Children's Mental Health Week 2025 (3rd to 9th February 2025)
Black and white image of an distressed toddler, eyes tightly shut, in a smart white spotty shirt with a black dicky bow tie. Out stretched arms and fingers towards the camera.
As we begin Children’s Mental Health Week, it is a good time to look at some of the important statistics around mental health issues, why these statistics are important and what that means for the children in our society.
50% of all mental health disorders can develop by the age of 14
This statistic shows the importance of intervention at an early age to help mitigate the impact of long-lasting mental health issues and the offer of support to children as they develop.
In 2023, 20.3% of 8- to 16-year-olds had a probable mental disorder
It is often overlooked that children and teenagers can develop mental disorders, being wrongly attributed to puberty, tantrums, teenage issues or other stages or childhood development.
In 2020, 17.7% of children and young adults in Yorkshire were being treated for one mental disorder by the NHS
This number continues to rise in recent years and is above the national average of 16% and 3rd highest of UK regions. As the NHS struggles to meet the demand, waiting list numbers and waiting times are increasing. This reflects the value of preventative measures at early stages to avoid and mitigate mental health issues developing into disorders.
In Leeds, referrals to Mindmate SPA increased by almost 50% from 2020 - 2022
This is another number that continues to increase year by year, meaning that there are significant delays in getting the best and most targeted support to children as quickly as possible, as Mindmate SPA is responsible for triaging cases to allocating them to the most appropriate service.
Childhood trauma is associated with increased risk of later mental health problems, difficulties in personal and social relationships, as well as increased risk of new stressful experiences, including repeated abuse.
At Youth Trauma Allies, we can provide high quality and accessible education, training and support around complex trauma to parents/carers, school staff and other key community members, building a stronger and supportive trauma informed community for all, focused on the prevention of the long-term impact of trauma.
Written by Rachel Tandy
