Improve opportunities to promote happiness
Derren Hayes
Tuesday, January 30, 2018
The headline findings from the 10th Prince's Trust youth index make for sobering reading.
The annual barometer of young people's hopes, aspirations and general happiness reveals their confidence across a range of areas, including health and career prospects, has declined.
This year, young people's overall happiness score was 69 out of 100 - the first time since the index was launched that it has fallen below 70. Young people's experiences of work are particularly concerning: one in 10 are on zero-hour contracts and a quarter are under-employed.
The findings will heighten concerns among children's professionals that society is failing to meet young people's needs, with their wellbeing suffering as a result. According to the Millennium Cohort Study, by the age of 14, 12 per cent of boys and 18 per cent of girls will have a diagnosable mental health condition (see Special Report). Meanwhile, two-thirds of psychotherapists surveyed last year reported lengthening waiting times for children to access counselling.
The government recognises it needs to act. In August 2017, it announced plans to recruit an additional 2,000 child and adolescent mental health workers. Last December, it published its children's mental health green paper containing a number of measures to develop better school-based support and to improve links between teaching and mental health staff. The aim of the green paper is to bring mental health support upstream. Identifying and treating problems earlier is welcome, although some will question whether school is the right place to do this - 52 per cent of respondents to a CYP Now online poll thought not.
While school is an important part of a young person's life, it can also be the source of much anxiety. Making it easier for young people to access support outside the school gates - whether through online counselling or drop-in centres on the high street, such as that run by Pause in Birmingham - is also vital.
Policymakers - including new Education Secretary Damian Hinds and children's minister Nadhim Zahawi - must heed the overarching message from the youth index. Ensuring young people can access a well-rounded education, stable employment and good-quality housing should be a minimum expectation. Without this, children's mental health will not improve and the demands on services will continue to rise.
