The Covid Cohort Study
Lead Research Organisation:
University College London
Department Name: Learning and Leadership
Abstract
How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected socioeconomic inequalities in life chances, in terms of short-term effects on educational attainment and well-being, and long-term educational and career outcomes? This study will provide immediate findings to this and related research questions about the impact of the pandemic on educational inequality by SES, gender and ethnicity by designing, analysing, reporting on, and archiving two annual waves of a high-quality new cohort study of pupils in year 11 in academic year 2020-21 across England. This brand new resource will collect data from pupils, parents and schools, augmented with administrative data from DfE's NPD and other sources. Moreover, it will provide the start of a long-term resource for the research community to explore medium/long-term effects as participants move into further and higher education, and the labour market (with planned LEO consent questions).
Led by Dr Jake Anders, with Professor Lindsey Macmillan and Dr Gill Wyness (UCL CEPEO), Professors Lisa Calderwood and Alissa Goodman (UCL CLS) and Carl Cullinane (Sutton Trust), with Kantar as lead fieldwork agency, the team combines world-leading expertise in educational inequalities, social mobility, analysis of longitudinal data, and the design and management of cohort studies. Our bid is supported by key stakeholders, including DfE, ADR UK, EEF, TASO, OfS, and HEAT to ensure co-production of policy-relevant evidence. This study will fill an important gap in understanding of the medium and long term effects of COVID-19 on young people completing their education and moving into the labour market at this unprecedented time.
Led by Dr Jake Anders, with Professor Lindsey Macmillan and Dr Gill Wyness (UCL CEPEO), Professors Lisa Calderwood and Alissa Goodman (UCL CLS) and Carl Cullinane (Sutton Trust), with Kantar as lead fieldwork agency, the team combines world-leading expertise in educational inequalities, social mobility, analysis of longitudinal data, and the design and management of cohort studies. Our bid is supported by key stakeholders, including DfE, ADR UK, EEF, TASO, OfS, and HEAT to ensure co-production of policy-relevant evidence. This study will fill an important gap in understanding of the medium and long term effects of COVID-19 on young people completing their education and moving into the labour market at this unprecedented time.
Organisations
- University College London (Lead Research Organisation)
- Education Endowment Foundation (Collaboration)
- Department for Education (Collaboration, Project Partner)
- Economic and Social Research Council (Collaboration)
- The Sutton Trust (Collaboration)
- Transforming Acess and Student Outcomes (Project Partner)
- Sutton Trust (Project Partner)
Publications
Adali, T
(2022)
COSMO Wave 1: Data User Guide
Cullinane, C.
(2022)
Wave 1 Initial Findings: Lockdown Learning
Holt-White, E.
(2023)
Wave 1 Initial Findings: Health Impacts and Behaviours
Holt-White, E.
(2022)
Wave 1 Initial Findings: Mental Health and Wellbeing
Montacute, R.
(2022)
Wave 1 Initial Findings: Education Recovery and Catch Up
Yarde, J.
