Mental Health and Covid-19: In Our Own Words

Barnardo’s, the UK’s largest national children’s charity conducted a report on the impact and consequences of Covid-19 on children’s’ mental health. The report is comprised of four main sections.

The introduction presents the conditions of different groups of children such as those with existing mental health difficulties, BAME children (used to refer to people in the UK who are not white), children living in poverty, children with special educational needs, young people entering employment, LGBTQI children, children with a parent in custody, etc. According to the study this pandemic has emphasized the inequalities among young people. Some of the interesting findings are as below:

• At least a third of 4,000 children and young people aged 8 to 24 years across the UK said they had experienced an increase of mental health and wellbeing issues including stress, loneliness and worry;
• 83% of children and young people with existing mental health difficulties had experienced worsening mental health during the pandemic;
• 2/3 (approx. 550,000) of children and young people in England with a diagnosable mental health condition are not expected to receive treatment by 2020-21
• This pandemic risks pushing many more children, young people and families into poverty, whilst also exacerbating problems for those who were already living in poverty
• 57% of children and young people had experienced a decline in progress in their work and education;
• 42% of LGBT people would like to access mental health support during this pandemic, but 34% had medical appointments cancelled by providers and 16% had tried and been unable to access non-Covid-19 related health care;
• Children with a parent in custody are more anxious for their safety due to since social visits to prisons are stopped, they are unable to see their parent in person.

The second part - Learning from Lockdown - tells about how children and young people are coping in lockdown. Some of the advice evidenced in the report are as following:

• Spending time with family
• Keeping in contact with friends
• Engagement with education, employment and training
• Exercising and dieting
• Taking hobbies

The third part- Speaking and Listening to Children- indicates the importance of better understanding Covid-19. Young Minds surveys of both children and parents found that they were lacking information on where to turn to for advice and information on mental health and wellbeing support. Therefore, it is important for the government to know peoples’ problems and to try to resolve them, especially in these harsh times.

The fourth and the last part of the study recommend what should be done to improve the situation. Decision-makers should bear in mind the R-L-S priorities: Recognise the impact, Learn from their experience, Support children! Barnardo’s is calling on the UK government to take measures in making possible all children live life to the fullest as CHILDHOOD COMES ONLY ONCE.