Pleas from vulnerable children for mental health help soar in pandemic, Lords survey finds

A House of Lords Public Services Committee survey of councils, charities and other organisations supporting vulnerable children and their families found that, since March 2020, of the 187 services which responded:

• Nine in ten reported a rise in the number of children seeking help with mental health issues;
• More than eight in ten (86 per cent) said that mental health issues of children already receiving support had become more severe.
  Services have also seen a rise in the number of children and families requesting help due to domestic violence and parental addiction issues, according to the survey.
• Two-thirds (66 per cent) said that they had seen more severe domestic violence faced by partners at home among families and children already receiving support;
• Almost two-thirds (64 per cent) said there had been an increase in the number of children and families requesting help due to domestic violence;
• Half (50 per cent) reported an increase in the severity of parental addiction issues among families already receiving support.

The findings come as the committee prepares to publish a report of its inquiry into the role of public services in addressing child vulnerability.

Baroness Armstrong, chair of the committee, said:

“The results of our survey show just how much the pandemic has taken its toll and added to the pressures facing thousands of children and families, and the frontline staff working hard to keep them safe.

“We know too that there has been a significant and worrying increase in the number of vulnerable children who are invisible to public services and not receiving any help at all since the beginning of the pandemic.”