 focus groups with 57 participants in total, including the children (with agreed parental consent for all those under 16). The following groups were conducted:
1 x 3 - 5 year old children with their parents
1 x 6 - 11 year old children with parents observing behind the mirrors
1 x 12 - 16 year old children
1 x 17 - 19 year olds
2 x 20 - 25 year olds
1 x parents of 0 - 3 year olds
1 x parents 3 - 10 year olds
1 x parents 11 - 18 year olds
It was planned to run one group with those in care, however the current situation meant this wasn't achievable in the time frame.
All the focus groups were conducted to an agreed discussion guide which included age appropriate projective techniques such as psycho drawing and identifying smiley faces reflecting many emotions for young children, plus first words, Thematic Apperception Tests (TATs) and sentence completion for those older. All these exercises were completed individually to eliminate any bias or leading.
The qualitative focus groups were professionally moderated by 4insight and through the initial scene setting and our Neuro-linguistic Programming training we can eliminate any potential group think. Six of the focus groups were held at our professional observation facilities within COVID guidelines allowing key team members to view live through the one way mirrors. Three groups with those aged 17 to 25 were held on online on a professional research secure platform and included some university students still off island. Each group lasted about 90-100 minutes. The groups were digitally recorded and professionally analysed by 4insight.
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Detailed Results
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"Impact of COVID"
All Respondents
58% had a negative sentiment, only 4% positive
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"Impact of COVID"
Parents
68% had a negative sentiment, only 3% were positive
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"Impact of COVID"
12-25 year olds
44% had a negative sentiment, 51% were factual
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Main challenges for young people were education, mental health and socialising from parents perception
Overall parents perceived education an issue for all children, however it was more difficult for those with older children to get on with their work, whereas those with younger children felt that school-based education wasn't an immediate priority and that they would be able to catch up in the future:
GCSE aged students developing a lack of routine and not completing any school work, or doing so beyond normal hours
Working from home whilst homeschooling children, causing a lot of stress, some families did not have enough devices for the whole family which caused issues. There were also issues with slow broadband due to many users
Some students were given too much work while not receiving help
Cancelled exams caused strong uncertainty of passing exams/school year
Parents mentioned that different schools had different ways of dealing with the pandemic such as alternatives for exams, which caused confusion,
"Home schooling was absolutely horrendous, working from home as a single parent, "3 year old and newborn twins, I wanted pressure of my job, 3 year old didn't get it - she just wanted to play. The mental Mum to come and help but can't because health side of not being with friends and no structured school day, no challenge for she's off island, we had loads of challenges, her, she became bored, my stress came out on them because of work." Single mum of keeping kids entertained, everything was
8 and 3 year old, unsupported locally, full time job closed, weather was nice but couldn't go to "They hated the measures, hated the masks. They don't have to wear them but the playground." Dad, married, unsupported
don't want teachers wearing them. It's like a hospital. I now go out my way to smile locally, 3 year old & 3 month old twins
with my eyes." Mum, married, 4, 6 & 8 year old, part time
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Extra quotes |
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"[back to school] A bit unstable for a while, for most year 11s there's so much work, so much in GCSEs, still doing mocks, he's gonna finish in 2 weeks it's so uncertain. He'd go out for the 2 hours exercise but friends would hover around so get told off by police, it was brutal caged in for 22 hours." Mum, lives with partner, 16 and 21 year old, full time job "My daughter has tonnes of work, year 13 now, one teacher she can't get along with, just couldn't get help, screaming and shouting, slamming doors, first lockdown horrendous, school point horrendous geared up for exams. Don't know if she's going to pass or not, they changed teachers around." Mum, married, 18 & 24 year old, self-employed | "Homeschooling, working full time, dad was ill last year so having to try get back to the UK, he passed away. My child in preschool they had an app , eldest daughter had homework, school work, helping her was hard while working from home." Mum, married, unsupported locally, twins aged 2, 5 and 7 year old, full time job "Worst was home teaching, I had to differentiate between 4, 6 and 8 year old." Mum, married, 4, 6 & 8 year old, supported locally, part time "We didn't take education very seriously, not gonna put extra pressure on them, my son was assessed for autism, so taking him in and out of school frustrated him." Mum, married, 5 & 8 year old, unsupported locally, unemployed | |
