There were 204,526 new anxiety referrals for this age group in 2023-2024, per the data. To compare, in 2019-2020, before the pandemic hit, there were 98,953 referrals. In 2016-2017, there were 3,879, Daily Mail reports.
The NHS does not maintain a record of the explanations for anxiety referrals. However, experts attributed the increase to a variety of circumstances, including pandemic-era lockdowns that resulted in isolation and school closures, increased academic demands, rising levels of poverty, and online harms such as cyberbullying and self-esteem concerns induced by social media platforms.
Researchers have discovered that children from all socioeconomic backgrounds have experienced developmental delays in their emotional and social growth since the pandemic.
Claire Murdoch, NHS England's national mental health director, said children seeking mental health services have been at a heightened demand.
"The NHS is expanding services to treat more children and young people than ever before, including rolling out hundreds of mental health teams in schools," said Murdoch.
The Department of Health and Social Care announced its intention to establish walk-in mental health centers in each community and to offer specialist mental health support in every school.
"It is unacceptable that too many children and young people are not receiving the care they deserve, and we know that waits for services are far too long," said a spokesperson for the DHSC. "We are determined to change that."
