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Sexual wellbeing is an important aspect of population health and addressing it as a distinct issue requires a validated measure. Our previous conceptual work identified seven domains of sexual wellbeing: security; respect; self-esteem; resilience; forgiveness; self-determination; and comfort. Here we describe the development and validation of a measure capturing these domains. We build on analysis of 40 semi-structured interviews (reported elsewhere). We operationalised domains into items, and refined them via seven cognitive interviews, workshops and expert review. We then tested the items via two web-based surveys (n=590; n=814). Using data from the first survey we did exploratory factor analysis to assess and eliminate poor performing items. Using data from the second we did confirmatory factor analysis to examine model fit and associations between the item reduced measure and external variables hypothesised to correlate with sexual wellbeing (external validity). A sub-sample (n=113) repeated the second survey after two weeks to evaluate test-retest reliability. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated that a ‘general specific model’ had best fit (RMSEA: 0.064; CFI: 0.975, TLI: 0.962), and functioned equivalently across age groups, genders, sexual orientations and relationship statuses. The final measure comprised 13 items (from an initial set of 25). It was associated with external variables in the directions hypothesised (all p

Background: Physical distancing aims to reduce interactions between people to prevent SARS-CoV-2 transmission. Intimate physical contact outside the household (IPCOH) may expand transmission networks by connecting households. We explored whether intimacy needs impacted adherence to physical distancing following lockdown in Britain in March 2020. Methods: The Natsal-COVID web-panel survey (July-August 2020) used quota-sampling and weighting to achieve a quasi-representative population sample. We estimated IPCOH with a romantic/sexual partner in the four weeks prior to interview and identified associated factors. Qualitative interviews (n=18) were conducted to understand the context, reasons, and decision-making around IPCOH. Findings: Of 6,654 participants aged 18-59 years, 9.9% (95%CI:9.1-10.6%) reported IPCOH. IPCOH was highest in those aged 18-24 (17.7%), identifying as gay or lesbian (19.5%), and in steady non-cohabiting relationships (56.3%). IPCOH was associated with reporting risk behaviours (e.g., condomless sex, higher alcohol consumption). IPCOH was less likely among those reporting bad/very bad health (aOR 0.54;0.32-0.93) but more likely among those with COVID-19 symptoms and/or diagnosis (aOR 1.34;1.10-1.65). Two-thirds (64.4%) of IPCOH was reported as being within a support bubble. Qualitative interviews found that people reporting IPCOH deliberated over, and made efforts to mitigate, the risks. Interpretation: Given 90% of people did not report IPCOH, this contact may not be a large additional contributor to SARS-CoV-2 transmission, although heterogeneity exists within the population. Public health messages need to recognise how single people and partners living apart balance sexual intimacy and relationship needs with adherence to control measures. Funding Information: Natsal (Wellcome/ESRC/NIHR), MRC/CSO, and UCL COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund. Declaration of Interests: The other authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest. Ethics Approval Statement: Ethical approval was obtained from the University of Glasgow MVLS College (reference 20019174) and LSHTM research ethics committees (reference 22565). An anonymised dataset will be deposited with the UK Data Archive.