The sad kids’ nation

Ask any parent what they want their child to be and I am sure happy is top of their list.

As a parent sending your children off to school can be a painful experience. It is about so much more than just getting a good education.

After almost five years of raising them with love and understanding you put your faith in the school that you have painstakingly selected to take care of them, make sure that they are safe and primarily happy.

But a report out yesterday (Wednesday August 19) reveals that children in England are among the unhappiest in the world at school.

The international comparison across 15 countries by The Children’s Society and the University of York ranked English children at 14^th for happiness with only South Korea coming behind.

The survey across 53,000 children and young people aged eight to 17 shows widespread bullying is causing huge damage to children’s wellbeing.

Children were asked to rate their well-being on a scale from zero to 10 where 10 meant “very happy” and 0 meant “very unhappy”.

Eighteen per cent have been physically hit at least once and 21 per cent have been left out by other children.

Truly shocking

“It is deeply worrying that children in this country are so unhappy at school compared to other countries, and it is truly shocking that thousands of children are being physically and emotionally bullied, damaging their happiness,” said Matthew Reed, chief executive of The Children’s Society.

“School should be a safe haven, not a battleground,” he added.

The Children’s Society is calling on the government to make it mandatory for schools in England to provide counselling to pupils, and is urging schools to help children’s wellbeing by tackling bullying.

“Despite a long period of austerity, we are one of the richest nations in the world yet the happiness of our children is at rock bottom,” said Matthew Reed.

“We know that this is related to their mental health and can prevent them flourishing. Giving children a happy childhood should be our top priority.”

England ranked 14^th for children’s satisfaction with their relationship with their teacher and 14^th for agreeing that teachers treated them fairly.

Only 44 per cent felt their teachers treated them fairly. They were also unhappy about what they were learning (11th in the rankings) and with their classmates (12th).

Kevin Courtney, deputy general secretary of the National Union of Teachers (NUT) blamed the government’s accountability agenda of putting pressure on children.

Stress-related anxiety

“Children can now expect to be branded ‘failures’ when barely into primary education, and many of those who undergo high-stakes tests and examinations at all stages of school life experience serious stress-related anxiety,” he added.

Kelly Graham, a mum of two told us of the despair her entire family have experienced because of her eldest son’s unhappiness at school.

“My eldest son has not had a happy past year in school,” said Kelly.

“He has high functioning autism so is a little ‘different’. He struggles to fit in with the other children at times. He would rather play chess than football and is often left out,” she added.

“I can honestly say that our son’s unhappiness at school has affected all of the family’s happiness and also my mental health. There is nothing worse than knowing that you child isn’t happy and feeling helpless to fix it,” she said.

A report by Centre Forum Mental Health Commission said that approximately 10 per cent of children currently have a mental health disorder.

The study suggests better training for teachers and stronger partnerships between schools and Child and Adolescent Mental Health Agencies (CAMHS) to ensure that responsibility was not left with schools.

“I do think teachers need better training in children’s wellbeing,” said Kelly.

“If children aren’t happy they can’t learn,” she added.

Other countries included in the study were Algeria, Colombia, Estonia, Ethiopia, Germany, Israel, Nepal, Norway, Poland, Romania, South Africa, South Korea, Spain and Turkey. 4