Study: Teachers need more mental health training to help students

By Mark Waghorn via SWNS

Teachers need to be trained to help children with their mental health problems, according to new research.

They do not have the necessary skills to respond to emotional issues facing youngsters today and school staff are buckling under the strain of providing the necessary support.

Education and health experts, writing in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, say investment in schools and teachers is urgently required.

Lead author Chloe Lowry, of University College London, said: "It is both astonishing and alarming that teachers are not adequately trained for these roles."

Since the pandemic there has been a huge increase in under 18s needing treatment for issues such as suicidal thoughts and self-harm.

Ms. Lowry, a former teacher, said: "Given the essential role schools and teachers play in supporting children's long-term health and wellbeing and responding when problems arise, funding support from the health sector to equip this forgotten health workforce could be transformational."

Rates of mental illness amongst children have increased by 50 percent in the UK in just three years.

Only one in four are seen by mental health professionals in the UK. Data from the Office of National Statistics shows teachers are the most common source of aid.

In the US around 93% of teachers express concerns over students’ mental well-being, but the vast majority feel ill-prepared to respond, according to the American Psychological Association.

An estimated 49.5 percent of adolescents in the US has had a mental health disorder at some point in their lives according to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institute of Mental Health.

Like overstretched frontline healthcare workers, disproportionate numbers of teachers also experience poor mental health themselves.

Teachers, together with GPs and social workers, constitute 'tier 1' of the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS).

They are considered able to offer general advice and treatment for less severe problems - as well as referring to more specialist services.

But the latter are difficult to access - meaning they end up providing "across the spectrum of need," say the researchers.

The UK government currently funds mental health awareness training for only one teacher per school.

Surveys show just four in ten classroom teachers in England feel equipped to teach pupils with mental health needs.

Only a third know how to help them contact specialist mental health support outside school.

Co-author Dame Alison Peacock, CEO of the Chartered College of Teaching, said: "Despite this background of unprecedented need, inadequate training, and a workforce eager to learn, training in promoting children's healthy development was omitted in the final stages of the recent teacher training reforms in England, in favor of a narrow focus on improving academic attainment."

Regardless of socioeconomic status, children with better social and emotional development achieve higher exam results. Peers with mental health difficulties are more likely to perform poorly.

Teachers have been found to influence pupils' mental health as much as their academic exam results.

The researchers call for integrating comprehensive instruction in child development, health and wellbeing into teacher training courses free of charge.

They also want investment to turn schools into hubs for children's services.

Added Dame Alison: "We offer these recommendations to create a healthier education system, turning vicious cycles of poor pupil and teacher wellbeing into virtuous circles that enhance children’s long-term physical health, mental health, educational and economic outcomes."

In February, the BBC discovered there has been a 77 percent rise in the number of children needing specialist treatment for severe mental health problems.

Some 409,347 under-18s were referred to the NHS in England for specialist care between April and October 2021.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists carried out the analysis by looking at NHS Digital referrals data.

It includes the most serious and urgent cases where the child faces an immediate risk from an eating disorder, self-harm, or suicidal thoughts.

In the same six-month period in 2019, there were 230,591 referrals for under-18s.

Headteachers also report a huge rise in less severe mental health issues.

The government plans 400 mental health teams to support schools by 2023.

Only those with the most serious mental health problems are referred for specialist care.

But schools are reporting a surge in mental health problems below this high threshold, with pupils needing extra support such as counseling.

Almost 1,000 teaching and support staff surveyed by children's charity Place2Be and the National Association of Head Teachers described seeing an increase in emotional and mental health issues among pupils since the pandemic - including anxiety.