Children will be taught the value of "grit" to tackle a growing mental health crisis in schools, as part of a new government initiative.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson and Health Secretary Wes Streeting have joined forces to launch the programme, saying that children need to be prepared for life's "ups and downs" in the classroom.
The initiative comes amid alarming statistics showing more than a fifth of eight to 16-year-olds had a probable mental health problem in 2023, according to NHS data – an increase of seven percentage points since 2017.
Poor mental health has been linked to school absence levels, which remain near pandemic highs five years on, with more than 20 per cent of children missing at least one day each fortnight last term.
Children will be taught the value of 'grit' to tackle a growing mental health crisis in schools
PAThe latest figures show 150,000 pupils nationwide are absent more than half the time.
Under the new measures, the number of specialist mental health support teams will rise from 607 to 713 by March 2026, providing one-on-one support to pupils "who need it but don't need an NHS referral threshold".
Children will be offered sessions to "tackle anxiety and low mood", with struggling schools receiving extra support through "attendance and behaviour hubs".
The Government will also recruit new attendance and behaviour ambassadors to "prevent greater problems mounting up down the line".
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Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson and Health Secretary Wes Streeting have joined forces to launch the programme
PA
Speaking to LBC's Nick Ferrari at Breakfast, Phillipson stressed the drive was not about teaching a "stiff upper lip", but providing space for children to "come forward".
Phillipson has said she wants to provide extra mental health services to more than a million children.
The classroom interventions mark Labour's latest effort to tackle worklessness, which has partly been fuelled by a surge in mental health problems since the pandemic.
In a joint article for The Telegraph, Phillipson and Streeting wrote: "By deploying NHS-led, evidence-based intervention during children's formative years, we will not only halt the spiral towards crisis but cultivate much-needed grit amongst the next generation essential for academic success and life beyond school, with all its ups and downs."
The initiative comes amid alarming statistics showing more than a fifth of eight to 16-year-olds had a probable mental health problem in 2023
GETTYThe ministers cited government research showing frequently absent pupils earn £10,000 less aged 28 compared with peers with clean attendance records.
They also warned that helping children while at school will help break the "doom loop" of unaddressed mental health problems that end up costing the NHS millions.
Mental health or behavioural conditions now account for almost 45 per cent of disability claims from working-age people, with one in three 18-24 year olds reportedly taking time off work due to stress last year.
The Education and Health Secretaries hope these measures will address the "triple threat of attendance, behaviour and mental health" and "supercharge a co-ordinated effort to address the root causes of issues causing disruption and chaos in classrooms".
