A charity is warning of a rapid rise in the proportion of children anxious about attending school.
The warning has been issued by Action for Children, whose online advice for parents and carers on ‘school refusal and school anxiety’ has been visited 50,000 times in 2022/23. This is a 60 per cent increase on the previous year’s figures.
The most common concern raised by parents when their children refuse to go to school “is that they don’t know where to turn for help”, said the charity.
Schools are either not supportive or “finding it hard to offer” the right support, it added. Also, families are struggling to access mental health, early help, or special educational needs support.
A factor in the spike around school anxiety concerns is the impact of Covid lockdowns, said Action for Children.
