The behaviour, speech development and sleep patterns of young children in Scotland have deteriorated during the pandemic, official analysis shows.
A survey of almost 6,000 parents and carers suggests the number of pre-school children struggling to pay attention, build relationships and manage their emotions has risen in the last two years. More parents say their toddlers are waking at night when the findings of the latest research are compared with studies conducted in 2019.
Public Health Scotland, which published the report yesterday, warned: “Overall, the findings suggest that for a substantial proportion of children in our sample, parents and carers perceive the pandemic to have had a negative impact on child and family health, wellbeing and development.”
In total 5,895 parents and carers of children
