Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

PHE's new mental health campaign offers 'practical tips' to children, young people

​THE NEW mental health campaign by Public Health England (PHE) provides NHS-endorsed, practical tips and advice to help children and young people’s mental wellbeing.

Available on the Every Mind Matters website,the campaign is designed to help parents and carers spot the signs that children may be struggling with their mental health and support them.


Besides, it provides tools to help young people build resilience and equips them to look after their own mental health.

Around 52 per cent parents of a new PHE survey revealed that mental wellbeing of their children topped the list when asked about their top three worries around coronavirus.

Over two-fifths (41 per cent) of children and young people responded to the survey said they were more lonely than before coronavirus lockdown and more than a third said they were more worried (38 per cent).

“It’s understandable that while many children and young people are excited to be back in class, some may also have concerns and anxieties about the new academic year, following the uncertainty and upheaval of Covid, which is why this important campaign is offering practical tips to help kids cope," said professor Prathiba Chitsabesan, NHS England associate national clinical director for children and young people’s mental health.

“Parents, carers, teachers and students should also be reassured that the NHS has been and will continue to be there for everyone with concerns about their mental health, whether through 24/7 crisis

support lines, video and phone consultations, or face to face appointments.”

Faisal Tariq, a community development worker at Sharing Voices, a mental health organisation in Bradford said: “We know from our work within the community in Bradford that throughout the pandemic and as young people have gone back into school settings that many are struggling with anxiety for a whole host of reasons. For many black and South Asian people, this has been more pronounced due to the fact that these communities have been disproportionately affected by negative health outcomes when it comes to Covid-19.”

“It’s not always clear for parents how they can address these concerns, a factor which can be heightened in black and South Asian communities for reasons such as language or cultural barriers."

NHS's top 5 tips for mental wellbeing

  • Be there to listen: Ask the children and young people you look after how they are doing regularly so they get used to speaking about their feelings
  • Stay involved in their life: Show interest in their life and the things that are important to them
  • Support positive routines: Be a positive role model and support positive behaviours including regular bedtime routines, healthy eating and getting active
  • Encourage their interests: Being active, creative, learning things and being a part of a team are all good for mental health. Support children and young people to explore their interests
  • Take what they say seriously: help the children and young people you look after feel valued in what they say and help them work through difficult emotions.

More For You

ve-day-getty

VE Day 80 street parties, picnics and community get togethers are being encouraged to take place across the country as part of the Great British Food Festival. (Photo: Getty Images)

Public invited to attend VE Day 80 procession and flypast

THE 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe (VE) Day will be marked with a military procession in London on May 5.

The event will include over 1,300 members of the Armed Forces, youth groups, and uniformed services marching from Parliament Square to Buckingham Palace.

Keep ReadingShow less
Knife crimes

Knife-enabled crimes include cases where a blade or sharp instrument was used to injure or threaten, including where the weapon was not actually seen.

Getty Images/iStockphoto

Knife crime in London accounts for a third of national total: ONS

KNIFE-RELATED crime in London made up almost a third of all such offences recorded in England and Wales in 2024, with the Metropolitan Police logging 16,789 incidents, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Thursday.

This amounts to one offence every 30 minutes in the capital and represents 31 per cent of the 54,587 knife-enabled crimes reported across England and Wales last year. The total number marks a two per cent rise from 53,413 offences in 2023.

Keep ReadingShow less
Starmer and Modi

Starmer and Modi shake hands during a bilateral meeting in the sidelines of the G20 summit at the Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Brazil, on November 18, 2024.

Getty Images

Starmer calls Modi over Kashmir attack; expresses condolences

PRIME MINISER Keir Starmer spoke to Indian prime minister Narendra Modi on Friday morning following the deadly attack in Kashmir’s Pahalgam region that killed 26 people on Tuesday.

According to a readout from 10 Downing Street, Starmer said he was horrified by the devastating terrorist attack and expressed deep condolences on behalf of the British people to those affected, their loved ones, and the people of India. The two leaders agreed to stay in touch.

Keep ReadingShow less
 Post Office Horizon

A Post Office van parked outside the venue for the Post Office Horizon IT inquiry at Aldwych House on January 11, 2024 in London, England. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Post Office spent £600m to keep Horizon despite plans to replace it: Report

THE POST OFFICE has spent more than £600 million of public funds to continue using the Horizon IT system, according to a news report.

Despite deciding over a decade ago to move away from the software, the original 1999 contract with Fujitsu prevented the Post Office from doing so, as it did not own the core software code, a BBC investigation shows.

Keep ReadingShow less
Pahalgam attack: Prayer meet held at Indian mission in London

The prayer meet was led by Indian High Commissioner to the UK Vikram Doraiswami

Pahalgam attack: Prayer meet held at Indian mission in London

Mahesh Liloriya

A PRAYER meet was held at the Gandhi Hall in the High Commission of India in London on Thursday (24) to pay respects to the victims of the Pahalgam terrorist attack.

Chants of ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ rang out at the event which was led by Indian High Commissioner to the UK Vikram Doraiswami.

Keep ReadingShow less