Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents & Children (ALSPAC)
Measures describe a question asked to a participant during a survey or an item of information requested from a manager when they fill out a data return. For example, ‘Who do you live with?’ is a measure and the possible responses might be, mother, father, brother, sister etc.
Need/provision/receipt | Description of measure | Start Year | Age range | Age from | Age to | Informant | Multiple rater | Reporting term | Sweep title | Standard instrument | Question/Data item | Response scale | Notes | Physical health measures | Dataset | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Provision; | Caring since start of pandemic | 2021 | 28-30 | 28 | 30 | Participant | No | Since pandemic | Parents Questionnaire 2022 | No | Since the start of the pandemic: |
Yes, it affected me alot |
ALSPAC | |||
Provision; | Full or part-time carer | 2021 | 28-30 | 28 | 30 | Participant | No | Current | Life @ 29+ | No | Are you currently: Please cross one circle on each line. A full/part-time carer |
Yes |
ALSPAC | |||
Provision; | Caring in past year | 2021 | 28-30 | 28 | 30 | Participant | No | Past year | Life @ 29+ | No | In the past year how often have you done the following; whether at work, for a family member or friend, as a volunteer or as a hobby? d. Nursing or caring |
Every day |
ALSPAC | |||
Provision; | Caring since start of pandemic | 2021 | 28-30 | 28 | 30 | Participant | No | Since pandemic | Life @ 29+ | No | Since the start of the pandemic: |
Yes, it affected me alot |
ALSPAC | |||
Provision; | Full or part-time carer | 2014 | 21-23 | 21 | 23 | Child | No | Current | Life at 22+ | No | Are you currently: |
a. In full-time paid work (30 or more hours a week) |
ALSPAC | |||
Provision; | Full or part-time carer | 2020 | 16-120 | 16 | 120 | Partner | No | Current | Parents 2020 | No | Are you currently: Please cross one box on each line. |
a. In full-time paid work (30 or more hours a week) |
ALSPAC | |||
Provision; | Caring responsibilities | 2002 | 16-120 | 16 | 120 | Partner | No | Current | Lifestyle and health of partner | No | How many hours each week approximately do you spend time doing the following: |
a) Preparing food, cooking and washing up |
ALSPAC | |||
Need; | Ability to complete IADL/ADLs | 2010 | 17-19 | 17 | 19 | Child | No | Current | Your changing life | No | The following questions are about activities you might do during a typical day. Does your health limit you in |
a) Vigorous activities, such as running, lifting heavy |
ALSPAC | |||
Need; | Ability to complete IADL/ADLs | 2013 | 20-22 | 20 | 22 | Child | No | Current | Your life now (21 years) | No | The following questions are about activities you might do during a typical day. Does your health limit you in |
a) Vigorous activities, such as running, lifting heavy |
ALSPAC | |||
Provision; | Full or part-time carer | 2020 | 16-120 | 16 | 120 | Participant | No | Current | Parents 2020 | No | Are you currently: |
a. In full-time paid work (30 or more hours a week) |
ALSPAC | |||
Provision; | Full or part-time carer | 2017 | 24-26 | 24 | 26 | Child | No | Current | Life at 25+ | No | Are you currently: |
a. In full-time paid work (30 or more hours a week) |
ALSPAC | |||
Receipt; | History of being in care | 2019 | 26-28 | 26 | 28 | Child | No | Entire life | Life at 27+ | No | Were you ever ‘in care’ of either a local authority or voluntary agency |
Yes |
ALSPAC | |||
Provision; | Full or part-time carer | 2019 | 26-28 | 26 | 28 | Child | No | Current | Life at 27+ | No | Are you currently: Please cross one circle on each line. |
a. In full-time paid work (30 or more hours a week) |
ALSPAC | |||
Provision; | Caring responsibilities and hours per week | 2002 | 16-120 | 16 | 120 | Participant | No | Current | Lifestyle and health of mother (11y) | No | How many hours each week approximately do you spend time doing the following: a) Preparing food, cooking and washing up |
Response scale for each data item: |
ALSPAC | |||
Need; | Ability to complete IADL/ADLs | 2010 | 16-120 | 16 | 120 | Participant | No | Current | You and your life 2010 | No | The following questions are about activities you might do during a typical day. Does your health a) Vigorous activities, such as running, lifting |
Response scale for all data items: |
ALSPAC | |||
Provision; | Full or part-time carer | 2012 | 16-120 | 16 | 120 | Participant | No | Current | Your life 2013 | No | Are you/your partner currently? |
Employed in a paid job (full or part-time) |
ALSPAC | |||
Provision; | Ability to complete IADL/ADLs | 2012 | 16-120 | 16 | 120 | Participant | No | Current | Your life 2013 | No | The following questions are about activities you might do during a typical day. Does your health a) Vigorous activities, such as running, lifting |
Response scale for all data items: |
ALSPAC |
Overview
Aims
The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents & Children (ALSPAC) is a multi-generational, population-based prospective birth cohort study. Established in the early 90s, ALSPAC follows the lives of over 14,500 people born between April 1991 and December 1992 and their family members. Children and their families have been followed intensively, primarily with annual questionnaires, as well as clinical assessments for a sub-sample of cohort members. ALSPAC was specifically designed to understand the ways in which genetic and environmental factors interact to influence health, behaviour, and development across the lifespan. The ALSPAC study has collected data using a range of methods. Mental health measures collected in postal questionnaires and from clinic assessments are detailed on the Catalogue.
