By: Fatema Khanani
What is TSC?
The children society, a society formed for children welfare by the founder Edward Rudolf, in 1988, which aims to collect reports targeting the well-being of children in the UK and comparing it over time and with that of children in other countries. Given The Children’s Society’s history of working with some of the most disadvantaged children, they are involved in improving well-being for those children who experience difficulty and identify factors which may enhance and hinder children’s happiness.
The Good Childhood Reports focus primarily on children’s own views of their lives – the subjective well-being of children - an individual’s own assessment of how their life is going. But why exactly is subjective well-being important? Research has shown variations of subjective well being amongst children from differing groups with different life experiences in the UK. Previous findings have highlighted a number of risk factors that may contribute to low well-being - such as difficult family relationships, being bullied, being in a family that is under financial strain, and experiencing a combination of social, familial and material disadvantages. Understanding these children’s experiences and the challenges they face at a local level and across the UK as a whole – and how this compares with that of children internationally enables professionals and policy makers to prioritise specific areas and groups of children in need of support, and to take action to improve their lives.
The Current State
In 2021, as in previous years, children are most happy on average with their relationships with their family. However, in contrast with previous years where the largest proportion were unhappy with the school that they go to, in 2021 a higher proportion of children were unhappy with the choice they have in life. As children were in lockdown as part of measures to manage the Coronavirus pandemic, the higher proportion unhappy with choice may therefore be related to the restrictions on social contact and other aspects of life that were in place at this time. The Children’s Society conducted a survey of just over 2,000 children in April-June 2021 presenting the latest figures for The Good childhood Index which show there has been a significant decrease in happiness with life as a whole. In the latest wave of the survey (June 2020), family (8.1) had the highest mean happiness score (of the four specific domains of life examined), followed by friends (7.8), school (7.1), and appearance (7.2).
This tenth report on the well-being of children in the UK highlights a number of areas of life that children are finding more difficult. In 2021, responses to our own Good Childhood Index suggest around 12% of children (aged 10 to 17) have low well-being (scoring below the midpoint on our multi-item measure of life satisfaction). This proportion is lower than in 2020 and similar to that in Household Surveys conducted before the pandemic. While most children score above the midpoint on questions about their happiness with different aspects of life, they are most commonly unhappy with school and their appearance. School and appearance are also the domains where more children (aged 10 to 15) have reported being unhappy across 10 years of the Understanding Society survey.
More needs to be done to fully understand and address why some children feel this way about these two aspects of their lives. The latest data from Understanding Society show that in 2018-19, children (aged 10 to 15) were less happy (on average) with life as a whole, friends, appearance and school (i.e. four of the six areas examined) than when the survey began. Understanding Society, highlights some interesting differences between boys and girls aged 10 to 15 years:
- Boys have consistently been happier with their appearance than girls.
- Girls have repeatedly been happier with school than boys.
A greater proportion of girls have been unhappy with appearance than with any other area of life across years. In recent waves, there has been a sustained rise in the proportion of boys who are unhappy with school, and, in the last two waves, an increase in boys who are unhappy with their appearance. These changes in boys’ happiness with their appearance will continue to be monitored and may warrant further exploration in subsequent reports.
Why is Happiness with Friends in decline?
This year, children’s mean happiness with friends has again decreased, continuing a trend that we have reported in every Good Childhood Report since 2015. This downward trend is concerning, as friendships are an integral part of child development during adolescence. The report explores: The ‘happiness with friends’ measure over time, to look at how children’s responses have changed and if or how this derives by demographic characteristics. Factors related to friendship and peer relationships, including the number of close friends children have, experiences of bullying at school, and online technology. Young people’s own descriptions of the difficulties they face in their relationships, and the qualities they say make a good friend.
