1970 British Cohort Study (BCS70)

Overview

Aims
The 1970 British Cohort Study (BCS70) is a multidisciplinary national longitudinal birth cohort study. Original aims were to examine the social and biological characteristics of the mother in relation to neonatal morbidity, and to compare the results with the 1958 National Child Development Study. With each successive sweep, the scope of the enquiry has broadened from a strictly medical focus at birth, to encompass physical, educational, social and economic development.

Institution
Centre for Longitudinal Studies (CLS) - Institute of Education (IoE), UCL

Geographic coverage - Nations
England, Scotland, Wales

Geographic coverage - Regions
Nationwide

Start date
1970

Catalogue record last updated
10/04/2024

Sample

Sample type
Birth cohort

Sample details
All people born in England, Scotland and Wales in one particular week of 1970, including stillbirths. Children born in this week in Northern Ireland were included in birth sweep only. Each cross-sectional target sample also includes all those born anywhere in the world in the same week as the longitudinal sample, who are living in Britain at the time of the sweep and who joined the BCS70 sample during the school years (at least one survey instrument partially completed).

Sample size at recruitment
17,198 births

Sample size at most recent sweep
8,581 (2018 - Age 47)

Sex
All

Age at recruitment
Birth

Cohort year of birth
1970

Data

Data access
Data request - see data access guidance cls.ucl.ac.uk/data-access-training/access-ukds/

UK Data Service
beta.ukdataservice.ac.uk/datacatalogue/series/series?id=200001

Genetic data collected

Linkage to administrative data
Health data
Income/tax and benefits

HDR UK Innovation Gateway

Additional information

Website
cls.ucl.ac.uk/cls-studies/1970-british-cohort-study

Notes
Previously known as the British Births Survey

Related themes
Covid-19 data collection, Biomarkers, Cognitive measures, Diet and nutrition, Education, Sexuality and gender identity, Housing, Socioeconomic status and deprivation, Language and literacy, Migration and immigration, Neighbourhood, Physical health assessment, Political and social attitudes, Victimisation and life events, Puberty, Reproductive health, Work and employment, Parenting and family, Sleep problems, Social care - receipt, Social care - provision, Social care - need

Summary
BCS70 is a nation-wide longitudinal birth cohort study, that aims to understand the social and biological factors that influence infant health. The results from the study are compared to the 1958 National Child Development Study (NCDS). The study started focusing only on medical records at birth, and developed to include factors such as physical, educational and economic development.

Key Papers

Reference paper
Cohort Profile: 1970 British birth cohort (BCS70).
doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyl174

Impactful papers using study data
Understanding differences in health behaviours by education. doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.jhealeco.2009.10.003

Sexual orientation and symptoms of common mental disorder or low wellbeing: combined meta-analysis of 12 UK population health surveys. doi.org/10.1186/s12888-016-0767-z

Childhood self-control and unemployment throughout the life span: Evidence from two British cohort studies. psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1177/0956797615569001

Funders

Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists

National Birthday Trust Fund

Mental health measures timeline

Sweep name:

Cohort member age:

Data collection period:

Notes:

Physical health measures: