Parents are too stressed and busy
A LEADING expert in child mental health says the lives of today’s youngsters are being blighted by social isolation, materialism and lack of opportunities, writes Lucy Johnston.
Dr Dinah Jayson, of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said: “Parents are often stressed and under strain, working long hours to earn money for things they don’t really need such as the latest designer trainers rather than giving youngsters parental attention vital to their emotional wellbeing.”
She is calling for a radical change in the way children are treated and looked after by society.
She said: “Children are no longer free to see friends or explore their natural environment due to safety concerns and urban living. At the same time academic expectations are higher and children are not given enough chance to develop properly as children.”
Dr Jayson, author of popular book Understanding Children’s Behaviour, said the nation is losing its sense of community where members of society helped look after each other.
She said: “There is no point in apportioning blame on to parents, schools or politicians. We need to work together to find solutions such as building networks in communities so that children can have safe places to be with each other.”
She is also calling for extra support for working parents so they can spend more time with their children.
Her comments are borne out by landmark report The Good Childhood Inquiry for the Children’s Society, which found British children are less happy than those in almost any other developed country. It found children spend 21 hours a week watching TV or playing video games, making them more likely to be socially isolated.
Sally Hodges, of the Tavistock Clinic, said new problems were emerging such as cyber-bullying. She said: “When children develop mental health problems it is not something wrong with them. Something is wrong in their life.”
‘We need to find solutions’