How to take part

You will receive an email or letter from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) if you are invited to take part. Any emails you receive will be from office.for.national.statistics.surveys@notifications.service.gov.uk.

We will ask you to complete an online questionnaire, which should take around 10 to 15 minutes. It may take longer to complete over the phone.

You will have 14 days to do this, called a "questionnaire window". If you take part in your first questionnaire window, you will be asked to take part in a questionnaire window once a month until the study ends.

For those aged under 16 years, a parent or guardian can complete the questionnaire on their behalf.

If you were one of the first participants invited to take part, we offered you the chance to give some short feedback about your experience. This has helped us identify improvements to make. As a participant, you might see some changes over the coming months.

This is your chance to help us to understand and manage coronavirus (COVID-19) and other respiratory infections over the long term.

While we are unable to offer any financial compensation for completing the questionnaire each month, your participation is highly appreciated and valued. You will help UK governments understand the impact of self-reported COVID-19 infections, long COVID and other respiratory infections on:

• your life

• the community

• health services

Your answers, combined with the valued data you gave as part of the COVID-19 Infection Survey (CIS), may also be part of an early warning system for COVID-19 and other respiratory infections. This could help the NHS prepare for potential pressures.

Your participation is entirely voluntary, and you are free to leave the study at any time without providing a reason. It is possible that not everyone in your household who took part in the COVID-19 Infection Survey (CIS) has been invited to take part in this study.

Anyone in your household who has been invited to take part in the study can make their individual choice as to whether they want to take part. Your participation will be important regardless of whether other household members take part or not.

You have been contacted because you took part in the COVID-19 Infection Survey (CIS) and agreed to be approached about other ethically approved research studies.

Only those who took part in the COVID-19 Infection Survey and have been invited to the COVID-19 and Respiratory Infections Survey (CRIS) can take part.

It is possible that not everyone in your household who took part in the CIS has been invited to take part in this study. This is because we want to make sure we collect data that represent different groups of people and provide the best use of public funds. To do this, we have selected specific participants from those who agreed to be contacted about future ethically approved research studies as part of the CIS.

For those who have been invited and are aged under 16 years, a parent or guardian can complete the questionnaire on their behalf.

You will have a 14-day "questionnaire window" each month. You can complete your questionnaire on any day within the questionnaire window. We will let you know when your questionnaire window is by email or post. Any emails you receive will be from office.for.national.statistics.surveys@notifications.service.gov.uk.

You will be asked questions on topics such as:

• your health in general, including any recent symptoms or vaccinations against coronavirus (COVID-19) and flu you have had

• how much your health has impacted your usual activities or use of health services

• work, or education if you are in education

The questionnaire link will be in the email or letter you get sent each time you have a questionnaire window, or you can access it on the Start the survey page.

You will need your 16-character access code to enter the questionnaire. Your code is unique to each questionnaire window. You will be sent a new access code before each questionnaire you complete. You will find this access code on the email or letter you get telling you about your questionnaire window dates. Any emails you receive will be from office.for.national.statistics.surveys@notifications.service.gov.uk.

If you cannot find your access code, you will need to email CRIS@ons.gov.uk to request a new one. You will need your participant identification (ID) when emailing for support. Your participant ID is your unique ID number that we use to identify you, and it will never change. This ID can be found at the top of your email or letter telling you about your questionnaire window dates.

Once you have entered your access code to begin the questionnaire, please confirm whether the name displayed on the screen is correct.

You can complete the questionnaire on a desktop, laptop, tablet, or smartphone. If you need to, you can stop and come back to the questionnaire later, within your questionnaire window. However, if you need to request a new access code to complete your questionnaire and have already entered responses using your original access code, those responses will not appear. You will need to begin the questionnaire again.

This study is mainly online. However, if you are unable to complete the questionnaire online, please email CRIS@ons.gov.uk to make an appointment for us to call you. The questionnaire may take longer than 10 to 15 minutes to complete over the phone.

Once you have filled out your questionnaire, please follow the onscreen instructions, and be sure to select the green "submit" button when prompted. This will ensure that your answers are recorded properly.

If submitted successfully, you will see a confirmation page.

If you choose not to complete the questionnaire during your first questionnaire window, we will assume you do not want to take part in the COVID-19 and Respiratory Infections Survey (CRIS). We will not contact you again with any future communications about the COVID-19 and Respiratory Infections Survey.

If you cannot complete your questionnaire in a subsequent window, you do not need to do anything. We will contact you again when your next questionnaire window starts.

You will not be asked to provide any swab or blood samples, and so you will not get a voucher for taking part in this study.

If you move house, please tell us by emailing CRIS@ons.gov.uk. The study is based on a representative sample of addresses and so, if you move home, your participation in the study will finish.

Your participation is entirely voluntary. You are free to leave the study at any time without providing a reason by emailing CRIS@ons.gov.uk.

If you choose not to complete your first questionnaire window, we will assume you do not want to take part in the study. We will not contact you again with any future communications about the COVID-19 and Respiratory Infections Survey.

Parents or carers may also decide if their child is to leave the study at any time without giving a reason.

If you have any further questions on the COVID-19 and Respiratory Infections Survey (CRIS), email CRIS@ons.gov.uk.

If you cannot access the internet, you can call us on 0808 196 1270.