As a group of citizens, clinicians and researchers, the authors of this paper have worked together to mitigate the collateral damage of COVID-19 on children and young people (CYP) living in North West London (NWL). The authors have built on existing relationships with members of their communities to understand concerns and inform service co-design. Here, the authors explore the concerns of CYP and their carers and highlight examples of good practice to inspire others to strengthen patient and public involvement (PPI) as the COVID-19 pandemic evolves.