The articles I read were "Shortage of mental health care… GPs warn"; "Not setting screen time for parents… Education Secretary says"; and, on the same day, "Mothers distracted by Facebook… Police say"; "Toxic air… Chief Medical Officer warns"; "Discarded button batteries… Child Accident Prevention Trust says"; and finally, "Poverty and hunger at Christmas time… charities say". There have been more since!
I was forcibly struck by the fact that none of this is even vaguely new. We understand the systemic issues that put children at risk of failing to thrive. These are mostly linked closely to poverty - poor housing and nutrition for example - but exacerbated by lack of access to support services. It's worth remembering that Eton School has its own professional mental health team led by a consultant adolescent psychiatrist. I can't imagine that the waiting list for support is as long as it is in most child and adolescent mental health services.
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