Children in the UK less happy than ten years ago

More than 300,000 children across the UK are unhappy with their lives, according to the Children’s Society’s tenth annual Good Childhood Report.  
 
The review of young people’s wellbeing has found that almost 7 per cent of ten- to-15-year-olds in the UK, the equivalent of 306,000 children, are not happy with their lives, compared to 173,000 children ten years ago.   

Children’s decreasing happiness with aspects of their lives including school, appearance and friends is thought to be contributing to the overall decline, the charity said.  
 
Findings also suggested that children who are not happy with their lives at 14 are much more likely than others to have symptoms of mental health conditions by the time they are 17, including self-harm or suicide attempts.  

The gender divide between boys’ and girls’ worries about their appearance is closing, with the proportion of boys dissatisfied with their appearance rising from one in 12 to one in eight (8 per cent to 13 per cent) over the last decade, while the proportion of girls concerned about their appearance has remained at one in seven. 

The proportion of children unhappy with their school lives has also risen, from one in 11 (9 per cent) ten years ago to one in eight (12 per cent) in the latest report.  

Meanwhile, the report found that while children had coped relatively well with the pandemic, around a quarter of a million ten- to 17-year-olds (4 per cent) have struggled. 

Source: The Children's Society, Good Childhood Report, 2021

The charity is calling on the Government to start measuring children’s wellbeing as they do adults, and to set out an action plan to tackle likely drivers of low wellbeing among young people. 

Mark Russell, chief executive of the Children’s Society, said, ‘It’s deeply distressing to see that children’s wellbeing is on a ten-year downward trend, and on top of this a number of young people have not coped well with the pandemic. Children’s happiness with their lives has the potential to have far-reaching consequences, and has been linked to their attainment and mental health as well as their safety and hopes for the future.  

‘It’s vital we protect children in early adolescence, as our report has shown their unhappiness at this stage can be a warning sign of potential issues in later teenage years. It’s so important we listen and help children in this crucial stage of their development, providing early wellbeing and mental health support whenever they need it.    

‘We cannot allow these worrying trends to get worse and, as we begin to emerge from the pandemic, it seems clearer than ever that we need a bold and ambitious vision for childhood in England. At every level, all work with children and young people should have the explicit aim of improving their well-being. From Cabinet-level leadership and close monitoring of children’s well-being by national Government to really get to grips with how young people are feeling, right down to local early support services for mental health and social care in every community. It’s time to act now to protect children’s futures. They are worth the investment.’