They show recent data that around 20% of children and young people between the ages of eight and 25 have a possible mental disorder.
This is an increase from the 10% recorded in 2017, when the announced the British government the prevalence of mental illness in children and young people to be “one of the burning injustices of our time”.
A lack of investment in mental health services, combined with increasing demand, has left many children and young people behind limited or no support.
The effects are being felt in schools. Ofsted’s 2023 annual report includes concern about the increasing use of part-time hours in schools – which may be for children struggling with their mental health. Part-time attendance may involve only attending school on certain days or daily attendance but with a reduction in the number of hours students spend in school.
Schools operate with already stretched resources. But it is an obvious route to support children’s mental health. Children and young people spend a significant part of their time in schools.
With the right resources to help, schools could offer rapid support – especially when many children and young people face delays in accessing external support, particularly from child and adolescent mental health services.
A key way in which schools could support children’s mental health is by introducing a mental health curriculum. This will aim to develop students’ mental health literacy, developing their knowledge of mental health issues and introducing them to strategies for managing their mental health.
Commitment to mental health
My her own research with colleagues investigated the impact of a mental health curriculum delivered by a sports community trust and a school partnership, with 570 young people in schools across Cambridge.
The curriculum included sessions on stress, resilience, social media use and self-management strategies. A mental health curriculum was designed and delivered by sports coaches employed by the community trust and trained in mental health to secondary school students. Players from the local football team contributed by sharing their own lived experiences of mental illness.
Not only did the students’ knowledge of mental health improve, but they also gained knowledge about strategies to help themselves cope with adversity and how to help others with mental illness.
Another strand of the whole school approach relates to working with children and young people to improve mental health. We conducted another study in which older students acted as mentors in secondary schools. They designed and delivered weekly physical activity sessions for younger students with social, emotional and mental health needs.
We found that this improved levels of physical activity, which supported children’s mental health. Younger students gained coping skills and the program also helped with their social skills, leading to the development of supportive and trusting relationships between mentors and the students they supported.
Both studies show that schools can play a role in supporting the mental health of children and young people – but that they need help and funding to do so.
Space and time
Take care of the groups are used in some schools to support children with social, emotional and mental needs. They can take place in parenting rooms, which tend to be more informal spaces than standard classrooms and provide positive environments for children to develop social and emotional literacy and regulation skills.
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Breastfeeding groups focus on helping children with their confidence, self-esteem and communication and building positive relationships with others. These skills are taught explicitly and children have opportunities to practice the skills they are learning.
ONE research study involving 384 five- and six-year-olds showed improvements in social, emotional and behavioral outcomes, although there was no evidence that parenting groups led to improvements in academic outcomes.
Mindfulness is another practice that can take place in schools. The goal of mindfulness, as a practice, is to focus attention on the present rather than the past or future through guided participation. This could include focusing on the breath or a specific body part.
People can then use mindfulness on their own to support their own mental health. Research with 216 secondary school students has shown positive resultsincluding improvements in emotional regulation and emotional clarity as well as a reduction in perceived stress.
However, it is important to remember that teachers are not mental health therapists. There are professional boundaries that apply to what they can and cannot do. In a 2023 documentary on young people and mental health, presenter Roman Kemp called on the government to funding commitment so that all schools can benefit from the expertise of an educational mental health professional.
These professionals are employed by the NHS. They are deployed in schools to provide support for children and young people with mental health needs. Increased investment in this service would ensure that schools are better resourced and able to respond to mental health needs.
In addition, increased government funding would also enable all schools to appoint a suitably qualified member of staff to lead and manage mental health provision across the school. This role should be protected, free from other responsibilities.
Proper investment in mental health services is urgently needed so that young people can get the support they need in time.
