Covid's legacy of anxiety for 2 million young adults

MORE than two million young adults say the pandemic has had a huge impact on their mental health, a study reveals.

- By Lucy Johnston

The research, carried out to mark today’s fifth anniversary of the start of the first Covid lockdown, also found 37% of the 18 to 25-year-olds quizzed said they felt worse off now than they did in 2020. It came as a separate survey found a 52% rise in young people waiting more than a year for mental health support.

The analysis of government data by the charity Young Minds showed 78,577 children and teenagers referred to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services during the last full financial year had faced 12-month delays, with 34,191 waiting more than two years.