Overview
| Acronym |
ALSPAC |
|---|---|
| Website | |
| Contacts | |
| Investigators | |
| Start Year | 1990 |
| Funding | Core support is provided by Wellcome, MRC and the University of Bristol. Additional funding has been obtained from multiple sources to collect particular data and undertake specific analyses. |
Study Design
| Study design | Cohort |
|---|---|
| General information on follow up (profile, frequency). |
During the index pregnancy women were sent 3 questionnaires. Since then, over a period of some 25 years, women have been sent almost annual questionnaires asking about their own health and well-being. From 2008, women were invited to attend four focus clinical assessments. Assessments of the children have been administered frequently, with multiple data collection time points since birth. These include numerous child-completed questionnaires, a number of clinical assessments from the age of 7 years and further questionnaires about the child completed by the mother or other main caregiver. Partners of the mothers have also completed a number of questionnaires and been invited to one focus clinic assessment. The second generation (children of the children) have been and continue to be recruited with data collected via questionnaire and clinical assessment at multiple time points. |
| Recruitment Target |
|
| Number of participants |
40,000 |
| Number of participants with biosamples |
25,000 |
Access
| Data |
|
| Biosamples |
|
| Other | Non-standard data including MRI Scans, Speech Samples, Video, Sound, Images. |
Please read our web page on Data Access and our Access Policy
If you have any questions about accessing data or samples, please email alspac-data@bristol.ac.uk (data) or bbl-info@bristol.ac.uk (samples).
Cohort Profile Papers
Offspring Cohort Profile
Boyd A., Golding J., Macleod J., Lawlor D.A., Fraser A., Henderson J., Molloy L., Ness A., Ring S., Davey Smith G. Cohort Profile: The ‘Children of the 90s’—the index offspring of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. International Journal of Epidemiology 2013; 42(1): 111-127
Mothers Cohort Profile
Fraser A, Macdonald-Wallis C, Tilling K, et al.: Cohort Profile: The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children: ALSPAC mothers cohort. International Journal of Epidemiology 2013; 42(1): 97–110.
Cohort Profile Update
Northstone K., Lewcock M., Groom A., Boyd A., Macleod J., Timpson N., Wells N. Cohort Profile:The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC): an update on the enrolled sample of index children in 2019
Further Information
Study Timeline of Data Available to Researchers
Each colour in the timeline graph below represents a separate Study Population, while each segment in the graph represents a separate Data Collection Event. Clicking on a segment gives more detailed information on a Data Collection Event.
Populations
G0 Mothers
The population consists of all pregnant women resident in the old administrative county of Avon, in the South West of England, with an expected date of delivery between 1 April 1991 and 31 December 1992.
Sources of Recruitment
| General Population |
|
|---|---|
| Specific Population |
|
| Supplementary Information | ALSPAC attempted to make contact with eligible women through media information encouraging study contact and recruitment staff visiting community locations. In parallel, routine antenatal and maternity health services were used to promote the study and distribute an ‘expression of interest’ card. Through returning this card, women were able to request further information on the study or to decline participation. Completed cards contained sufficient detail to allow ALSPAC staff to determine eligibility. Posters were printed for display in a variety of different places - including chemist shops, libraries, mother and toddler groups, and pre-school playgroups, general practitioner waiting-rooms, antenatal clinics and any other area where a mother in early pregnancy was likely to be. In addition, there was considerable local and national coverage in the press, radio and television. |
Selection Criteria
| Gender | Women only |
|---|---|
| Pregnant women |
|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Territory | Old administrative county of Avon, South West England. |