(2022)
Wave 1 Initial Findings: Future Plans and Aspirations
| Description | The COVID Social Mobility and Opportunities (COSMO) study is a major national longitudinal study examining the unequal impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the life chances of a generation of young people. The study is the largest of its kind, capturing the experiences of young people through the pandemic and beyond. COSMO provides vital evidence how the pandemic has affected young people's education and well-being, as well as longer-term impacts, following their journeys through education and into the workplace. COSMO continues to be supported by key stakeholders, including DfE, ADR UK, EEF, TASO, OfS, and HEAT to ensure the co-production of policy-relevant evidence. This study is filling an important gap in understanding the medium- and long-term effects of COVID-19 on young people completing their education and moving into the labour market in an unprecedented time. Specifically, this award funded the first wave of data collection, the documentation and deposit of that data, along with analysis, write-up, publication and dissemination of key findings from that data, intended to inform policy and practitioner audiences and stimulate further interest in the data by the research community. Wave 1 of data collection achieved a representative sample of over 13,000 young people in Year 11 in the academic year 2020-21 across England, with fieldwork beginning in autumn 2021, when the cohort started Year 12 or equivalent, surveying these young people, along with their parents. Briefings have been produced focussing on Lockdown Learning, Education recovery and catch-up, Future plans and aspirations, Mental health and well-being, and Health impacts and behaviours, with further such briefings planned using Wave 1 data (which will also be built on in briefings following the availability of Wave 2 data). The data from Wave 1 are available for researchers to download from the UK Data Service website. Consent was collected to link the data to the Department for Education's National Pupil Database, among other administrative datasets that can enhance the value of the study data. |
| Exploitation Route | The data from Wave 1 of the COVID Social Mobility and Opportunities (COSMO) study are available for researchers to download from the UK Data Service website. Consent was collected to link the data to the Department for Education's National Pupil Database, among other administrative datasets that can enhance the value of the survey data collected. COSMO, therefore, provides a rich resource for researchers to understand the experiences of a unique cohort of young people, whose education was disrupted by the pandemic with very little time to catch up before making key transitions at the end of compulsory schooling. The briefings directly produced by the COSMO team have provided immediate findings about the impact of the pandemic on educational inequality by SES, gender and ethnicity, which inform the design of education policy and practice, and have been welcomed as such by a range of governmental and third-sector stakeholders. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Education,Healthcare,Government, Democracy and Justice |
| URL | https://www.cosmostudy.uk |
| Description | Results from COSMO that were produced as part of initial findings briefings have already begun to have an important role in shaping discussions about education policy post-COVID. Our findings have been cited during a debate in the House of Lords (https://hansard.parliament.uk//Lords/2022-10-13/debates/DA599FA1-7B10-49EF-A772-1959188FE881/TimesEducationCommissionReport#contribution-394C6552-8E1E-4D35-8D95-5568A872BFE7), opposition politicians have commented regarding their importance for education policy (demonstrating potential future impact depending upon political context: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/oct/13/four-out-of-five-pupils-in-england-say-progress-suffered-due-to-covid), along with teaching unions. In addition, there has been significant interest in the findings and data from third sector/campaigning organisations, such as Sport England and the Mental Health Foundation, exemplified through agreeing to write blog posts for the COSMO website on the importance of the findings for their areas of interest. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2022 |
| Sector | Education |
| Impact Types | Societal,Policy & public services |
| Description | COSMO Wave 1 Boost |
| Amount | £158,155 (GBP) |
| Organisation | The Sutton Trust |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 05/2021 |
| End | 05/2022 |
| Description | Covid Social Mobility and Opportunities study (COSMO): Wave 2 |
| Amount | £1,902,132 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | ES/X00015X/1 |
| Organisation | Economic and Social Research Council |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 04/2022 |
| End | 07/2023 |
| Description | Strengthening policy impact from the COVID Social Mobility & Opportunities study (COSMO) |
| Amount | £8,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | University College London |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2023 |
| End | 07/2023 |
| Title | COVID Social Mobility and Opportunities Study: Wave 1, 2021-2022 |
| Description | The COVID Social Mobility and Opportunities Study (COSMO) is the first wave of a planned longitudinal cohort study, a collaboration between UCL Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities (CEPEO), the UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies (CLS), and the Sutton Trust. The overarching aim of COSMO is to provide a representative data resource to support research into how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the life chances of pupils with different characteristics, in terms of short-term effects on educational attainment, and long-term educational and career outcomes. The topics covered by COSMO include, but are not limited to, young people's education experiences during the pandemic, cancelled assessments and education and career aspirations. They have also been asked for consent for linking their survey data to their administrative data held by organisations such as the UK Department for Education (DfE). Linked data is planned to be made available to researchers through the ONS Secure Research Service.Young people who were in Year 11 in the 2020-2021 academic year were drawn as a clustered and stratified random sample from the National Pupil Database held by the DfE, as well as from a separate sample of independent schools from DfE's Get Information about Schools database. The parents/guardians of the sampled young people were also invited to take part in COSMO. Data from parents/guardians complement the data collected from young people.
