Soaring numbers of children seek help for anxiety

7 times more girls than boys call helpline

AN ‘AVALANCHE’ of children are seeking help for anxiety, a leading charity will warn today.

Figures show soaring numbers of boys and girls as young as eight are calling the NSPCC’s helpline to discuss their fears – which range from personal problems to world affairs.

A shocking 11,706 youngsters contacted Childline for counselling in 2015-16 – a rate of nearly 250 a week. That was a rise of more than a third – 35 per cent – compared to 8,642 calls in the previous year.

The charity said an ‘avalanche’ of youngsters were suffering from anxiety, with causes ranging from personal and family issues to concerns about world news such as Brexit and troubles in the Middle East.

The extent of the condition was exposed by the NSPCC after it collated data on the reasons callers contacted Childline.

It said the crisis appeared to be getting worse, with figures showing that from April to September this year there were about 6,500 contacts where anxiety was cited as the main issue.

The study also found that girls were seven times more likely to contact Childline for help with anxiety than boys.

Some youngsters talked to counsellors about problems in their dayto- day life, while others spoke of disturbing events they had seen in newspapers or television and on social media.

One young boy told counsellors: ‘I’m really worried about what is going on in the world, I see things on TV and it makes me sad about all the bad things that are going on. People have talked about a world war starting and I get really scared thinking about this. It feels like nowhere is safe after seeing stuff on the news.’

Peter Wanless, the chief executive of the NSPCC, said: ‘The world can be a worrying place but we need to ensure our children are reassured rather than left overwhelmed and frightened.

‘It’s only natural for children and young people to feel worried sometimes, but when they are plagued by constant fears that are resulting in panic attacks and making them not want to leave the house then they need support.’

Childline president Esther Rantzen said: ‘We know children and young people are sometimes frightened and distressed by events in the wider world.

‘Seeing pictures of crying and bewildered toddlers being pulled from bomb-damaged homes upsets all of us. Often we fail to notice the impact these stories are having on young people.’

‘The good news is that so many children are able to express their anxiety to Childline, knowing that we will take them seriously, so that we are able to reassure them.

‘Sometimes these stories also reveal related concerns in their own lives, such as being subjected to racist bullying.’ Last month the NSPCC created a page on its Childline website called ‘Worries About The World’ which has already received 5,000 visits.

It has also published advice for adults to help support children with anxiety, including listening carefully to a young person’s worries and helping them find advice and support to understand distressing events and feelings.

Childline marked its 30th anniversary yesterday. It has been contacted by more than four million children over the past three decades. During the early years of Childline the most common concern for children and young people was sexual abuse.

In recent years an increasing number of teenagers say they are suffering from issues of low selfesteem and unhappiness.

‘The world can be a worrying place’