"Went to see mum and dad, they love them but just stood there they didn't want to cuddle them." Mum, married, 4, 6 & 8 year old, supported locally, part time | "I found it very difficult, my husband was busiest he's ever been, in IT, so I didn't have any help, very little support, very scary, with my job too. Felt like I let her down a bit, missed out on pre-school, let her play, constantly instead." Mum, married, 4 & 8 year old, part time | |
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Main challenges for young people were education, mental health and socialising from parent's perception | ||
| Socialising was a strong issue for most young people: Overall, young people missed friends and family the most Many felt the rules were disjointed - seeing friends in school however not being able to see friends in homes caused confusion for children Those with young babies experienced their children developing social issues such as being alarmed by other people Teenagers were mentioned as missing out on a lot such as parties, relationships, milestones such as prom and graduation Those with young children struggled with entertaining their children, especially with playgrounds and play areas closed Mental health was a big concern for parents especially those with 10+ year old children. Some developed mental health concerns such as eating disorders, self harm, lack of social skills, "clingy" or distant. One mentioned she "only" had to wait 6 months for her daughter to be applied into CAMHS and was positive about this length of time due to hearing the waiting list is 2 years, however the others felt this was too long and not acceptable Those with young children struggled with having no family support, as well as young babies having not yet met them |
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Main challenges for young people were education and socialisation from the children's perception | ||
| Education was harder at home and many struggled with the lack of socialising: Many of the children felt home schooling was boring and much harder to do at home. They preferred the ease of access to resources and asking questions as well as seeing their friends. A few students also felt they didn't receive much help from teachers Once the young people went back to school, they found difficulty with being in bubbles as they may not see/play with their friends at all. The older students expressed confusion toward the bubble rule as they would "all be in the school corridors at the same time anyway" Some really missed partaking in sports such as swimming, football, dance, rugby or activities such as piano lessons A few of the older students had no motivation at all to do school work so didn't do any Mix of opinion on mask wearing in school- some did not mind it as they have become accustomed to it, however others really didn't like it at all Exams were cancelled for students, a couple were happy as they performed better with coursework however others worried about having to go on to do A Levels with no experience of exams or revision Many students at university felt they missed out on the traditional university experience this year, whereas others appreciated that lockdown allowed them to focus more on revision with less distractions. Some felt let down by the Government in relation to travel restrictions over the Christmas holidays |
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Extra quotes |
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"They put a lot of restrictions on socialising, it affected the younger generation, affected universities and going out, economy a massive impact like businesses running down and our generation will be those who will pay for it in taxes for a few years to come." 22 year old, university student | "Personally, I've been lucky, got a job, got into a new place, in that sense I've been lucky, as a key worker I've gone to work everyday, masks, jabs nice and early, but socially I want to go out and live my best life, seeing Jersey doing well last summer and seeing people in pubs now is tough to watch when stuck in the UK." 23 year old, working for the NHS |
"It was bad, I really wanted to go outside, to play." 6 year old | "Main challenge was meeting new people in Leeds, I was lucky some of my Jersey friends are also here so I wasn't alone, if you didn't know anyone it would be tough." 19, university student |
"I'm more irritated now than I was last year, nothing to keep my mind sane, definitely boredom." 21 year old, working in Jersey | "I haven't seen family in year a half, haven't seen anyone, looking forward to coming home, no family in UK at all." 23 year old, working for the NHS |
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Main challenges for young people were education and socialisation from the children's perception
Lack of socialising was frustrating:
No socialising was a key issues for children all ages - those older couldn't meet up with friends in homes while the younger children disliked not being able to play
Many disliked being inside, especially during the first lockdown which had brilliant weather
Some expressed sadness about not seeing family on and off island. Most still have not seen family abroad and some of the babies hadn't met any other family such as grandparents
"Lots of bad stuff, couldn't see the