Data collection in Wave 1 was carried out between September 2021 and April 2022. Young people and parents/guardians were first invited to a web survey. In addition to receiving online reminders, some non-respondents were followed up via face-to-face visits over the winter and throughout spring.Further information about the study may be found on the UCL COVID Social Mobility and Opportunities Study (COSMO) webpage. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | Wave 1 of data collection achieved a representative sample of over 13,000 young people in Year 11 in the academic year 2020-21 across England, with fieldwork beginning in autumn 2021, when the cohort started Year 12 or equivalent, surveying these young people, along with their parents. Briefings have been produced focussing on Lockdown Learning, Education recovery and catch-up, Future plans and aspirations, Mental health and well-being, and Health impacts and behaviours, with further such briefings planned using Wave 1 data (which will also be built on in briefings following the availability of Wave 2 data). The data from Wave 1 are available for researchers to download from the UK Data Service website. Consent was collected to link the data to the Department for Education's National Pupil Database, among other administrative datasets that can enhance the value of the study data. |
| URL | https://beta.ukdataservice.ac.uk/datacatalogue/doi/?id=9000#0 |
| Description | ADR UK |
| Organisation | Administrative Data Research Network |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | In COSMO Wave 1 we have included consent questions for data linkage to the Longitudinal Education Outcomes (LEO) datasets. This will, in the future, allow for the follow-up of COSMO participants in LEO, including employment and earnings data. This will allow for long-term follow-up of these outcomes of members of our cohort, making use of the linked administrative data environment supported by ADR UK. |
| Collaborator Contribution | As part of this collaboration, ADR UK has provided advice and guidance on the consent questions used and has agreed to work with us and relevant data owners to facilitate data linkage. |
| Impact | The consent questions regarding linkage to LEO's constituent datasets in COSMO were informed by advice and guidance from ADR UK staff in order to ensure that this consent will allow for data linkage. |
| Start Year | 2021 |
| Description | Department for Education |
| Organisation | Department for Education |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | We have liaised with civil servants at the Department for Education at key points throughout COSMO in order to ensure the design and analysis carried out in the study supported policy-relevant findings, insofar as this does not conflict with other scientific considerations. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Department for Education has provided letters of support for the continuation of COSMO and, through these letters of support, committed to engagement in our planning, analysis, and reporting of analyses and findings from COSMO. They are members of the project's advisory group, engaged extensively with feedback on questionnaire design, and further such activities. DfE's support has also meant we are able to mention this support on fieldwork documentation with an expectation that this is positive for respondent participation. The support was also crucial for attaining DfE approval to use the National Pupil Database as a sampling frame, with significant positive effects on the quality/representativeness of the study. |
| Impact | Key outcomes from this collaboration have included significant co-design and co-production of elements of the study, notably the questionnaires. We anticipate this will increase the policy relevance of analyses and reporting from the study compare to what would have been possible without this collaboration. |
| Start Year | 2021 |
| Description | Education Endowment Foundation |
| Organisation | Education Endowment Foundation |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | In COSMO Wave 1 we have included a consent question for data linkage to data held by the Education Endowment Foundation. This will, in the future, allow for the identification of COSMO participants who received support from National Tutoring Programme tuition partners, in order to allow for complementary evaluation of this programme to that which EEF are carrying out themselves. In particular, with more information regarding inequalities in uptake as well as on the impact of the programme. |
| Collaborator Contribution | As part of this collaboration, the Education Endowment Foundation has provided advice and guidance on the consent question used and has agreed to work with us in the future to facilitate data linkage for the purposes of understanding NTP tuition partners participation among the COSMO cohort. |
| Impact | The consent questions regarding linkage to EEF data in COSMO were informed by advice and guidance from EEF staff in order to ensure that this consent will allow for data linkage. |
| Start Year | 2021 |
| Description | Sutton Trust |
