In a poll of 1,176 people carried out for the Children's Society'sreport, family breakdown (29 per cent) and peer pressure (23 per cent)were cited as the two most influential factors on children's well-beingtoday, followed by bullying and celebrity culture (11 per cent).
When asked about children's physical health, two-thirds of thosesurveyed thought that an increase in indoor activities, such as computergames and watching television, stopped children from being moreactive.
Writing in the report's foreword, chief executive Bob Reitemeier said,'Throughout the inquiry there has been a growing concern that the mentalneeds of children have been ignored. Like many health interventions,services are often only accessible when things go badly wrong and eventhen they are not readily available. Yet it appears that mental healthproblems in children are on the increase and a greater focus onpreventative work is needed to buck this trend.'
Stephen Scott, professor of child health and behaviour at the Instituteof Psychiatry, King's College London, who led the inquiry, said,'Support for parents is crucial; schooling has a key part to play. As asociety we must place the highest value on all the professions chargedwith the care of our children.'
Meanwhile, more than 1,700 children submitted responses to the BBCNewsround and the Good Childhood Inquiry's 'my life' website. Twenty-twoper cent of children said they felt 'bad' or 'really bad' about theirhealth, but their comments showed they realised that exercise and dietwere important to stay healthy.
One ten-year-old boy said, 'I get plenty of exercise without realisingit. I walk to school, run around at playtime, play football at dinnertime and walk home at the end of the day. So, I walk about two miles aday without realising it.'
Further information
www.goodchildhood.org.uk
www.goodchildhood.org.uk.