whole family and friends." (5 year old) people in the halls, had the whole year in hall "When we went back to school, so many
but it didn't make sense." (16 year old)
"I can't play with kids in other classes,
can't pop their bubble." (10 year old)
"Bad, really wanted to go outside, to play." (6 year old)
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Psycho drawings mainly with negative sentiments
Younger respondents (3 - 11-year olds) were asked to draw pictures of How they feel about COVID'
The majority of drawings had a negative sentiment and showed the impact of the pandemic on these children. There were a multitude of sad faces drawn as well as speech bubbles remarking about "Stupid COVID". One child respondent also drew a picture outlining the things she wasn't able to do during the pandemic
A few drawings had positive sentiments - one drew a rainbow. Some young respondents drew pictures of them with family members. The additional family time was perceived as a positive of the pandemic for young children
Others were mixed - another drew smiley faces and upset faces to
illustrate the "ups and downs" of the COVID pandemic. 2 Examples of pictures respondents also drew factual pictures of the virus on next slide
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Psycho drawings showed the negative impact of the pandemic on children as young as 6 and 7 years old | ||
| A 7-year old female respondent drew about how she was unable to dance, see friends or have fun. She also drew that she was bored 16 | |
The children aged 3-11 were asked to choose an emoji best describing how they felt about the pandemic
12 emoji options to choose from
"I was a bit annoyed that I couldn't see "My head kept crashing out." 6 year old "I was so bored and angry." 8 year old friends and do sport stuff like that." 10
year old
"Smiley, it was very hot "Sunglasses, it was sunny, could outside, lots of fun." 4 year old
play outside." 3 year old
The 6-11 year olds expressed more frustration toward the
pandemic due to being bored and annoyed about being
unable to play with friends, the very young children felt
happy playing in the sun
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Main implications from parents were their children's physical wellbeing, socialising and education
Physical wellbeing was affected by Covid due to closures of activities such as swimming, football, martial
arts, rugby, dance etc. Most of these activities were still closed at the time and parents worried if their children will want to return to them
Children's social life and play was a key implication of Covid, some students displayed mental health
concerns as well as social issues
Parents had concerns regarding education; mostly for the older students due to the importance of passing
their school year. Parents of younger students felt their children were affected however will be able to catch up in the future
Lack of routine had a massive impact overall, with many young people staying up very late and sleeping in.
This caused disruption to their school work and overall productivity
Some parents mentioned that their toddlers were overly concerned with washing their hands
Many children were bored due to closures of public areas, some also lacked outdoor space which left no
room to play
"The main challenge was my son. A 16 year old boy. He went completely "My daughter couldn't cope. She followed me around the nocturnal, refused to do any school work at all. Staying up late gaming, I house. She adores her friends, she couldn't cope. I see the was trying to get him up at lunch and he'd swear and shout. Once he was implication of them not being at school for so long."
in the timeframe it was hard getting him out." Mum, married, 12 and 15 year old, part time job
Mum, lives with partner, 16 and 21 year old, full time job
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Main implications for the younger people were feeling lazy and bored, the older young people had many disruptions in particular university
The young children and young people felt more lazy and lethargic due to a lack of routine as well as feeling
very bored
Some students were struggling with being back at school and trying to catch up with school work
One young person felt he couldn't catch up at all and will have to go into work instead of doing A Levels
The university students had many disruptions; studies going online, no interaction with friends and issues
traveling back to Jersey
2 young people worked the whole way through the pandemic, 1 was on the front line in the NHS due to being
a medicine student, 1 was a mental health support worker here
Those at university struggled with work experience due to it being cancelled, which they felt would affect
future career options
"The impact on socialising. Uni - not being able to go in. I went back in mid-February, purely for a change of scene. A bit too much time with the parents! Going back to in person teaching next week, it's not great that it's been online for a long time, most of the year."
22 year old, university student
"I can't catch up, nothing makes sense, I'm getting an apprenticeship, it's for 4 years, you need 5 grades 4 and above, including maths english, I'm failing maths so I might have to do night school and do it again." 16 year old
"For me, I went online from March. It's been better online, more efficient than in person. For my course, we've not been in labs but it's been kind of good being online."
