Wave two of a qualitative longitudinal study of children's food and eating in employed families, resulting from interviews with parents (usually mothers) and interviews and drawing methods with children and young people aged 4-13 years. The interviews were conducted two years after the first study "Food practices and employed families with younger children". 36 out of 47 families included in the first wave took part in wave two.Building on a previous study, this longitudinal mixed methods project aims to map and understand children’s and families’ food practices over time.The recently completed Food Practices and Employed Families with Younger Children (RES-190-25-0010) study analysed the National Diet and Nutrition Survey (NDNS) and other large datasets and drew a sample of working parents and their children (n=48) from the NDNS to consider how parental employment shaped eating habits and the diets of young children and the role different settings and children themselves played. In this follow-on study, in-depth interviews with the same families will be carried out to understand: (1) how children and young people eat; (2) the contexts in their lives in which they eat; (3) the particular transitions and experiences that children and parents encounter and how these shape diets and food practices over time, including family meals. Secondary analysis of two new waves of National Diet and Nutrition Survey will also be undertaken to consider change and how family meal patterns relate to socio demographic factors and age of child.Through its innovative methodology, linking mixed methods research to a national survey, the study also seeks to contribute to furthering the exploitation of quantitative longitudinal data resources.

The data were collected using qualitative methods, including semi-structured interviews, drawing methods and vignettes. A sample of working parents and their children aged 2-10 years (n=47) was drawn from the National Diet and Nutrition Survey. Thirty-six of these were followed up in this second wave of the study, which took place 2 years after wave 1. Semi structured interviews were conducted with employed parents (mostly mothers). With children a combination of interviews and other activities such as drawing and other photo-elicitation interviews were undertaken, about food and eating at home and in other places.