Factors related to children’s happiness with friends ; the analysis indicates that something has changed with how children feel about their friendships. As with the international comparisons, the report was interested to explore why this may be. It considered three different hypotheses that might help to explain these patterns:
1. Variations in number of close friends.
2. Experiences of bullying at school.
3. Variations in use of social media.
Analysis showed that in 2017-18, happiness with friends varied to some extent depending on the number of close friends children had, their level of social media use and experiencing bullying at school, none of these factors seemed to explain changes in children’s happiness with friends over time. More analysis is needed, considering a range of different factors in combination, to further understand the decline in children’s happiness with their friends
What do children say about their friendships?
To better understand children’s views, The Good Childhood Report consulted with over 150 young people (aged 8 to 19 from schools, youth groups and The Children’s Society’s services in England) to find out their thoughts and feelings about the positive and negative aspects of friendship.
They asked young people to tell them in their own words why they thought a peer might score themselves as a 4 out of 10 when answering the question about happiness with friends. The comments we received emphasized the impact of ‘falling out with friends’, with arguments/fights being given as key reasons why someone may rate their friendships as a four. Children also identified the toxic nature of these relationships, and a fear of being left out. On the other hand, they asked young people to tell them in their own words why they thought a peer might score themselves as a 7 out of 10 when answering the question about happiness with friends. The responses we received highlight the complexities children face. Most young people felt seven represented an acceptable score, although it did not reflect a unanimously positive view of friendships. For some, this score implied that there had likely been conflict in the friendships, which were now recovering
What Next?
As policymakers respond to the pandemic they must not lose sight of the changes that had already occurred in children’s well-being. International data at age 15 shows children in the UK fairing less well than their European counterparts. It is needed to further understand why children in the UK feel this way, and to learn lessons from other jurisdictions where children are more satisfied with their lives. The potential links identified with poverty levels and fear of failure require more exploration – although it is notable that they relate to areas where there have been changes in UK policy (eg. rising child poverty as a result of austerity measures and changes to schooling – including the new curriculum, exam changes, and the development of academies), over the last 10 years.
As Coronavirus restrictions are lifted, this report highlights a number of key areas for focus in improving children’s lives. Survey data shows that, even before the pandemic, there were worrying reductions in children’s happiness with their lives as a whole, their friends, their school and their appearance, which need to be understood and targeted. School and appearance have consistently been the aspects of life where more children have been unhappy over the last 10 years, and (un)happiness with appearance no longer appears to just be a concern for girls, with boys’ happiness with this aspect of life is also declining. Encouragingly, in 2021, there seems to have been some recovery in children’s scores for those Good Childhood Index items (e.g. overall life satisfaction, choice and friends) that saw changes during the 2020 lockdown. Most children and their parents also seem to have coped to some extent with the restrictions that they have faced as a result of the pandemic. There are a small group of parents and children who have coped less well, however, and who must get the support they need. The many restrictions and lockdowns that have been needed will have impacted on all those areas we know are important to children’s wellbeing. Going forward, it is important to ensure, wherever possible, children have opportunities and are encouraged to connect, be active, be creative, keep learning and to take notice. How children feel about the future has an impact on how they feel about their lives overall. Among those taking part in our 2021 survey, 7 in 10 children (aged 10 to 17) were optimistic about the future despite living through the pandemic. With 7% not optimistic and 21% indifferent, there is room for improvement. Policymakers and practitioners must take children’s fears about their own future and wider society seriously. The results of the survey provide some insights into the types of areas/issues that might be prioritized. When asked about their own lives, around a third of children admitted that they were most worried about having enough money, being able to find a job and getting good grades. With regards to wider societal issues, they were most worried about new illnesses, the environment, inequality and crime. Working with these young people to address those factors that are linked to low life satisfaction in earlier adolescence could potentially have long-term benefits for the mental health of these young people.
For the most part, recognizing when someone needs mental health support is not always easy. When something isn’t physical, it can remain invisible to others, especially in school. However, mental health services for children need to be friendlier and more accessible, so young people find it easier to ask for help; when they do get help it really does help, but when it's not working right it just makes them feel even worse. Society needs to open up more about mental health in general. By talking about it, listening to others, being open with friends and family, we can make mental health accessible to all.
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