A Different Approach to the Mental Health Crisis in Children and Young People

Alarming Statistics

Around 20% of eight to 16 year olds in the UK had a probable mental health disorder in 2023, according to NHS statistics. This is up from 12.5% in 2017. At the same time, a 2024 report from the Children’s Commissioner for England found that more than a quarter of a million children were not able to access the mental health support they need.

Resilience: A Double-Edged Sword?

Some have questioned whether we are dealing with a “genuine” mental health crisis or a lack of resilience in children and young people. Resilience is the ability to bounce back from adversity, and higher resilience is linked to lower rates of mental ill-health in young people. But the evidence around exactly what role resilience plays in mental health paints a more complex picture.

Over-Pathologising and the Impact on Resilience

Resilience often comes up in mental health discussions as a response to possible over-pathologising – the tendency to interpret even mild signs of distress or sadness as symptoms of mental illness. This in turn could undermine young people’s resilience because they are not able to differentiate between normal variation in human emotions and mental ill-health.

Society and Mental Health

Robust research shows that social factors, particularly poverty and discrimination, lead to poor mental health. Indeed, in the 2023 NHS survey, rates of probable mental health disorders were much higher in UK children whose parents didn’t have enough funds to support their children’s out-of-school activities.

Overlapping Approaches

What’s more, mental ill-health prevention involves much more than resilience. It’s tempting to think that we have found the one approach, in this case resilience, that could shift the mental health crisis. But resilience closely overlaps with other mental health concepts and approaches.

A Different Way Forward

Instead of relying on a single concept or approach, we should focus on the key skills underpinning mental health and wellbeing shared across different approaches. These skills include fostering emotional awareness, managing rumination, building connections, cultivating gratitude and awe, and finding wholesome meaning and purpose in life.

Conclusion

Poor mental health can undermine young people’s academic outcomes and their lifelong prospects. It is time to recognise that piecemeal approaches, such as a focus on resilience, are just pieces of the puzzle. They are not the much needed transformational solutions to the mental health crisis. We need a more comprehensive and evidence-based approach to mental health education and support.

FAQs

Q: What is the current state of mental health among children and young people in the UK?
A: Around 20% of eight to 16 year olds in the UK had a probable mental health disorder in 2023, according to NHS statistics.

Q: What is over-pathologising and how does it impact resilience?
A: Over-pathologising is the tendency to interpret even mild signs of distress or sadness as symptoms of mental illness. This can undermine young people’s resilience by making it difficult for them to differentiate between normal variation in human emotions and mental ill-health.

Q: What are the key skills underpinning mental health and wellbeing?
A: These skills include fostering emotional awareness, managing rumination, building connections, cultivating gratitude and awe, and finding wholesome meaning and purpose in life.

Q: What is the relationship between poverty and mental health?
A: Robust research shows that poverty and discrimination lead to poor mental health.