How can we best support children and young people with their worries and anxiety: Recommended Resources

These links from trusted sources have been grouped by age category to make it easier for you to find age-appropriate information for your child/ the child you're supporting.

You know your child/ the child you are supporting best so please use these groupings flexibly.

For younger children

• Nanogirl Live has produced a couple of videos explaining COVID-19 and why it is important to wash our hands/sneeze and cough into our elbows
• This comic strip provides a visual explanation of the COVID-19 outbreak and what we can do to stop its spread

For school aged children

• BBC's Newsround has a COVID-19 website featuring a range of stories and videos on the outbreak
  These include:
• Facts and myth-busting
• Newsround advice on how to manage worries about COVID-19

For older young people/ adults

• The World Health Organisation has released this video containing facts about COVID-19 and ways in which the spread can be prevented
• The Centre for Disease Control has produced a 1 page COVID-19 fact sheet
• MQ: Transforming Mental Health has produced a resource list around Coronavirus (COVID-19) and your mental health

Resources for parents/ carers explaining COVID-19

• UNICEF's 8 quick tips for talking to children about COVID-19
• The Flourishing Families Clinic (at the University of Sussex and Sussex Partnership NHS Trust) has produced some tips and advice on how to talk to your child about their COVID-19 anxieties
• The National Association of School Psychologists have produced a resource for parents for talking to children about COVID-19 anxieties
• Wandering Minds of a Psychologist explains why it is important to talk to children about COVID-19 and provides concrete examples of things to say/ questions to ask
• The Guardian - Advice on both how to talk to your child about COVID-19, and what to cover

Resources for those working with children

• The National Association of School Psychologists has a resource preparing mental health professionals in schools for infectious disease epidemics and outbreaks
• UNICEF has published advice for teachers
• The Centre for Disease Control - General principles for parents, teachers and any other professionals working with children
• The British Psychological Society have published some tips for talking to children about COVID-19 concerns . It refers to "your child" but the tips and strategies are the same for any adults working with children, not just parents

Videos and Podcasts

• BBC Radio 4's Women's Hour: How to talk to children about COVID-19
• This Vimeo provides tips and advice about how to talk to your child about natural disasters and news events
• Ehrenreich-May is a child psychologists and has produced a Vimeo outlining three tips for talking to your child about COVID-19
• The Child's Mind Institute has published a video providing advice on talking to children about COVID-19

Resources for children and young people with specific needs

• Additude has published some advice for parents of children with ADHD
• Anna Kennedy Online has provided some advice for parents of children with ASC
• Advice for reducing the impact of routine disruption for those with ASC
• Social story about COVID-19
• The international OCD foundation has published advice for parents of youth with OCD
• Mencap easy-read

Resources for adults

• The University of Oxford's Centre for Anxiety Disorders and Trauma has shared useful mental health advice for adults.
• OCD-UK have published advice on managing OCD symptoms with COVID-19
• Rethink have published general guidelines on managing mental health during the COVID-19 outbreak

Self-Isolating

• Ehrenreich-May has produced a Vimeo on dealing with strong emotions when self-isolating with children
• BBC Bitesize - Advice on learning at home
• BBC Bitesize also has a range of home education activities
• 10 indoor activities for children if self-isolating

Information for parents and carers on online safety

• Safety Net Kids - This resource has some really clear messages for children to help them stay safe online during social distancing
• NSPCC - This resource has some helpful information for parents, carers and professionals about online safety
• PixelPrivacy - This resource has some clear info for parents on How To Keep Your Children Safe Online: The Ultimate Guide For The Non Techy Parent