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If you need a reminder of some of the decisions that were taken during lockdown, the Institute for Government has this PDF which shows a timeline from March 2020 to December 2021.
This research briefing from the House of Commons library, published in September 2021, is a comprehensive guide to measures taken in parliament to do with the pandemic.
There is also this interactive timeline we published after twelve months of the pandemic, which is described as “a journey through a year of announcements, U-turns, lockdowns, denials, tests – and more than 100,000 deaths.”
Today's hearing is about the impact of the pandemic on children and young people
The inquiry’s hearings have been broken into different modules with a focus on different aspects of the UK’s response to the Covid pandemic. The provisional outline of scope for today’s hearing covers:
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The extent to which children and young people were considered as part of any preparedness and planning for a pandemic
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The extent to which children and young people were considered by the UK government and the devolved administrations in respect of the application of non-pharmaceutical Interventions (NPIs) and the impact of those decisions
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The impact of the pandemic on the education of, and the early years provision for, children and young people (including further and/or higher education, apprenticeships)
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The impact of the pandemic on children and young people’s physical and mental health, wellbeing, development, family lives and on their access to healthcare services
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The impact of the pandemic on children and young people in relation to access to and engagement with social care services and other agencies with a role in supporting the safety of children
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The impact of the pandemic on children and young people in contact with the criminal justice system including those in the youth custody estate, youth defendants and offenders and those whose parents or primary carers were in custody during the pandemic
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The impact of the pandemic on children and young people in contact with the immigration system
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The impact of the pandemic on children and young people in relation to their access to and use of the internet, social media and online resources
There are also documents outlining the scope of the inquiry in a simpler form to aid the understanding of children under 12, and children over 12.
The version for younger children explains it all this way, saying:
The UK Covid-19 inquiry is a big investigation to understand what happened during the pandemic and what we could have done better.
We are looking at how the pandemic affected children and young people from different backgrounds from across the UK. This includes children who need extra help at school, in life, or are new to our country. We also want to hear from teachers, parents and carers on what life was for children during the pandemic and what they wish could have been different.
We want to learn how the pandemic affected children and young people and what can be done to help them if it ever happens again. We also want to help the people who make decisions understand the needs of children and young people in case there is another pandemic. We want to make sure that we understand how the pandemic is still affecting children and young people now, so we can learn from this.
Welcome and opening summary …
Welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage of the UK’s Covid inquiry, with Boris Johnson set to appear to give evidence this morning.
At the present time the inquiry is gathering information about the impact of the pandemic on children and young people, which will be the focus of the questions that the former prime minister is asked today.
It is worth noting at the outset that health is a devolved matter, and so during the pandemic England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland all had different responses. The Covid inquiry is UK-wide. Scotland has been holding its own Covid inquiry into its devolved response, and the Senedd has this year debated its own report into how prepared Wales was for the pandemic.
It is Martin Belam blogging for you today, and you can reach me via email at [email protected].
