COVID inquiry hears children spent up to 19 hours a day playing online games during lockdown

Children played video games for up to 19 hours and became more exposed to violent online porn during lockdown, the UK COVID-19 Inquiry has heard, as the impact of the pandemic and school closures disrupted the "very fabric of childhood".

The latest module of the wide-ranging inquiry was told on its opening day some children suffered "grievous harm" at the hands of those who should have been caring for them during the pandemic. The COVID inquiry was set up to scrutinise the decisions made around the virus and the impact they had on day-to-day life throughout the UK.

COVID-19 first emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan at the end of 2019, and as it developed into a worldwide pandemic the UK went in and out of unprecedented lockdown measures for two years starting from March 2020. Public hearings for module eight of the inquiry, namely Children and Young People, began on Monday.

This module will examine the impact of the pandemic on children and young people, namely their mental and physical health, and education or early years provision. It is expected to run until 23 October.

Counsel to the inquiry Clair Dobbin KC said the closure of schools "starkly highlighted" their importance as the agency which knows children and families best. Read more: Everything you need to know about the COVID inquiryMatt Hancock faces questions at COVID-19 inquiry She said evidence will be produced, during the next four weeks of hearings, that will show there was a decline in the number of children referred to social services during school closures.

She told the hearing: "The reality is that there were children who suffered grievous harm at the hands of their carers during the pandemic. "The carers of those children bear responsibility for the violence and neglect inflicted on children, and these children stand as the starkest examples of what adults are capable of doing to children behind closed doors." Meanwhile, regarding the impact of more time spent on the internet, Ms Dobbin said evidence from the National Crime Agency (NCA) would show "that school closures and furlough caused more children and child sexual abuse offenders to be online.