21, university student
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Extra quotes |
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"I did dancing on a Saturday, had to go on Zoom, it was different." 7 year old | "There was like nothing else to do so I did push ups, got boring, couldn't play footie, cardio was awful too." 19 year old, university student |
"Definitely mental health wise it was difficult and had to adapt. Had social media, still able to talk to friends. It was difficult not being able to be in the pool for the first month." 20 year old, Digital Academy | "I do product design, so usually I would be in the uni but only been in 4 hours this year." 19 year old, university student |
"Massively changed how they're examining things. Everything a lot harder." 18 year old | "Last summer a lot of placements got cancelled, not been able to get work experience." 22 year old, university student |
"Nothing like major, just not having a gym to go to, new ways to do things, but I'd just wanna sit about, not worth it at home." 18 year old | "I study in a digital workplace, after 2 week of online studying, we had Zoom fatigue, being online 8 hours a day, no socialising and no group work, more tiring definitely." 20 year old, Digital Academy |
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Groups who were perceived as most affected were islanders who enjoy sport, the older generation, teenagers and the high risk | ||
" | The different groups of islanders who were perceived as being most affected by the pandemic: Those who enjoy or partake in sports were perceived as being let down by the Government, some felt physical education and other sporting activities should've been supported/open as they help with health and mental wellbeing The older generation were strongly impacted by Covid, the isolation created loneliness and depression Teenagers were strongly affected by the pandemic due to missing out on milestones and social occasions High risk or vulnerable islanders were also deemed to have been affected due to not being able to go out of their house or see anyone Those who had lost family members were massively affected. For example, one respondent's father had passed away during the pandemic. Due to being vulnerable, he wasn't able to see anyone during the last months of his life. His funeral was also held online "Mother in law is 88. The kids would go on driveway to talk, took some food over and talked twice a week. She was seriously WNot really [ce're less at risk, as long as we're kind of tonsider young people], but also theaken cy shouldn't. are of then lonely. People were complaining and she was like 'it's nothing, we lived through the occupation." Dad, married, unsupported there's bigger worries." 19 year old, university student 21locally, 3 year old & 3 month old twins |
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Main positives from parents were working from home and family time, the young people reported fewer positives
Main positives from parents were working Young people felt less positives came from the from home and family time pandemic than the parents
Many parents enjoyed working from home as it Mix of opinion on the amount of time spent with
created more flexibility to be able to spend more time family, some really enjoyed bonding with their family, with their family and may promote future work others were indifferent and preferred to be with their flexibility friends
Overall more family time was deemed strongly Some felt lockdown gave them more free time and also
positive more time to revise instead of being distracted
Many reported the great weather during the first The 20-25 year olds felt happy with the amount of
lockdown made it bearable and much more enjoyable money they have saved during the lockdown due to
to go for walks and cycles not going out
A few were happy about their exams being cancelled
due to feeling they perform better with assessments/coursework
"The family time was great, the kids said that they loved the
family time. It was nice having Daddy at home." Mum, married, 4, "I had some time to do things I used to do. Reading books, it's a
6 & 8 year old, supported locally, part time bit embarrassing but my family are into Lego. So we bought
some Lego sets and were making them together. I enjoyed it
"I loved walking at the beginning. There were no cars, it was again." 18 year old spring, there were birds." Dad, married, unsupported locally, 3
year old & 3 month old twins 22
Government decisions frustrated and confused both parents and young people | ||
Parents were more negative about Government decisions than the young people/children Many felt some decisions didn't make sense; Children able to do PE in school but not PE after school Children meeting in schools but not in homes after school Some felt the Government were following the UK too much or choosing the economy over health They were very grateful for schools reopening Parents mentioned how different schools were doing things differently such as types of end of year assessment instead of exams Some found that schools were left to come up with all health and safety guidelines, not the Government Some felt the Government did the best they could have considering "it hasn't happened before" Closing the borders, mask legislation and isolation before test result was perceived as not implemented early enough Many disagreed with the decision of islanders being able to meet up during Christmas Day and Boxing Day, disregarding any religions other than Christianity | ||
The young children were unaware about Government decisions, however understood rules to be wearing a mask, washing hands and "not hugging" The children aged 5-16 found the the rules confusing such as meeting in schools but not in homes after school, they found this very frustrating Those aged 17-25 were more aware of Government decisions and found many frustrating. Young people also felt the Government were too slow with implementing some rules. The secondary school students were frustrated with the bubbles during school as the weren't able to see their friends if outside their class however large clusters of students would gather in the corridors A few also disagreed with the decision of islanders being able to meet up during Christmas Day and Boxing Day, disregarding any religions other than Christianity | ||
Young people showed low awareness of mental health services available on Island
Only mentions of CAMHS were from parents. The children weren't aware of it until they had been referred. Many children and young people were unsure when asked Where would you go for support' or to name any mental health services / support / charities. There were some mentions of MIND from young people and parents.
