Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.The 1970 British Cohort Study (BCS70) began in 1970 when data were collected about the births and families of babies born in the United Kingdom in one particular week in 1970. Since then, there have been nine further full data collection exercises in order to monitor the cohort members' health, education, social and economic circumstances. These took place when respondents were aged 5 in 1975, aged 10 in 1980, aged 16 in 1986, aged 26 in 1996, aged 30 in 1999-2000 (SN 5558), aged 34 in 2004-2005, aged 42 in 2012 and aged 46 in 2016-18. Cohort members have been surveyed throughout their childhood and adult lives, mapping their individual trajectories and creating a unique resource for researchers. Featuring a range of objective measures and rich self-reported data, BCS70 covers an incredible amount of ground and can be used in research on many topics. It is one of very few longitudinal studies following people of this generation anywhere in the world.Evidence from BCS70 has illuminated important issues for society across five decades. Key findings include how reading for pleasure matters for children’s cognitive development, why grammar schools have not reduced social inequalities, and how childhood experiences can impact on mental health in mid-life. Every day researchers from across the scientific community are using this important study to make new connections and discoveries.Further information about the BCS70 and may be found on the Centre for Longitudinal Studies website. As well as BCS70, the CLS now also conducts the NCDS series.A range of BCS sub-sample and supplementary surveys have also been conducted, and a separate dataset covering response to BCS70 over all waves is available under SN 5641, 1970 British Cohort Study Response Dataset, 1970-2012. How to access genetic and/or bio-medical sample data from a range of longitudinal surveys:For information on how to access biomedical data from BCS70 that are not held at the UKDS, see the CLS Genetic data and biological samples webpage.
BCS70 County Data, 1986-2012: Special Licence AccessThese data link BCS70 respondents from sweeps 3 – 9 (inclusive). For the fourth edition (January 2020) a new version of the data has been deposited, modified to provide a more consistent geography for researchers. All cohort members in each sweep of the study from 1980 onward (i.e. BCS3) have been allocated to counties (England and Wales) or regions/districts (Scotland), based on 1981 boundaries. The documentation has also been updated. The county data are only available under a Special Licence, which has more restrictive access conditions than the standard End User Licence (EUL) used for the main BCS70 datasets (see 'Access' section). Please contact the HelpDesk for further details. Users who make a successful application for the county data will also need to download the main EUL BCS70 Sweeps 3-9 datasets to match the counties to them.
Main Topics:
The BCS70 County Data provide geographic data for counties (England and Wales) or regions/districts (Scotland) at 1981 boundaries for respondents to BCS70 Sweep 3 (1980) BCS70 Sweep 4 (1986) BCS70 Sweep 5 (1996) BCS70 Sweep 6 (2000); BCS70 Sweep 7 (2004); BCS70 Sweep 8 (2008); BCS70 Sweep 9 (2012).
No sampling (total universe)
Compilation/Synthesis
Compilation or synthesis of existing material
