REACH Special 4: School, COVID-19 and Adolescent Mental Health by Our Sick Society

Adna, Karima, and Thai-sha are back! Join them in this special limited series produced by the Resilience, Ethnicity, and AdolesCent mental Health (REACH) project’s Young Person’s Community Champions (YPCC).

Recent research from the REACH study found that 1 in 5 pupils were experiencing difficulties with their mental health from February 2016 - January 2018: approximately 6 in a class of 30! This is much higher than what is estimated nationally. There have been so many further changes since then due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Social distancing, remote learning, changes to exams, economic impacts, and the fear of the unknown have all been challenging for young people.

In this episode, the REACH YPCC are joined by secondary school teacher, Louise, where they delve into the impacts of the pandemic on student mental health but also the effects on the mental health of teachers. Join the team in discussions about improving support for young people and teachers post-COVID along with ways to encourage a better school environment for teachers and students to seek mental health support.

If you need or know someone who needs support, please visit www.thereachstudy.com/resources.