Girls six times more likely to feel suicidal

teenage girls are six times more likely to report suicidal thoughts and feelings than boys, a report says.

the number of children feeling suicidal as they struggle to handle the pressures of modern life has doubled, with boys and girls as young as ten among thousands of depressed children to have sought help.

But those at most risk were girls between 12 and 15.

a 13-year- old who called the NSPCC’S Childline service said: ‘I’m a nobody, I’m worthless and I feel like I don’t mean anything to anyone.’

the round-the- clock helpline dealt with 19,481 contacts from young people who were suffering suicidal thoughts in 2015-16 – 53 counselling sessions a day.

Five years ago the NSPCC advisers dealt with half that number of calls – 8,835.

the relentless intrusion of social media, turbulent home lives, domestic abuse and school pressures were all triggers for the cries for help.

Many of the calls dealt with by the charity’s counsellors – about six a day – were so serious and harrowing they had to be referred to the emergency services. the crisis is chronicled in the NSPCC annual report – It turned Out Someone Did Care – which is published today.

One 15-year-old girl said: ‘I am so stressed out with schoolwork and I’ve got exams coming up which is causing arguments with my family. I don’t know if I can cope much longer so I have been thinking about suicide and have planned how to do it.

‘For now, self-harming helps but every time I cut, they get deeper and I’m scared it’s going to go too deep one day.’

esther Rantzen, who is president of Childline, said: ‘ It is deeply disturbing that in the past year nearly 20,000 children and young people contacted Childline because they felt so deeply unhappy that many of them wanted to take their own lives.

‘I would urge any young person who feels this way to contact us. It really does make a difference to speak to someone who cares about you, and wants to listen.

‘It is crucial we ask ourselves why children in this country feel so lonely, and so desperate, that they have to turn to us for help and support.’

a charity spokesman said: ‘the relentless nature of the online world and the 24/7 pressure that can often come with means that children regularly find themselves unable to escape or switch off. this can all contribute to a child feeling overwhelmed and desperately unhappy.’

Childline held 301,413 counselling sessions in 2015-16, compared with 286,812 in 2014-15.

there was an increase in the number of young people who spoke about their mental health, with almost a third of the sessions concentrating on the issue.

the NSPCC’S It’s time campaign is demanding the government invest in services – such as professional care – to ensure all abused children receive the right support to prevent them developing mental health conditions.

In June, the NSPCC revealed child cruelty and neglect cases recorded by police have soared by 75 per cent in nine years.

the Childline number is 0800 1111.

‘Turbulent home lives’