Happiness of Dorset secondary students revealed in new study
A national charity say a drop in children's happiness is worrying but not shocking
Children in Dorset responded to a happiness survey before the pandemic.
The average score when Dorset secondary students ranked their happiness was 5.7 out of 10.
This, along with other data from Sport England has been reviewed by national charity The Children's Society, who say its a worrying trend.
Policy and Research Manager, Azmina Siddique says these figures reflect pre-covid feelings:
"We know from speaking to young people and through our work that there are so many factors that affect how they are feeling.
"This year has not helped with the pandemic as there was already so much to deal with. I think there is a lot of anxiety around school and relationships and fear of failure really."
Of the children who took part in the South West, 22 per cent gave low scores of less than five out of ten when asked to rate their satisfaction with life. That is equivalent to an estimated 69,000 children of that age in the South West.
The Children's Society's 2020 Good Childhood Report, published in August, highlighted a fall in the well-being of 10-15-year-olds in the UK between 2009 and 2018 based on findings from a separate survey.
This showed that school and appearance are the aspects of life the greatest numbers of children are unhappy with.
The Children's Society says local well-being strategies could include the introduction of open access, drop-in emotional health hubs, offering support without the need for an appointment as well as investment in youth services and early help for struggling families.
Azmina believes that to succeed in improving these figures, groups must work together:
"Children's well being, young people's well being, is in all of our interest.
"Its not just up to local councils, its not just up to schools, its not just up to charities it is everyone's effort."