Three in five secondary school pupils experience mental health problems, survey says

Posted on July 3, 2019

Three out of five secondary school pupils have either experienced mental health problems themselves or are close to someone who has, according to a new survey. research by the charity Mind also revealed that one in seven of 11-19-year-olds say their mental health is either poor or very poor. However, more than half of the young people said they would not feel confident approaching teachers or staff if they needed help.

Mind, which offers advice and information to mental health problems, said that the survey of over 12,000 pupils showed the ‘sheer scale of the pressures faced by young people’. Despite the high levels of poor mental health among young people, many are not accessing support and those that are – aren’t always getting what they need.

The survey has found around one in five young people (21%) had accessed support for their mental health within school. Of these, 43% said that they did not find the support helpful and 63% said they were not involved in decisions made about that support. Students have reported being stressed about their exams, home life, cyberbullying, and the pressures of social media.

Another separate survey by Mind further revealed that almost 3 in 4 (71%) felt confident that pupils who needed it were being adequately supported. However, around one in two (52%) feel that they do not have enough information to support pupils with poor mental health. Outside of school, staff were aware of other support but less than half (26%) were confident that they would be able to access it.

Surveys have shown that students have been increasingly chased by stress from exams, school and even their homes which could and have resulted in mental health problems. The schools do know the seriousness of the issue at hand – and has since given the students greater confidence to talk about mental wellbeing and that helps to let people know that they are not alone.


Category(s):Child Development, Health / Illness / Medical Issues, Mental Health in Asia

Source material from Independent