Children ‘Need More Help To Cope With Pressures Of Modern Life’

More must be done to help young people with the pressures of growing up, a children’s charity said yesterday. NCH made the call as it launched a campaign demanding the government ensure that Scotland’s youth have the right support.

The charity asked ministers to introduce targets to measure and improve young people’s emotional wellbeing, rather than simply focusing on policies to curb their harmful behaviour.

One of the pressures is highlighted in separate research published by the Royal Bank of Scotland, in which more than half of Scottish parents say they worry their child will become a victim of bullying at school and one-third of children report having been bullied during breaktime.

Launching its campaign, entitled Growing Strong, NCH believes flagship policies on child poverty and social exclusion are doomed to failure if the emotional needs of young people are ignored by government.

It claims money ploughed into education, health and tackling poverty will not pay dividends unless children are also given more emotional support to help them cope with the pressures and problems of growing up.

The demand for action comes in the wake of research by UN agency Unicef that showed British children were the least emotionally well-off in the developed world.

Emotional wellbeing is defined by NCH as possessing the inner strength, resilience and self-esteem to cope with life’s problems and make the most of life’s opportunities.

The charity said children were most vulnerable at times of disruption or change, such as moving from primary to secondary school, becoming a teenager, if parents divorce, or dealing with death or serious illness in the family.

All of these factors affect emotional wellbeing, and NCH believes the health, education, friendships and future prospects of young people suffer if they end up struggling emotionally. Figures from the Office of National Statistics show 44% of children with emotional disorders fell significantly behind at school and 35% of them had difficulty making friends.

Clare Tickell, chief executive of NCH, said: “Our children are struggling with the daily pressures of modern life, from exams to worrying about how they look, to what their image should be and to fears for their safety.

“What keeps ringing out is that too many are simply not getting the emotional support they so desperately need.”

One of the many pressures affecting children, and in particular young girls, is weight. Slightly more than one-third of 13 to 18-year-old girls are on diets or have dieted recently, according to a survey published over the weekend, and 45% eat fewer than 1200 calories a day – below the recommended intake for their age range.

NCH wants the Scottish Government to review its policies that relate to the emotional wellbeing of children and to commit to a list of 10 measures it believes will make a positive difference. These include ensuring children take part in at least two structured activities a week and that the government provides advice to parents concerned about their children’s state of mind.

Measures to ensure the media portrays children positively are another component of NCH’s Ten Steps to Growing Strong, outlined today in a new report, Growing Up, Growing Together, Growing Strong.

The Royal Bank of Scotland research found that 34% of primary school-aged children had experienced bullying in the school – equivalent to 150,000 pupils.

This is significant as 77% of adult Scots believe time spent in the school playground played an important role in their personal development.

The survey also revealed parents’ concerns over their children’s welfare in playgrounds.

Nearly one-quarter of parents (22%) cited fears about breaktime safety as their main concern when they send their children off to school for the day.

Case Study: For lots of parents there just isn’t time’

Grant and Sharon Brown take the issue of their children’s emotional wellbeing very seriously indeed.

The couple, from Westerton near Glasgow, make a point of regularly setting aside time for activities with their three children.

Yesterday was one such occasion, when the entire family spent the afternoon in Victoria Park in Glasgow.

“I think every parent ultimately is influenced by their own parents,” said Mr Brown. “I was taken to this park by my parents as a boy and so I enjoy taking my own kids here. There is nowhere more calming than a park on a sunny day.”

The Browns recognise that raising children is about more than simply pushing them to do as well as possible at school, and make sure their own have as broad an experience as possible.

The children – Richard, 12, Jonny, 10, and Jeanna, seven – are all encouraged to take part in swimming, tennis, rugby, football and other games.

However, Mrs Brown, who does not work, said she realises her family is lucky and many parents do not have the time to support their children in activities.

She said: “As well as doing things together as a family, I also make sure that once a fortnight I do something alone with one of the kids in turn. It can be anything, but I think it’s important to have one-on-one time away from the others with each one.

“For instance, Richard is 12 now and there are perhaps things he will talk to me about that he wouldn’t if his brother and sister are about. These one-on-one times are important, but I know for lots of parents there is just not the time.”

As for the pressure to look and dress a certain way, Mr Brown, who works for Strathclyde Partnership for Transport, said: “I have a very definite view on that – no designer clothes.

“It doesn’t make me the most popular, but I think it’s important.”