Institution
University of Bristol
Geographic coverage - Nations
England;
Start date
1990
Minimum age at recruitment
0
Sample Size
3,400
Sample
Study design
Pregnancy cohort
Sample details
Pregnant women residing in Avon with an expected delivery date between the 1 April 1991 and the 31 December 1992 were eligible to participate. The initial sample was recruited during Phase I, in which mothers enrolled in the study during pregnancy and then either returned at least one questionnaire or attended a ""Children in Focus"" clinic by 19 July 1999. This initial sample consisted of 14,541 pregnancies (14,676 foetuses, with 195 twin, 3 triplet and 1 quadruplet pregnancies), resulting in 14,062 live births. 13,988 children (cohort members) were alive at 1 year of age. Eligible cohort members who did not join in Phase I have joined the study through major recruitment drives since the cohort members were 7 years old. A further 913 eligible cohort members have been enrolled in this way. As a result of further enrolment during Phases II (7years), III (8 years) and IV (18 years), the baseline sample consists of 15,454 pregnancies (15,589 known foetuses) and 14,901 cohort members alive at 1 year of age. During pregnancy, partners/fathers were recruited via the mother. More recently, fathers have been recruited directly by the ALSPAC team and via the cohort members. Measures relating to cohort members’ grandparents have also been collected from the cohort members, mothers and fathers. The study has been extended to include cohort members’ children. This study, known as ALSPAC-Generation 2 (COCO90s), is not currently included in the Catalogue, but more information is available here.
Sex
All
Sample Characteristics
Birth cohort
Sample size at most recent sweep
~3,400 (cohort members) (Life at 27+)
Data
Data Access
Contact study team - Proposal
http://www.bristol.ac.uk/alspac/researchers/access/
Complementary Data
Brain activity and structures
Genetic/genomic data
Linked administrative data
Mapping/spatial data
Observational/qualitative data
Genetic Data Collected
Yes
Linked Data
Education data
Environmental data
Health data
Social media data
HDR UK Innovation Gateway
https://web.www.healthdatagateway.org/dataset/255d70c6-9a50-4b62-adc0-44216606a216
Additional information
Website
Notes
Also known as Children of the 90s (CO90s).
Related Measures
Benefits, Biomarkers, Cognitive measures, Covid-19 data collection, Diet and nutrition, Education, Ethnicity and race, Faith/religion, Household composition, Housing, Income/household income, Language and literacy, Loneliness and social isolation, Mental health measures, Migration and immigration, Neighbourhood and community, Parenting and family, Physical health assessment, Political and social attitudes, Pollution, Quality of life/wellbeing, Sexuality and gender identity, Sleep problems, Social security, Social support, Socioeconomic status and deprivation, Transport services, Work and employment,
Study Code
ALSPAC
Reference paper(s)
Boyd, A., Golding, J., Macleod, J., Lawlor, D. A., Fraser, A., Henderson, J., … & Davey Smith, G. (2013). Cohort profile: the ‘children of the 90s’—the index offspring of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. International journal of epidemiology, 42(1), 111-127.
Northstone, K., Lewcock, M., Groom, A., Boyd, A., Macleod, J., Timpson, N., & Wells, N. (2019). The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC): an update on the enrolled sample of index children in 2019. Wellcome open research, 4.
doi.org/10.12688/wellcomeopenres.15132.1
Fraser, A., Macdonald-Wallis, C., Tilling, K., Boyd, A., Golding, J., Davey Smith, G., … & Lawlor, D. A. (2013). Cohort profile: the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children: ALSPAC mothers cohort. International journal of epidemiology, 42(1), 97-110.
Smith D, Bowring C, Wells N et al. The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children – A resource for COVID-19 research: Questionnaire data capture November 2020 – March 2021. Wellcome Open Res 2021, 6:155
Funders
MRC Wellcome BristolUni