| Supplementary Information | To be eligible for the study, women had to be resident in Avon while pregnant. In addition, their expected date of delivery had to lie between 1st April 1991 and 31st December 1992. |
Sample Size
| Number of participants |
14,541 |
|---|---|
| Number of participants with biosamples |
10,000 |
| Supplementary information about number of participants |
14541 G0 mother were recruited in phase 1, this has been increased in three subsequent phases. |
Data Collection Events
| Name | Description | Start | End |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mother biosamples results | Data included in this file have been obtained... | 1990 (July) | 2015 (March) |
| Mother social class | Social Class Information was collected at the... | 1990 (September) | 1997 (January) |
| Your Environment Q | Information was collected about: - The home... | 1990 (September) | 1992 (October) |
| Having A Baby Q | Information was collected about: - Past... | 1990 (November) | 1992 (September) |
| About Yourself Q | Information was collected about: - Medical... | 1990 (November) | 1993 (August) |
| Your Pregnancy Q | Information was collected about: - Plans about... | 1991 (March) | 1993 (January) |
| Maternal grandparent social class | Social Class Information was collected at the... | 1991 (March) | 1993 (January) |
| Partner proxy social class | Social Class Information was collected at the... | 1991 (March) | 1997 (January) |
| Obstetric records (Lawlor - repeated measures) | Information was abstracted from antenatal... | 1991 (April) | 1992 (December) |
| Obstetric records - mother (Golding) | Information was abstracted from obstetric... | 1991 (April) | 1992 (December) |
| Me and My Baby Q | Information was collected about: - Delivery of... | 1991 (May) | 1993 (April) |
| Looking After The Baby Q | Information was collected about: - Looking... | 1992 (April) | 1993 (October) |
| Caring For A Toddler Q | Information was collected about: - Current... | 1992 (September) | 1994 (November) |
| Your Health, Events And Feelings Q | Information was collected about: - Current... | 1993 (October) | 1995 (November) |
| Mother's New Questionnaire Q | Information was collected about: - Current... | 1994 (November) | 1997 (January) |
| Study Mother's Questionnaire Q | Information was collected about: - Current... | 1996 (January) | 1998 (March) |
| Mother's Lifestyle Q | Information was collected about: - Gambling -... | 1997 (February) | 1999 (March) |
| Mother And Home Q | Information was collected about: - Accidents &... | 1998 (August) | 2000 (March) |
| Pregnancy level baseline information | Ths datafile contains baseline information on... | 1998 (August) | 2000 (March) |
| Mother And Family Q | Information was collected about: - Current... | 1999 (September) | 2001 (May) |
| Mother Of A 9 year old Q | Information was collected about: - Current... | 2000 (October) | 2002 (April) |
| You And Your Surroundings Q | Information was collected about: - Exposure to... | 2001 (August) | 2003 (April) |
| Lifestyle And Health Of Mother Q | Information was collected about: - Dizziness,... | 2002 (July) | 2004 (May) |
| Twelve Years On Q | Information was collected about: - Current... | 2003 (May) | 2005 (May) |
| Adult Learning Q | Information was collected about any adult... | 2004 (May) | 2004 (October) |
| Focus on Mothers 1 clinic | The following data was collected: -... | 2008 (December) | 2011 (July) |
| About Eating Q | Information was collected about any body image... | 2009 (July) | 2009 (September) |
| You And Your Life Q | Information was collected about: - Household... | 2010 (May) | 2012 (January) |
| Focus on Mothers 2 clinic | The following data was collected: -... | 2011 (July) | 2013 (June) |
| You and Your Study Young Person Aged 19+ Q | Information was collected about: - Study child... | 2011 (September) | 2012 (February) |
| Focus on Mothers 3 clinic | The following data was collected: -... | 2013 (March) | 2014 (March) |
| Focus on Mothers 4 clinic | The following data was collected: -... | 2014 (April) | 2015 (March) |
| Your Life in 2013 | 2013 (May) | 2014 (April) | |
| Mother's deprivation indices and urban/rural status | Information was collected regarding various... | 1990 (September) | 2014 (January) |
G0 Partners
The population consists of partners; whether it is the biological fathers or those who take on the role of a parent of the children enrolled in the study.
Sources of Recruitment
| Specific Population |
|
|---|
Selection Criteria
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Territory | Old administrative county of Avon. |
Sample Size
| Number of participants |
10,207 |
|---|---|
| Number of participants with biosamples |
2,000 |
| Supplementary information about number of participants |
Mothers were asked to invite their partner (who may or may not have been the father of her study child) to complete self-completion questionnaires from pregnancy onwards. Fathers were then enrolled into the study in their own right with 3000 enrolling in 2010. |
Data Collection Events
| Name | Description | Start | End |
|---|---|---|---|
| You And Your Environment Q | Information was collected about: - The home... | 1990 (November) | 1993 (August) |
| Partner social class | Social Class Information was collected at the... | 1990 (November) | 2001 (May) |
| Paternal grandparent social class | Social Class Information was collected at the... | 1990 (November) | 2001 (May) |
| Partner's Questionnaire | Information was collected about: - Reactions to... | 1990 (November) | 1992 (September) |
| Being A Father Q | Information was collected about: - The birth of... | 1991 (May) | 1993 (April) |
| The Baby And Me Q | Information was collected about: - Health -... | 1992 (April) | 1993 (October) |
| A Toddler In The House Q | Information was collected about: - Health... | 1992 (September) | 1994 (November) |
| Partner's Health, Events And Feelings Q | Information was collected about: - Health... | 1993 (October) | 1995 (November) |
| Partner's New Questionnaire | Information was collected about: - Health... | 1994 (November) | 1997 (January) |
| Study Partner's Questionnaire | Information was collected about: - Health... | 1996 (January) | 1998 (March) |
| Partner's Lifestyle Q | Information was collected about: - Gambling -... | 1997 (February) | 1999 (March) |
| Partner And Home Q | Information was collected about: - Accidents -... | 1998 (August) | 2000 (March) |
| Father And The Family Q | Information was collected about: - Health -... | 1999 (September) | 2001 (May) |
| Father Of A 9 Year Old Q | Information was collected about: - Health... | 2000 (October) | 2002 (April) |
| Father And Surroundings Q | Information was collected about: - Chemical... | 2001 (August) | 2003 (April) |
| Lifestyle And Health Of Partner Q | Information was collected about: - Dizziness,... | 2002 (July) | 2004 (May) |
| Partner - About Me Q | Information was collected about: - Health... | 2003 (May) | 2005 (May) |
| Partner Adult Learning Q | Information was collected about any adult... | 2004 (May) | 2004 (October) |
| Partner biosamples and metabolomics results | Data included in this file have been obtained... | 2011 (September) | 2013 (February) |
| Focus on Fathers 1 clinic | The following data was collected: -... | 2011 (September) | 2013 (February) |
| Focussing on You Q | Information was collected on: - The household... | 2011 (November) | 2013 (February) |
G1 Children
The population consists of any resulting child from all pregnant women resident in the old administrative county of Avon if their estimated delivery date fell between 1 April 1991 and 31 December 1992.
Sources of Recruitment
| Specific Population |
|
|---|
Selection Criteria
| Newborns | |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Territory | Old administrative county of Avon, South West England. |
Sample Size
| Number of participants |
14,062 |
|---|---|
| Number of participants with biosamples |
10,000 |
| Supplementary information about number of participants |
14062 G1 children were recruited in phase 1, this has been increased in three subsequent phases. |
Data Collection Events
| Name | Description | Start | End |
|---|---|---|---|
| Child biosamples results and metabolomics | Data included in this file have been obtained... | 1991 (April) | 2017 (September) |
| My Young Baby Girl/Boy Q | Information was collected about: - Mother's... | 1991 (April) | 1993 (April) |
| Child level baseline information | Ths datafile contains baseline information on... | 1991 (April) | 1992 (December) |
| Obstetric records - child (Golding) | Information was abstracted from obstetric... | 1991 (April) | 1992 (December) |
| My Daughter/Son Q | Information was collected about: - Health and... | 1991 (July) | 1993 (August) |
| Child level cohort profile | Ths datafile describes when each child was... | 1991 (April) | 1992 (December) |