| Organisation | The Sutton Trust |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | We are working closely with Sutton Trust throughout the course of COSMO, including them in all relevant scientific, management and communication meetings. The project's full-time research fellow is also spending time on placement with Sutton Trust throughout the project in service of our collaborative aims. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Trust's staffing contribution includes Associate Director of Research and Policy Carl Cullinane as a Co-Investigator on the project, at no cost to UKRI. It also includes expertise from the Trust's team across research, communications and policy/public affairs. The Trust has a significant media profile, with a demonstrated record of impact and communicating complex research findings to wide audiences, including a track record of front-page newspaper coverage and high-profile broadcast news items. We have been particularly prominent since the beginning of the pandemic in drawing public attention to the impact of Covid-19 on education. As well as leading on communication, we are leading on the policy and advocacy implications of the study findings, leveraging our experience and relationships with parliamentarians, ministers and policymakers across the political spectrum to maximise the policy impact of the study. The Trust provides the secretariat for the All Party Parliamentary Group on Social Mobility, and regularly meets ministers and advisers both within the Department for Education and the Number 10 policy unit. The Trust brings significant value-added to the study through its relationships and profile, through media coverage, events, links with schools, universities and employers, and policy advocacy. The Trust also intends to fund activities such as events, report design and printing costs from its own finances, along with other costs, where it is deemed that this would significantly benefit the impact of the study. |
| Impact | The design and initial communications around the project have benefited from Sutton Trust expertise, including on policy relevance of questionnaire content, launch communications, design of participant- and researcher-facing branding for the study, among other aspects. |
| Start Year | 2021 |
| Description | CONSULTATION - COSMO Wave 2 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | From 1 February 2022 to 3 March 2022 CEPEO conducted an online consultation survey on the content and design of the second wave of the COVID Social Mobility and Opportunities (COSMO) study in England. 48 responses were received from stakeholders in academia, the government and the third sector. Whilst the majority of submissions were from academia, a significant amount, (21%) of submissions were from government. Marketing the consultation included email and social media campaigns which have further promoted the study and led to several offers of collaboration and idea exchanges. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.ucl.ac.uk/ioe/departments-and-centres/centres/centre-education-policy-and-equalising-opp... |
| Description | Discussion of COSMO findings and data availability with members of ifo Institute for Economic Research |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Third sector organisations |
| Results and Impact | Meetings with members of ifo, which is of one of Germany's largest economic think tanks, about findings from COSMO and the data available from it. Sparked discussions about potential future use of the data for comparative research. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Discussion of findings with Department for Education civil servants |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Presentation and discussion of key findings from COSMO Wave 1 with analysts from UK Department for Education. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Evidence to House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee inquiry 'Digital exclusion and the cost of living' |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Formal evidence to parliamental committee looking at digital exclusion, using findings from COSMO study to explain extent and consequences of digital exclusion for young people, as well as what can be done to tackle it. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://committees.parliament.uk/event/17498/formal-meeting-oral-evidence-session/ |
| Description | Launch media release and associated activity |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | A collaborative media release between UCL, Sutton Trust, and UKRI/ESRC was issued for 23 April 2022 in order to raise awareness of the launch of COSMO among the general public (particularly hoping to reach potential participants to increase familiarity if invited to participate) and policymakers. We achieved coverage in the national press ( https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/apr/23/social-mobility-study-to-assess-lockdown-effect-on-teenagers-in-england and print edition page 11) and specialist press. https://www.researchprofessional.com/0/rr/he/student-trends/2021/4/Longitudinal-study-to-track-outcomes-of-Covid-19-cohort.html https://schoolsweek.co.uk/study-to-track-covid-long-term-impact-on-pupils-life-chances/ https://www.fenews.co.uk/press-releases/67324-major-new-cohort-study-to-track-the-pandemic-s-effect-on-the-life-chances-of-a-generation-of-young-people https://www.cypnow.co.uk/news/article/major-study-to-track-impact-of-pandemic-on-school-pupils-life-chances While we did not seek to direct solicit requests to participate (due to the probability sample design) a number were forthcoming based on the press coverage, indicating that we did manage to reach the intended audience in this respect. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.ucl.ac.uk/ioe/news/2021/apr/pandemics-effect-year-11-students-life-chances-be-tracked-ma... |
