The 40,000 ‘hermit kids’ who spend months in their bedroom

MORE than 40,000 British ‘hermit kids’ are locking themselves away from the world for months or even years, shocking research has discovered.

The study says chronic social isolation is increasingly affecting young people from all backgrounds and is driven by a combination of poor academic attainment and anxiety about finding good jobs.

Many with the condition become obsessed with social media and live effectively virtual lives.

‘ Teenagers see hiding in their bedrooms as the only solution,’ said Dr Mark Wong, lecturer in social and public policy at the University of Glasgow, who led the research.

‘They often don’t have any qualifications and are faced with a work environment that is increasingly precarious. They don’t feel like they have a future.

‘This is a problem that is cutting across social backgrounds.

‘ More than ever, the younger generation are likely to be stuck in insecure work, zero-hours contracts and under-employed.’ Among the youngsters interviewed in the study was 15-year-old Gary, who has spent more than a year in his bedroom.

‘Nobody sees me any more. I have been in my room, just sitting in the dark, texting my pals,’ he said.

Dave Thompson, whose work with the Dorset Youth Association includes supporting ‘hermit kids’, said: ‘It’s far harder to be a young person now than it ever was. If you’ve got a mobile phone, you can’t go home and turn off.

‘We’re seeing young people just opt out of society.’