| My Infant Daughter/Son Q | Information was collected about: - Accidents &... | 1992 (August) | 1994 (May) |
| Children In Focus clinics | A 10% sample of the child cohort attended... | 1992 (October) | 1998 (April) |
| Girl/Boy Toddler Q | Information was collected about: - Health... | 1992 (October) | 1994 (August) |
| My Little Girl/Boy Q | Information was collected about: - Activities &... | 1993 (January) | 1995 (February) |
| My Study Daughter/Son Q | Information was collected about: - Health -... | 1994 (January) | 1995 (August) |
| My Three Year old Girl/Boy Q | Information was collected about: - Accidents &... | 1994 (September) | 1996 (April) |
| My Daughter/Son's Health And Behaviour Q | Information was collected about: - Health -... | 1994 (November) | 1996 (October) |
| My Young 4 Year Old Girl/Boy Q | Information was collected about: - Accidents &... | 1995 (July) | 1997 (August) |
| Development And Health Of My Daughter/Son Q | Information was collected about: - Health... | 1996 (January) | 1997 (November) |
| Early Child completed Questionnaires (5-7 years) | Information was collected at 6 timepoints... | 1996 (October) | 2000 (March) |
| My Five Year Old Daughter /Son Q | Information was collected about: - Accidents &... | 1996 (October) | 1998 (July) |
| My School Girl/Boy Q | Information was collected about: - Health... | 1997 (February) | 1998 (December) |
| My Daughter/Son Growing Up Q | Information was collected about: - Going to... | 1997 (November) | 1999 (July) |
| My Daughter/Son At School Q | Information was collected about: - Health... | 1998 (March) | 1999 (November) |
| My Teeth Q | Information was collected about: - Visiting the... | 1998 (July) | 2000 (October) |
| My Daughter/Son's Well-Being Q | Information was collected about: - Health... | 1998 (July) | 2000 (October) |
| Focus@7 clinic | Information was collected on: - Anthropometry -... | 1998 (September) | 2000 (September) |
| Me And My School Q | Information was collected about the child's... | 1999 (September) | 2001 (May) |
| Growing And Changing Q1 | Information was collected about pubertal status... | 1999 (September) | 2001 (May) |
| School Q -year 3 | Information was collected about;- The study... | 1999 (September) | 2001 (May) |
| Focus@8 clinic | Information was collected on: - Height & Weight... | 1999 (October) | 2001 (December) |
| Some More About Me Q | Information was collected about: - Other... | 2000 (May) | 2001 (September) |
| My Daughter/Son's Health Q | Information was collected about: - Health... | 2000 (May) | 2001 (September) |
| My Daughter/Son At Home And At School Q | Information was collected about: - Going to... | 2000 (May) | 2001 (September) |
| My World Q | Information was collected about: - The child's... | 2000 (October) | 2002 (April) |
| Maths Assessment - year 4 | A maths test was administered to Year 4... | 2000 (October) | 2002 (April) |
| Focus@9 clinic | Information was collected on: - Anthropometry -... | 2001 (January) | 2003 (January) |
| My Hands, My Feet And Me Q | Information was collected about: - Self-image -... | 2001 (February) | 2002 (November) |
| Your Daughter/Son At 9 Q | Information was collected about: - Going to... | 2001 (February) | 2002 (November) |
| Growing And Changing Q2 | Information was collected about pubertal status... | 2001 (February) | 2002 (November) |
| Rings And Things Q | Information was collected about: - Mobile phone... | 2001 (November) | 2003 (April) |
| Teeth And Things Q | Information was collected about: - Dental... | 2002 (February) | 2003 (November) |
| Focus 10+ clinic | Information was collected on: - Anthropometry -... | 2002 (February) | 2003 (October) |
| My Daughter/Son's Health And Happiness Q | Information was collected about: - Health... | 2002 (February) | 2003 (November) |
| Growing And Changing Q3 | Information was collected about pubertal status... | 2002 (February) | 2003 (November) |
| School Life And Me Q | Information was collected about: - Feelings... | 2002 (July) | 2004 (May) |
| Watches And Funny Feelings Q | Information was collected about: - Wearing a... | 2002 (December) | 2004 (November) |
| Being A Girl/Boy Q | Information was collected about: - Going to... | 2002 (December) | 2004 (November) |
| Growing And Changing Q4 | Information was collected about pubertal status... | 2002 (December) | 2004 (November) |
| School Q - year 6 | Information was collected about;- The study... | 2002 (December) | 2004 (November) |
