One in six children have a probable mental disorder

The proportion of children experiencing a probable mental disorder has increased over the past three years, from one in nine in 2017 to one in six in July this year, according to a report by NHS Digital

The rate has risen in boys aged 5 to 16 from 11.4% in 2017 to 16.7% in July 2020 and in girls from 10.3% to 15.2%3 over the same time period.

Children that were unlikely to have a mental disorder were more likely to receive regular support from their school or college during the pandemic (76.4%) compared to those with a probable mental disorder (62.6%).

When it came to receiving help for mental health problems during the pandemic, 7.4% of all 17 to 22 year olds reported they tried to seek help for mental health problems but didn’t receive the help they needed, this rose to 21.7% of those with a probable mental disorder. This is compared to 3.8% of all 5 to 16 year olds and 17.5% with a probable mental disorder in this age group.

The report revealed that among girls aged 11 to 16, nearly two-thirds (63.8%) with a probable mental disorder had seen or heard an argument among adults in their household, compared to 46.8% of girls unlikely to have a mental disorder.

Overall, 36.7% of children aged 5 to 16 years had a parent who thought their child was worried that friends and family would catch COVID-19. More than half (50.2%) of children with a probable mental disorder had their parent report this, compared with a third (33.2%) of children unlikely to have a mental disorder.

Over a fifth (22.3%) of children had a parent who thought their child was worried about catching the virus during the pandemic; those with a probable mental disorder were almost twice as likely to have their parent think this (36.1%) compared to those unlikely to have a mental disorder (18.6%). Additionally, 37.7% of children had a parent who thought their child was worried about missing school or work during the crisis.

Sleep problems seemed to be a factor during the pandemic with more than a quarter (28.5%) of 5 to 22 year olds having problems sleeping. Again, those with a probable mental disorder reported experiencing sleep problems (58.9%) than those unlikely to have a mental disorder (19.0%).

This was more common in girls, with 32.4% reporting sleep problems compared with 24.7% of boys. Issues with sleep affected 17 to 22 year olds (41.0%), more than any other age group.

One in ten (10.1%) children and young people aged 11 to 22 years said that they often or always felt lonely. This was more common in girls (13.8%) than boys (6.5%). Children and young people with a probable mental disorder were about eight times more likely to report feeling lonely often or always (29.4%) than those unlikely to have a mental disorder (3.7%).

The report also covers changes in household circumstances during the pandemic. Nearly half (46.7%) of children aged 5 to 16 years old had a parent who said they or their partner worked from home more often than before. Almost three in ten (28.1%)  children had a parent who said they or their partner had experienced a fall in household income, and 28.7% had a parent who said they or their partner were furloughed or used the self-employed support scheme during lockdown.

It was also revealed that children with a probable mental disorder were more likely to live in a household that had fallen behind with payments (16.3%) during lockdown, than those unlikely to have a mental health disorder (6.4%).

Overall 37.0% of 11 to 16 year olds and 36.4% of 17 to 22 year olds reported that lockdown had made their life a little worse, while 5.9% of 11 to 16 year olds and 6.7% of 17 to 22 year olds said it had made it much worse.