No mentions over last 3 COVID Impact projects of Kooth.com, Listening Lounge, Jersey Talking Therapy or the Mental Health Network. Some were aware of YES but there was no awareness of any specific services.
Maybe there was low awareness due to some schools taking charge, referring students to CAMHS or in-house provisions, counselling etc. Some young people had been phoned twice a week during lockdown being asked about their mental health. No need for awareness of external help if school provide / refer you anyway'.
Some young people said they would just ask their GP and expect them to signpost / refer them.
4 of the 16 proposed actions in the Children and Young People Emotional Wellbeing and Mental Health Draft Strategy are based around making it Easy for everyone to find help and support.' These apparently are to include a drop-in cafe, a Family Hub, a helpline and drop-in sessions. These appear excellent support, however wouldn't have increased awareness of any respondents in our research. More advertising and explaining services to those who aren't actively seeking them is needed.
"Both of my kids were referred to CAMHS, they had extra staff. The one referred from the doctor took a month, the one from school took 6 months. I thought it'd be 2 years" Mum, married, 15 & 16 year old, works part time
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Family impacts
One respondent had to look after a 3 year old and newborn twins, with no help from any family. Their non-Jersey family were unable to come and help with the children, leaving the father working and the mother struggling to cope.
There were calls for some financial packages from Government to allow for primary caring parents to be furloughed' and focus on looking after / homeschooling their children, They felt continuing to work from home whilst doing this was unsustainable and overwhelming.
Some parents mentioned how nice it was to spend more time as a family during the pandemic. However, others had children who had become much more withdrawn from friends and family over the lockdown period.
Many children and young people had been impacted by travel restrictions. Most had missed seeing either high-risk grandparents in Jersey or family members in the UK who were unable to travel to Jersey. One young person hadn't seen any family in 18 months due to the nature of his job in the UK and not being able to have the time off to isolate. This had a massive effect on his mental health.
There were concerns for those in small apartments with limited access to technology being expected to perform remote learning / work from home when the whole family is in lockdown and at home.
Some respondents had lost family members to COVID
"The first lockdown was hard. My husband was working, had 2 kids
doing schoolwork, I was working. We don't have a west wing, I had to "Overall, it brought the family a bit closer together. Not leave my kids to do work on their own in their bedrooms. My daughter just in our household, been making that extra phone was really good, she'd work longer hours than normal, my son would call. It helped in a way. I have family in Scotland, a convince me he'd been doing hard work." Mum, married, 15 & 16 year twice daily phone call to Grandma is built into my day old, works part time now." Mum, married, 3, 5 & 8 year old, works full time
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Opinion on communication from the Government was perceived as mixed by both parents and older children, young children unaware
"If you're going to have a decision you know people will hate, explain the Overall, respondents felt that Government rational. Otherwise you just think it's unfair, explain the reasoning." Mum, communications throughout the pandemic could have married, 18 & 24 year old, self-employed
been improved through better clarity and consistency; Some felt they often were unsure of the rules and relied on other
as well as by placing less blame on children and young members of the community to tell them the rules as the press
people conferences were unclear. They also felt some rules didn't make "[Press conference information] would be leaked before every sense and were not consistent with others. This confused children
time. It was really unprofessional, it happened on three different as they could sit next to someone in lessons all day at school but occasions." Mum, married, 4, 6 & 8 year old, supported locally, were not even allowed in that person's garden at the time
works part time
"In our house all the children attend different schools, all got different Respondents mostly used social media or the evening messages...there needs to be one body and everybody doing the same news to stay up-to-date. Only a few mentioned using / thing." Mum, married, 12 & 13 year old, part time job
downloading the COVID Alert App. There were mixed
views on press conferences - most young people only Respondents, including both parents and children, felt that too watched if parents were. Gary Burgess' summaries were much of the blame was apportioned to children and young people. spontaneously mentioned, by both parents and young Especially around the Hall oween / December spike. They felt it people, as being useful and a good alternative to unfair that young people were singled out - despite licensed watching the duration of the press conferences premises flouting the rules. Many felt that this was wrong and that
it was "easy to blame and use teenagers as scapegoats"
"It was frustrating when you'd go for walks on the beach and
you'd see big groups of parents with toddlers. There's nothing "In my opinion, they didn't do amazing. We got the blame for a lot to tell them off for gathering but had that been a group of of stuff. No support for gyms or pubs whereas stuff for older people teenagers there'd be an uproar. There were double standards. would have support." 17 year old Young people were scapegoated." 21 year old 26
Exercise: "Our Government's response to the pandemic, considering children,
young people and their families would be so much better if ."
