It has been over two years since children returned to in-person education after the last national lockdown, yet children’s mental health problems persist. Despite various government initiatives and funding commitments, the incidence remains stubbornly unchanged since 2020. The latest figures paint a troubling picture: one in five are suffering from a mental health problem.
Young people have been hit by a perfect storm of negative conditions. These include disruption to their education and life routines, social isolation, higher parental stress levels and an increase in uncertainty about the future.
School absence, which can be an indicator of deteriorating mental health, also remains high, as EPI have previously explored. The latest data reveals that young people with a mental illness are six times more likely to have missed more than 15 days of school.
