Mental Health problems in young people continue to rise.
Mind, a charity that makes mental health an everyday priority across England and Wales, have carried out various research in recent years.
One piece of research specifically explored young people’s experiences of mental health support. This also included, how best to help them in the future.
Some of the key findings of this research were:
- That young people still don’t understand mental health very well, which causes them to talk down mental health problems that they might have. Because of this, a lot of them also said they prefer anonymous services
- School or college is where they’d like to go for help first, and they want clear information on the help they get.
- Many, usually hold back on what they’re going through at first, because they don’t want to scare people or have their independence taken away.
- Services need to be quick and treat them as people first, support that treats them has a whole person, and understands the trauma they may have experienced.
Unfortunately, secondary schools are struggling to meet the needs of young people with mental health problems. A survey of 1271 young people across England and found that:
- 96% of reported that their mental health had affected their schoolwork at some point.
- 78% of young people said that school had made their mental health worse.
- 56% of school staff identified that young people who didn’t receive support self-harmed.
- 48% of young people told us they had been punished at school for behaviour that was caused by their mental health problems.
- 25% of school staff said they were aware of a young person being excluded from school because of their mental health.
- 70% of young people who experienced racism in school told us their experience had impacted their wellbeing.
Mental Health in Young People Statistics
Mental health problems in young people continues to be a problem – and the statistics are sobering.
- One in six children aged five to 16 were identified as having a probable mental health problem in July 2021, a huge increase from one in nine in 2017. That’s five children in every classroom (1)
- The number of A&E attendances by young people aged 18 or under with a recorded diagnosis of a psychiatric condition more than tripled between 2010 and 2018-19. (2)
- 83% of young people with mental health needs agreed that the coronavirus pandemic had made their mental health worse. (3)
- In 2018-19, 24% of 17-year-olds reported having self-harmed in the previous year, and seven per cent reported having self-harmed with suicidal intent at some point in their lives. 16% reported high levels of psychological distress. (4)
- Suicide was the leading cause of death for males and females aged between five to 34 in 2019. (5)
- Nearly half of 17–19-year-olds with a diagnosable mental health disorder has self-harmed or attempted suicide at some point, rising to 52.7% for young women. (6)
How can mentoring help?
In a nutshell, a great mentoring relationship provides a unique context for mentors to discuss and normalise their concerns for the young learner and to share ideas for managing their anxieties.
And that’s exactly the types of relationships we have with our young learners here at Iprovefit.
Our team of highly experienced mentors help them achieve their full potential while also mitigating the impact their mental health condition might have on them.
Iprovefit have the experience of helping learners manage, and sometimes overcome, a range of mental health conditions.
We help improve their self-management competences and explore the underlying causes that are preventing them from growth and becoming a better version of themselves.
And now for some positive stats!
Recent research has shown that mentoring for mental health positively impacts on three key areas for individuals: functioning, performance, and experience.
Mentoring can help identify the signs of mental health problems, and allow open discussions to build coping mechanisms, which help manage mental health issues.
It allows our young learners to gain reassurance for their problems.
By equipping them with vital skills, such as resilience, empathy, self-understanding, and heightened self-esteem, the goal is to enhance their mental well-being and boost their self-confidence.
If your child is currently experiencing some form of mental health trouble, come and talk to us about our mentoring services and find out how we can help. We offer a broad range of mentoring services, each designed to enable them to re-engage in many aspects of their life, including education as well as to develop opportunities for their futures.
Give our team a call today, and book an introduction session: 0333 023 2215
Click here to register your interest and one of our team will be in touch. Alternatively, you can call us 0333 023 2215 or send an email to info@iprovefit.com
Sources:
- NHS Digital (2021): ‘Mental Health of Children and Young People in England 2021’
- NHS Digital / The Independent (January 2020) ‘Number of children admitted to A&E with mental health problems jumps 330 per cent over past decade’
- YoungMinds (summer 2020) Coronavirus: Impact on young people with mental health needs (survey two)
- NCB and UCL research (November 2020), ‘One in six report severe mental health difficulties by age 17’
- ONS: Deaths registered in England and Wales (2019) section six ‘Leading causes of death’
- NHS Digital (2018) ‘Mental Health of Children and Young People in England, 2017’