Many respondents felt the Government's communications could have been improved.
They felt they lacked clarity and put too much blame on young islanders. Respondents also wanted to know the reasoning behind the decision making and any medical evidence used
Respondents also mentioned the need to prioritise children's mental health in the wake of the pandemic as they didn't feel it was prioritised during the earlier stages of the pandemic at all
"If there was a uniform message and strategy, more lenient towards creating 'bubbles' of contact to facilitate play within designated and closed groups of friends or family."
Dad, married, unsupported locally, 3 year old & 3 month old twins
"Please, please look after our children's' "Be more consistent & mental health. If they become poorly it communicate better & explain takes years for them to recover." Mum, the reasoning behind decisions." married, 12 and 15 year old, part time job Mum, married, 18 & 24 year old,
self-employed
Other suggestions included: speaking to children and Some fon islanderelt thes' meny should hatal and phve cyonsidersical health beed the fimpact ore gaining their thoughts, being more lenient with regard
prioritising the economic impact of the pandemic to bubbles in schools and increasing consistency of and lockdowns. Some felt a public consultation rules at school with rules outside of schools e.g.
could have helped to achieve this allowed to sit next to someone for hours but not
allowed in their garden
"They stopped blaming young people for what they failed to prevent." 16 year old
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Teenage respondents were asked to fill in the potential feelings and conversations between two people their age throughout the pandemic
Most respondents spontaneously mentioned struggles regarding school work. Missing contact with friends was also a very prevalent theme
Emotions mentioned included: Upset, confused, lonely, angry, bored, worried and overwhelmed as well as relieved and happy they have more free time
An example below and on next slide:
"Yes, I miss you, I "I'm gaining weight "I miss talking to my socialise and g"I just want to o want to do indoor and want to get fit
friends, I can't go outside." sports with you but again."
out and see you." COVID has stopped
us".
"Lonely" "Lack of
enthusiasm"
Importantly, respondents completely both the "Say" bubbles and "Think" bubbles before the "Feel" bubbles
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"I haven't been out and "This is the same "I hate COVID, it
about in so long, I miss conversation i've had with is getting in the "Not this seeing all my friends" at least 20 people, it's way of all my conversation
getting boring" plans" again"
"Frustrated" "Fed up but
optimistic about the near future"
"I wish all this was "I wish we could "You're not the only "Will this ever over" stop talking about one" stop?"
this"
"I'm completely done "I'm exhausted"
with this"
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Executive Summary |
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Parents | Children | Young people/ teenagers |
Challenges Main challenges for young people were education, mental health and socialising from parent's perception Implications Main implications from parents were their children's wellbeing, socialising and education Positives | Challenges Main challenges for young people were education and socialisation from the children's perception Implications Main implications for the younger people were feeling lazy and bored | Challenges Main challenges from the teenagers/young people were education, university, mental health and socialising Implications Main implications which the young people faced included; studies going online, no interaction with friends and issues coming back to Jersey or spending too much time |
Main positives from parents were working |
| with family |
from home and family time Communication Opinion on communication from the Government was perceived as mixed by parents and older children, young children | Groups affected Groups who were perceived as affected were islanders who enjoy sport, older generation, teenagers and high risk Decisions Government decisions frustrated and | Positives The young people were positive about the amount of free time, more time to revise instead of being distracted. The 20-25 year olds felt happy with the amount of money they have saved during the lockdown due to not going out |
were unaware | confused both parents and young people |
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QUESTIONS
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Appendix
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Demographics |
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33 | |
Demographics |
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34 | |
Demographics |
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35 |
Demographics |
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36 |
people and their families would be so much better if ."
Parents of 11-18 year olds
"More notice of changes / procedures that
essential workers can carry out their job / role
without negative impact to family / young kids "The decisions had been consistent
e.g. leaving them all day at home unsupervised, for example PE in schools was
lack of healthy meals available if parents are at allowed but not outside of school
work hours
More notice for teachers for changes / procedures I think children's physical health
so we can plan effectively for students and help and in-turn mental wellbeing has
them as much as possible i.e more notice and been hugely impacted."
more consistent rules"
"Please, please look after our children's' mental health.
If they become poorly it takes "Be more consistent & communicate years for them to recover"
better & explain the reasoning
behind decisions"
"Greater focus on
children's mental health - this is going to take years"
37
people and their families would be so much better if ."
Parents of 3-10 year olds
"Communication was improved and the
opportunity to give individual family "Their proposed strategies has
feedback from various backgrounds / been thoroughly challenged,
sectors. including by people who had
Perhaps talking to children - seeing how children in various age-groups,
they respond to specific questions" before implementation"
"They considered what the impact
might be and prevent a mental health "There was a uniform crisis occurring,
message and strategy, more Ensure the schools have effective lenient towards creating training and provisions in place 'bubbles' of contact to beforehand rather than waiting to see facilitate play within what will happen"
designated and closed
groups of friends or family"
38
people and their families would be so much better if ."
Parents/children "They had provided extra help for the 3-5 year olds younger children regarding their mental
health.
Giving clearer information regarding rules
etc. so kids don't have to miss out on their "Research into how children have been impacted
school lives because of school confusing by the pandemic and put in services to cover their
rules" needs.
Create accessible mental health support for
children who are not at direct risk. Early help
could prevent escalation.
About COVID: Clear response, that is well
communicated to people, and understandable to
all abilities (inc children)"
"Mums or both parents could have been financially supported to concentrate on looking after children
Option to furlough based on caring contributions"
39
people and their families would be so much better if ."
Parents of 0-3 year olds
"They consulted with the "They had consulted certain public, listened & took family groups before making feedback on board" decisions to reflect on desires /
fears and balance these against health concerns"
"They were more inclusive, if they didn't panic, if they didn't put money over people"
40
people and their families would be so much better if ."
12-16 year olds "If they gave us more insight
"They thought of things for families about Covid-19 in the form of
to do during lockdown like if they texts as this was very direct and
organised activities for parishes or gave the message out to
something" everyone"
"They made a platform young "They lock the people used eg instagram and
borders and open put info/updates on it or
everything in Jersey" messaged us on text message so were aware of latest updates.
"They stopped Told school to talk to us about blaming young people stuff / update us."
for what they failed to
prevent" "Faster reactions to changing
situations (i.e. rising numbers
etc)
More easy to understand press "The Government
conferences (less rambling) found a way for
Fairer restrictions" young people to keep
up with the news"
41
people and their families would be so much better if ."
20-25 year olds "They had better targeted the spread
of information about the pandemic
more towards social media/online
platforms to help inform the larger
majority" "They had a better idea of their
needs"
"If there was help with rent"
"They had supported the hobbies that young people enjoy so they're more available when everything opened"
"They had acted sooner and not
waited for the situation to get
worse before making any major
decisions. Maybe slightly more
safety conscious and less economic"
42
1st Floor, 17 The Esplanade St Helier, Jersey
JE2 3QA
Tel: +44 (0) 1534 859300 www.4insight.info