The coronavirus Covid-19 is radically changing the way we go about our day-to-day lives. It’s shifting where we turn for help and support and how we interact with friends, family and neighbours.
We are inviting you to participate in the largest UK study of how Covid-19 is changing daily life in the UK, sharing with us your experiences of how physical and social distancing are affecting everything from your home and work life, to how you connect with friends and family during this fast-changing and challenging time. We’ll be exploring questions such as:
- How are Covid-19 and the measures to control it affecting and shaping the interactions between individuals in society?
- What effect is the pandemic having on our community wellbeing, quality of life and resilience?
- How is digital playing a role in community responses to the spread of coronavirus?
- What is the impact of the pandemic on how and where we can access support?
What is the benefit of participating? The current coronavirus pandemic is a historic event but such viral epidemics may be more common in the future. By taking part you will help us understand how people and communities respond to such situations, and how we can support them better in the future. This research will also form an important digital archive of how the communities responded, valuable for future researchers and policy makers, as a record of a unique moment in time.
You can get involved in three ways:
1. Sign up to become a citizen scientist
We’re working with The Open University to gather insights from thousands of people over the next three months. Participation is simple and you can choose to complete the “missions” at any point, or keep returning to tell us how things are changing. All you need to take part is a device with internet access.
You can sign up to Mission 1: Covid-19 and my community In this mission you’ll be able to see what others around the UK are experiencing and add your data and experiences to the conversation. There is also the opportunity to upload photos to help us create a “national gallery” of community life during the time of coronavirus.
You can sign up to Mission 2: Covid-19 and you Tell us more about your experiences on different questions about your experiences, in a confidential space. Answers to these questions will be analysed together and only summary results shared.
You can, of course, take part in both! This project will close in June 2020.
2. Sign up to become a digital diary keeper and be part of longer-term piece to create change through research
We are also looking for people who are keen to document and record life during this period in greater detail. We’ll be asking people to keep a weekly diary (either written or video as you prefer) and also help us by completing specific tasks on a regular basis to help us gather insights on specific issues as the situation evolves. We aim to make participation as interesting as possible, and there will be regular opportunities to chat with other people keeping diaries, win prizes and more.
The aim is to capture 100 stories of people from across the UK and from all walks of life. We’ll use what we learn to publish real-time insights over the coming few months and the data will also form an important, digital historical record.
To register your interest in participation, please complete this form and we will be in touch within three working days with more information.
3. Participate in our survey for people who usually access face to face support to help their wellbeing
If you usually attend individual or group sessions to help you manage your mental health or challenges like addictions, or to connect with people who have the same health problems like Parkinson’s, dementia, or who are carers, then we are keen to hear about how the social distancing rules have affected you and the support available to you. This includes therapy (NHS, employer or privately funded), peer support groups facilitated by charities like Mind or the Alzheimers’ Society, or volunteer-led groups like Alcoholics Anonymous. You can register your interest in taking part here and the survey will be live later this week.
Or… Sign up to be notified about other opportunities
We’ll also be running other activities over the coming weeks, including surveys on specific topics or quick polls on major events. If you are willing for us to notify you about these, please register here.
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For questions and support about your participation, contact: research@youngfoundation.org
For opportunities to partner with us as a funder of this critical research or to sponsor of additional research strands, contact: Victoria Boelman, Director of Research via victoria.boelman@youngfoundation.org
For media enquiries, contact: Kasia Murphy, Communications Manager via kasia.murphy@youngfoundation.org or by telephone +44 777 473 6497
Community COVID-19 Health and Wellbeing Posted on: 6 April 2020