Covid-19: The regional impact across the UK

Kiran

It is undoubted that Covid-19 has had an impact across the globe. Studies so far suggest that this pandemic has impacted many regions in the UK to differing degrees socially and economically. Whilst it is a public health issue, what is important to recognise from a social and economic angle is the impact that it has had in different regions and on those families within those geographical areas. The extent to which regions and families are affected is crucial information for policymaking decisions that involve deciding the extent of financial and nonfinancial help required in both the short and long term.

How have people been affected?

People have been affected in many different ways, from mental health issues to the availability of services and food. Figure 1 shows that about 86% of people in each country and region of Britain said they had felt either stressed, anxious or worried about the future or that their mental health had become worse.

Mental Health Issues Levels of worry and reasons for worrying

Evident also across regions is a difference in the levels of worry and reasons for worrying across Great Britain. A study by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) in 2020 shows that across Great Britain, eight in 10 adults said they were somewhat worried or very worried about the effect that the pandemic was having on their life during April. Regionally it was found that people in North East England felt most worried about the effect Covid-19 was having on their life. This varied from 76% in the East Midlands and in Scotland, to 87% in the North East.

Changes in adult mental health in the UK population before and during lockdown one (23 March 2020) is a significant area of concern for the Government. Studies by Lancet (2020), which is one of the first national probability sample studies to track temporal changes in population mental health from before the Covid-19 pandemic and into the subsequent lockdown period, state that an overall increase in mental health distress in people aged 16 years and older in the UK compared with the previous year. The study showed that the increase in mental distress did not affect all groups equally, with people in some demographic subgroups showing marked increases. Those groups most strongly linked to increased mental health distress included those associated with pre-existing health inequalities such as gender, age and low income. The ONS Survey states that approximately 86% of people in each country and region said they had felt stressed, anxious or worried about the future or that their mental health had

become worse. The information above shows the regional percentage of people who reported that their well-being had been impacted by stress or anxiety as a result of the coronavirus, country or region in April/May 2020. In addition to percentage regional differences, a study by RSA illustrates that large areas of the South West experience the greater difference in the rates of referral for physical tests, including high cholesterol and diabetes. Leaving these often treatable long-term physical conditions undiagnosed is a key risk factor in the overall health of local people.

Figure 2: ONS study indicates that people in the North East felt most worried of all countries and regions of Britain about the effect Covid 19 was having on their life.

Added to this, Chronicle Live (2020) stated that nearly 400,000 people in the North East have been drinking more alcohol since the coronavirus outbreak – with the majority at levels likely to put their health at risk. This prompted a campaign from Balance which was launched across the North East called ‘Alcohol – Not The Answer’. This was necessary as a new survey for Alcohol Awareness Week (16-22 November) showed that four in 10 (41%) drinkers reported anxiety, stress or worry as a reason for drinking at least once in the past six months. This meant that nearly 740,000 people in the North East may have turned to alcohol as a coping mechanism (BalanceNorthEast 2020).

Access to groceries, medication and essentials

The ONS 2020 study showed that around 12% of people struggled as they worried about not being able to make plans and 10% of people in each country and region said that their main concern was the use of transport or ability to get groceries, medication and essentials. Statistics from this study show that West Midlands (43%) and East of England were the worst affected regions as they struggled the most of any region to get groceries and toiletries. Scotland by comparison had the lowest figure of all at 33%. Figure 3: Areas with overlapping vulnerability. The-Geography-of-theCOVID19-crisis-in-England-final.pdf (ifs.org.uk)

Vulnerability of families

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) 2020 state that different regions of the country will be vulnerable to the Covid-19 crisis in different ways. For example, health-related vulnerability, labourmarket vulnerability and/or family vulnerability. Although the study found that the overall relationship between different dimensions of vulnerability is weakly negative, some areas do look especially vulnerable in several dimensions.

Figure 3 illustrates this well, showing areas of overlapping vulnerabilities. Covid-19 has impacted people’s lives in many different ways across the UK to different extents.

Government challenge ahead

The extents, with their differing degrees, have been illustrated in relation to economic, social and health issues. It is now for the Government to use this information to provide the correct amount of financial and non-financial help to differing regions accordingly. There is no doubt that the provision of help should be closely monitored and frequently reassessed to ensure that no one region suffers more than it should. However, even with close monitoring, the Government faces an equally compelling challenge than simply providing the financial help required. There is much diversity of background and experience within the UK to provide the required assistance, even with the funding available. The Government will therefore need to consider this also. Overall, this is a huge challenge for the Government for the next ten years at least. There is no doubt that the impacts of such a pandemic will have long lasting effects through the lifetime of many generations to come.

References Bourquin B, Delestre I, Joyce R, Rasul I and Waters T(June 2020). The effects of coronavirus on household finances and financial distress. https://www.ifs.org.uk/publications/14908 Davenport A, Farquharson C, Rasul I, Sibieta L, Stoye G (2020). The geography of the COVID-19 crisis in England https://www.ifs.org.uk/uploads/The-Geography-of-the-COVID19-crisis-in-England-final.pdf Harris J P (May 2020). Coronavirus and the social impacts on the countries of regions of Britain: April 2020. https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/healthandwellbeing/bulletins/coronavirusandthesocialimpactsonthecountriesandregionsofbritain/ april2020 Kelly M (11 November 2020). Stress of Covid-19 sees unhealthy boozing levels soar in North East https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/stress-covid-19-sees-unhealthy-19256527 Pierce M, Hope H, Ford T, Hatch S, Hotopf M, John A, Kontopantelis E, Webb R, Wessely S, McManus S, Abel K M (21 July 2020). Mental health before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: a longitudinal probability sample survey of the UK population https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S2215-0366%2820%2930308-4 https://www.thersa.org/blog/2015/11/mental-health-outcomes-in-england--a-map-of-quiet-discrimination?gclid=CjwKCAiAtej9BRAvEiwA0UAWXojJlMyY9gKPtwH49qKOz1NiYHUuTHHEuWIu3I6cepoXt1fSWGQR8BoCleIQAvD_BwE https://www.bma.org.uk/what-we-do/population-health/mental-health/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-mental-health-in-england http://www.balancenortheast.co.uk/