| Maths Assessment - year 6 | A maths test was administered to Year 6... | 2002 (December) | 2004 (November) |
| Focus 11+ clinic | Information was collected on: - Anthropometry -... | 2003 (January) | 2005 (January) |
| All Around Me Q | Information was collected about: - Tea and... | 2003 (May) | 2005 (May) |
| Teen Focus 1 Clinic | Information was collected on: - Anthropometry -... | 2004 (February) | 2005 (November) |
| Food And Things Q | Information was collected about: - School... | 2004 (May) | 2006 (April) |
| Reading And Singing Q | Information was collected about: - Reading -... | 2004 (May) | 2006 (April) |
| Growing And Changing Q5 | Information was collected about pubertal status... | 2004 (May) | 2006 (April) |
| My Teenage Daughter/Son Q | Information was collected about: - Health... | 2004 (May) | 2006 (April) |
| Teen Focus 2 Clinic | Information was collected on: - Anthropometry -... | 2005 (January) | 2006 (September) |
| Travelling, Leisure And School Q | Information was collected about: - Self image -... | 2005 (July) | 2006 (December) |
| Maths Assessment - year 8 | A maths test was administered to Year 8... | 2005 (July) | 2006 (December) |
| Wellbeing Of My Teenage Daughter/Son Q | Information was collected about: - Health... | 2005 (July) | 2006 (December) |
| Girls/Boys' Experiences, Thoughts And Behaviours Q | Information was collected about: - Activities -... | 2005 (September) | 2007 (January) |
| Life Of A Teenager Q | Information was collected about: - Going to... | 2006 (January) | 2007 (March) |
| Growing And Changing Q6 | Information was collected about pubertal status... | 2006 (April) | 2007 (September) |
| Teen Focus 3 Clinic | Information was collected on: - Anthropometry -... | 2006 (October) | 2008 (November) |
| Growing And Changing Q7 | Information was collected about pubertal status... | 2006 (November) | 2009 (September) |
| Year 11 Questionnaire For Young People Q | Information was collected during Year 11 (the... | 2007 (March) | 2009 (February) |
| Growing And Changing Q8 | Information was collected about pubertal status... | 2007 (March) | 2009 (February) |
| Year 11 Q - Parents And Carers | Information was collected during Year 11 (the... | 2007 (March) | 2009 (November) |
| You And Your Friends Q | Information was collected about Friendship... | 2008 (April) | 2008 (May) |
| Growing And Changing Q9 | Information was collected about pubertal status... | 2008 (April) | 2010 (January) |
| Life Of A 16+ Teenager Q | Information was collected about: - Leisure... | 2008 (October) | 2009 (August) |
| Your Daughter/Son 16+ Years On Q | Information was collected about: - Relationship... | 2008 (October) | 2009 (July) |
| Teen Focus 4 Clinic | Information was collected on: - Height & Weight... | 2008 (December) | 2011 (June) |
| Gambling online survey | Information was collected on different forms of... | 2009 (January) | 2011 (July) |
| Plans & Aspirations Q | Funded by DCSF, information was collected on -... | 2009 (September) | 2011 (July) |
| Internet Use Q | Information was collected on - Internet use -... | 2010 (March) | 2010 (July) |
| Your Changing Life Q | Information was collected about: - Leisure... | 2010 (August) | 2011 (July) |
| You and Your Body Q | Information was collected from girls only on... | 2011 (September) | 2012 (January) |
| You and Your Study Young Person Aged 19+ Q | Information was collected about: - Education &... | 2011 (October) | 2012 (January) |
| It's All About You 20+ Q | Information was collected about: - Having... | 2012 (October) | 2013 (July) |
| Your life now Q | Information was collected about: - Mental... | 2013 (December) | 2014 (October) |
| Life at 22+ Q | Information was collected about: - Health -... | 2014 (November) | 2015 (October) |
| Focus 24+ clinic | Information was collected on: - Anthropometry -... | 2015 (June) | 2017 (September) |
| Me at 23+ Q | Information was collected about;- Social media... | 2015 (December) | 2016 (September) |
| Life at 24+ Q | Information was collected about: - Life events... | 2016 (November) | 2017 (August) |
| Life at 25+ Q | Information was collected about- Being parent -... | 2017 (November) | 2018 (July) |
| Life at 26+ Q | Information was collected about: - General... | 2018 (November) | 2019 (September) |
| Child-based deprivation indices and urban/rural status | Information was collected regarding various... | 1992 (January) | 2014 (January) |
| Life at 27+ Q | Information was collected about: - Childhood -... | 2019 (November) | 2020 (July) |