On the anniversary of Britain’s first lockdown, an independent research report by the British Academy warned that society will continue to feel the impacts of Covid-19 for a decade or more without an urgent public policy overhaul. Their review ‘The Covid decade: Understanding the long-term societal impacts of Covid-19’ appeared as Britain observed a minute’s silence over the lost lives of 146,487 people who are believed to have died of Covid-19.
The Academy forecasts that significant intervention will be needed to avoid an acceleration towards poorer health, social and economic outcomes and a more extreme pattern of inequality. Most concerningly it has warned about the lost and likely unrecoverable access to education at all levels, exacerbating existing socio-economic inequality and impeding progress towards a prosperous, high-skilled economy.
In a statement, Hetan Shah, Chief Executive of the British Academy, said, “A year from the start of the first lockdown, we all want this to be over. However, in truth, we are at the beginning of a Covid-19 decade. Policymakers must look beyond the immediate health crisis to repair the profound social damage wrought by the pandemic.
“This means looking across education, employment, welfare, urban planning, community support and digital policies. It will require investing in civil society and our social infrastructure to strengthen our local communities, especially in our most deprived areas. Science has given us the vaccine to respond to the health crisis, but we will need social science and the humanities to meet the social, cultural and economic crises we face in the Covid decade.”
The report further cautions about widening geographic inequalities on measures such as health and wellbeing, local economic risk and resilience, and poverty. It further notes that there would be worsening social development, relationships and mental health – impacts which will vary according to age, gender, race and ethnicity, and levels of social deprivation.
While, the review paints a grim picture amidst concerns around a third wave of coronavirus from neighbouring EU countries as Britain progresses to unlock, not all has been doom and gloom. In what can be seen as the first signs of Britain bouncing back, reports have emerged that wholesale marketplace Faire has picked London as the location for its first European office. Valued at £1.9bn, it has already hired 10 people in Britain, and plans to have 40 to 50 staff in the country by the end of the year, with an office opening once coronavirus restrictions ease.
Success stories of the West Midlands
According to an analysis by the Centre for Economics and Business Research, a year of Covid-19 lockdowns has cost the UK economy £251bn. Their analysis notes that in contrast to London, Scotland, Wales and regions such as the West Midlands, East Midlands, and the East of England, had suffered Covid-induced losses larger than their typical contributions to the economy. But industry experts offer the other side of the coin and celebrate the success stories of the region.
Dan Storer, Chief Investment Officer at the West Midlands Growth Company – the region’s official Investment Promotion Agency (IPA) – said, “Clearly the pandemic has impacted businesses all over the world, and the West Midlands is no exception to these challenges. Despite this, we have seen compelling evidence of industry resilience across the region, resulting in a number of successes we can proudly reflect on.
“Summer 2020 saw the West Midlands crowned the UK’s leading location for attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) outside London for a fifth consecutive year, with India once again among the prominent sources. Recent major investments from TVS Motor Company and leading IT specialist Microland confirm the strength of the region’s offer for Indian companies – a relationship that our newly launched West Midlands India Partnership (WMIP) is seeking to nurture more closely. As the anniversary of the Partnership’s inaugural year approaches, we are finalising development of a new strategy that will set a clear direction for strengthening the living bridge of trade and tourism opportunities for mutual benefit.
“Elsewhere, the region’s thriving landscape of innovation and creativity saw Birmingham emerge as the UK’s premier regional startup hotspot, while our advanced clusters of expertise in Data Driven Healthcare and Life Sciences and Connected and Autonomous Vehicle (CAV) Modelling and Simulation recognised the West Midlands as a high potential investment destination for emerging industries of the future.
“Looking ahead, the region is primed to bounce back stronger to the international arena with exclusive major events – such as Coventry as the UK’s City of Culture and the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games – set to kickstart a widespread cultural and economic revival. These once-in-a-generation moments will showcase the UK and the West Midlands to a worldwide audience at a poignant time for the global economy, offering unique opportunities to build on the region’s existing economic alliances.”
Religious and faith leaders pray for the bereaved
In the meantime, religious leaders from across different faiths have asked people to join them in a national day to remember those who have died from any cause during the pandemic and to show support for everyone who has been bereaved.
Spearheaded by the charity Marie Curie and supported by the Together Coalition, over 200 organisations are already behind the National Day of Reflection and today 82 prominent leaders from religious groups including the Buddhist Society, British Sikh Nurses, Professional Women of Faith, Catholic Union, the Islamic Society of Britain, the Church of England, Commonwealth Jewish Council and Interfaith Matters have signed an open letter backing the day.
The letter noted, “As faith leaders we know how important the ability to grieve properly is and how high the cost will be of our inability to do that. While we can’t turn back time, we can build opportunities to mourn as a nation. That’s why this Tuesday (23 March) – on the anniversary of the first lock down – we are asking the nation to join us in doing two things. To take a minute to reflect by taking part in the nationwide silence at noon, and then take a moment to connect; to reach out to someone you know is grieving and who might like your support.
Julie Siddiqui, founder of Together we Thrive, who coordinated the letter, said, “As people of faith embedded in our communities, we have seen first-hand the scale of the loss over the past year. We have comforted so many who have lost so much.
“As a society we can’t fix that now, but we can make clear that we hold them in our hearts and prayers. That’s why this day is so crucial. A signal that we care about each other’s loses, but also encouragement to reach out and provide whatever healing balm we can. One of the few positives to come out of this crisis has been feeling more connected to our communities - if we are to deal with this new epidemic of grief we must now build on that."
It is not just the loss of life. But the pandemic has exacerbated physical, emotional and mental health vulnerabilities particularly among the Indian, Bangladeshi and Pakistani communities who have been twice as hard hit by the underlying socio-economic inequalities. Children and women coping through anxiety, depression and domestic violence have fallen through the cracks and become increasingly dependent on help from the third sector. While charities have struggled in accruing the funds to sustain the pandemic, Barnado’s spotted the need to launch and run a dedicated service particularly for children from under-privileged minority backgrounds.
Boloh the only service for underprivileged children from minority backgrounds
Barnardo’s Chief Executive Javed Khan said, “Children and families from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities are really suffering as a result of the pandemic. They are more likely to be bereaved or have parents who have lost jobs or wages, and many will need support with their mental health for years to come.
“One in five children and young people we support is BAME – just over 70,000 last year. They urgently need support to deal with a complex and unique range of issues which is why Barnardo’s has set up a new Boloh service.
“Boloh is the only service specifically targeted at South Asian, Black and other Minority Ethnic communities who have been affected by Covid - and our advisers and team of psychotherapists can speak English, Urdu, Punjabi and Hindi and others. For many children and parents, speaking to someone from their own community, who understands cultural norms or traditions, can feel safer and easier. Our Boloh advisers and psychotherapists have helped vulnerable children and parents with an overwhelming number of deaths, unemployment, increased stress and mental health difficulties and poverty. The helpline is providing a lifeline for families and restoring children’s hope for the future.”
*Anyone can call Boloh on 0800 1512605 or go to helpline.barnardos.org.uk The service runs between 1pm and 8pm Monday to Fridays and on weekends between 10am and 3pm.
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