| Description | Presentation of COSMO findings and as data resource as part of LSE Social Policy seminar series |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Presentation of COSMO findings and data resource to attendees at LSE Social Policy seminar series, which attract participants from beyond academia. Led to discussions about aspects of the findings and of the data available. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Presentation of COSMO findings and as data resource as part of Oxford Department of Education seminar series |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Presentation of COSMO findings and data resource to attendees at Oxford Department of Education seminar series. Led to discussions about aspects of the findings and of the data available. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Presentation of COSMO findings and as data resource as part of UCL/Beijing Normal University celebration event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Presentation of COSMO findings and as data resource to large international audience as part of UCL/Beijing Normal University celebration event. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.ucl.ac.uk/ioe/events/2022/sep/ioe-and-bnu-120th-anniversary |
| Description | Presentation of COSMO findings and as data resource as part of workshop between UCL Centre for Education Policy & Equalising Opportunities and ONS Analytical Hub |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | ONS Analytical Hub visited UCL to discuss various areas of shared interest, including findings from COSMO and potential future interest in using COSMO as part of further research. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Presentation of COSMO findings and as data resource as part of workshop between UCL Social Research Institute and IAB |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Third sector organisations |
| Results and Impact | Presentation of findings and data available from COSMO as part of workshop with UCL colleagues and members of IAB (Germany's Institute for Employment Research), which has led to discussions about potential collaborative research in future. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Presentation of COSMO findings and as data resource to OECD Centre on Well-being, Inclusion, Sustainability and Equal Opportunity (WISE) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Met with members of the OECD Centre on Well-being, Inclusion, Sustainability and Equal Opportunity (WISE; https://www.oecd.org/wise/) to discuss areas of mutual interest including presentation of COSMO findings and as data resource. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Presentation to Scottish Government |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | We hosted a workshop on inequalities in education, inviting policy makers from Department for Education and Scottish Government. The findings from this research project were presented as part of the introduction to the problems that we were discussing throughout the day. We also had a session introducing the COSMO data set. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Symposium on International Cohorts Showcase: New Longitudinal Studies in the UK at Society for Lifecourse and Longitudinal Studies 2022 conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | International Cohorts Showcase: New Longitudinal Studies in the UK: Symposium at Society for Lifecourse and Longitudinal Studies conference 2022. Three presentations as below: Children of the 2020s: A New Birth Cohort Study of the Early Environmental Influences on Children's Early Educational and Socioemotional Outcomes Presenter: Marialivia Bernardi, University College London Co-authors: Pasco Fearon, Lisa Calderwood, Laurel Fish, Alissa Goodman, University College London; Sandra Mathers, University of Oxford; Sarah Knibbs, Ipsos MORI A Feasibility Study for a New UK-Wide Birth Cohort in the 2020s: The Early Life Cohort Feasibility Study (ELC-FS) Presenter: Lisa Calderwood, University College London Co-authors: Alissa Goodman, Pasco Fearon, University College London A New Youth Cohort Study on the Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Young People's Education and Wellbeing: The COVID Social Mobility and Opportunities Study (COSMO) Presenter: Tugba Adali, University College London Co-authors: Jake Anders, Lisa Calderwood, Xin Shao, University College London |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |