This is how Shields Gazette readers say the lockdown has affected their lives - and their biggest concerns
and live on Freeview channel 276
Our lockdown survey, published across this title and 150 others across the UK last week, offers an insight into how the coronavirus crisis and lockdown has impacted people in South Tyneside and their concerns for the future.
In total we asked readers 25 questions on their attitude towards the lockdown.
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Hide AdOf these questions three focused on how the lockdown has affected mental health, relationships and concerns for the future - and today we can reveal how people in South Tyneside answered.
The majority of Shields Gazette readers who completed our survey said they felt personally most concerned about the ‘health and wellbeing of family/friends’ with 52.5% choosing that. 19.7% said their ‘own health and wellbeing’, 9% said ‘impact on your children's education’, while just over 6% said both ‘security of employment/work’ and 7% said ‘your own/household finances’.
By comparison, on a national level, 53% answered that they were most concerned about the ‘health and wellbeing of family/ friends’, 17% said their ‘own health and wellbeing’, 8.6% ‘security of employment/ work’, 8.5% ‘impact on your children’s education’ and 6.7% ‘your own/household finances’.
Of those who took part in the survey, many Shields Gazette readers said they had suffered mental health effects due to lockdown.
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Hide AdNearly 40% answered that their mental health was 'slightly affected’, 11.3% ‘severely affected’, 22.6% 'not much affected’ and 25% ‘not at all affected’.
Nationally, 40% answered that their mental health was ‘slightly affected’, 12% ‘severely affected’, 23% ‘not much affected’ and 22% ‘not at all affected’.
When asked about the effects the lockdown has had on their relationship with a live-in partner or spouse, the majority of Shields Gazette readers who took part in the survey responded that it had not changed the relationship.
45% said that, while 10.7% said ‘it has brought us much closer together’, 9.5% said ‘it has brought us slightly closer together’, 4% said ‘it has pulled us apart slightly’ and 1.5% said ‘it has pulled us apart a lot’. 26.6% of those taking part said they did not live with a partner or spouse.
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Hide AdThe national average of answers on this subject was: 43% ‘it has not changed the relationship’, 12% ‘it has brought us slightly closer together’, 10.5% ‘it has brought us much closer together, 4.9% ‘it has pulled us apart slightly’, 1.6% ‘it has pulled us apart a lot’ while 25.7% answered that they do not live with a partner or spouse.
During the course of this week we will be publishing more results of what local people had to say in our lockdown survey.