Health and Wellbeing
There is increased understanding and importance being placed on the relationship between mental health and positive life outcomes in young people. In the post-pandemic world this is particularly important. Accordingly to the latest data available from UNICEF in their report, ‘The State of the World’s Children 2021’, at least one in seven children have been directly affected by lockdowns, while more than £1.6 billion children have suffered some loss of education’.
The disruptive impact of this has led to more children than ever feeling anxious, which may impact their education experiences and life chances, meaning that the legacy of the pandemic may be felt for years.
As parents we play a key role in helping children process all these emotions, alongside supporting them to navigate the normal ups and downs of growing up too. But if you are worried about wellbeing, mental health and young people, you are not alone.
Our 2021 Parent Voice report researched and identified that when it comes to their child’s experience at school, many parents continue to be concerned about a range of mental health and wellbeing-related issues. The top five concerns that parents cited were exam stress (55%), anxiety (54%), homework-related stress (49%), bullying (49%) and the pressure to constantly engage with social media (48%).
However, whilst parenting today throws up some new and different challenges the basics remain constant. The need for children to understand how to accept, manage and understand feelings and develop a solid self-esteem, and make the right choices. We hope the information helps you to support your child as they navigate their way to adulthood. We have divided the information into six keys areas to help you get where you need to easily:
