To think there needs to be a public inquiry into child development

[MaryMaryVeryContrary]

It really seems like we have a looming societal crisis in terms of child development and therefore the quality of the public in 10-20 years time. Experienced teachers across the board seem to be reporting an overwhelming increase in delayed, aggressive and disruptive children. I’m extremely worried about how this will impact society when they become adults - it seems (as a guess) at least a tenth of children will be incapable of work of any kind, and many more will need copious amounts of support to live any kind of responsible life.

AIBU to think we need an urgent public inquiry into this and what is going on? It seems to be the elephant in the room and anybody who tries to discuss it is shouted down.

I’m sure some of it is due to cuts in services but surely that can’t account for it all - it’s very sudden and extremely alarming.

100% needed OP. But what would the government do?

We live in this insane world of over-consumption and constant busyness.

All the govt wants if for productivity and GDP to go up and it can't get the indigenous population to do that so well...

We're completely screwed.

https://mhfaengland.org/mhfa-centre/ceo-blog/Workplaces-must-act-now-to-prevent-a-lost-generation/

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-26/uk-risks-lost-generation-with-young-in-mental-health-crisis?embedded-checkout=true

• "UK Risks ‘Lost Generation’ With Young in Mental Health CrisisResolution Foundation says 34% of 18 to 24-year-olds affected
• ‘Epidemic’ keeping young people out of work, harming economy

A mental health crisis is gripping young Britons and keeping many out of the workforce, threatening to blight the prospects of a generation unless urgent action is taken, according to new research.
The Resolution Foundation warned that workers in their early 20s are now more likely to be economically inactive due to ill heath than those in their 40s after a sharp increase in the last decade.
Over a third of 18 to 24-year-olds reported having symptoms of mental health conditions like depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder in 2021-22, up from less than a quarter in 2000, the think tank said. More than half a million were prescribed anti-depressants.
The findings suggest that the ill-health crisis that has resulted in acute labor shortages since the pandemic may become a long-term hindrance for the British economy and add to the pressures on government spending.
Poor Health Has Driven a Surge in Inactivity Since Covid Struck

Note: Others reasons include temporary sickness, discouraged workers, those awaiting result of job application
Inactivity — workers neither in work nor seeking a job — is up by more than 700,000 compared to before Covid, tightening the labor market and fueling inflationary pressures that led the Bank of England to raise interest rates to their highest in over a decade.

“It represents a major challenge to economic and public spending through the social security system and pressure on the National Health Service,” said Jo Bibby, director of health at the Health Foundation, which funded the research. “Without concerted cross-government action, we risk creating a ‘lost generation’ due to ill health.”

And this is just the current working youth. Can't bare to think what the current school aged children will be like when they hit their 20s.

My partners family is from Angola and I even there it seems autism is seen more and more on a scale never seen before and we are talking 3 rd world country where diagnosis is probably not easy .

I was reading on another thread about parents fighting on school grounds for ridiculous things, so most of the disruptive/ bad behaved kids have disruptive parents as role models, who already exist in society so it just perpetuates. As to speech delays, and other developmental related delays, I am not sure how this could be enquired or to what we could link it to, there are so many possibilities.

I think that’s a big part of the problem. Kids learn a lot of life skills from other kids, from unsupervised real-life socialising and outdoor play. They don’t from gaming and online interaction.

Yes but we can’t win

we allow our 6 years olds to fend for them selves in the street and one gets hit by a car or kidnapped and then the country jumps “ where were the parents “

I beg your pardon?

''Extra 500 a month for diagnosed children''. Can tell where you've pulled this from, as if you haven't even said which diagnosis supposedly gets parents this.

Its certainly not autism.

Look at the decrease in mortality rates
we are lucky that many of our children who were born with problems and also premature babies are surviving more. These children are more likely to have development delays and SEN including speech etc

Children just have 0 basic manners now too. The amount of children who behave badly at play dates/don’t listen/don’t say please and thank you.

i used to have a friend with a child who was absolutely old enough to be saying please and thank you and she just laughed and said “it’s too much effort you have to tell them all the time”

like yes, it is effort and you have to tell them all the time - that’s parenting! Otherwise you grow up with a rude child who can’t behave!

Lock down, children centre closures, appalling camhs, lack of speech therapy. You reap as you sow.

I've had three kids with speech delay / disorders. None had therapy as toddlers and I'm going back over a decade and just before the pandemic.

They also learn from watching parents, helping with little chores and bigger chores, bonding with parents.

Smart phones and screens will be definitely be affecting children later on and re wiring it.

I am interested in where everyone’s kids are at 6.14 pm on a Sunday whilst the parents debate on a form of tech that other parents who sit on tech instead of interacting with their children are doing ?

Mine will be looking after their own kids I suppose.

mine are with their father!

I would put a lot of blame on technology.

Parents used to talk to their children from young age much more in the past than now from what I can see.
Nowadays I see people pushing a pram and talking on their phone rather than talking to the child and capturing their interest.
I see parents out eating with their very young children, giving them an iPad to play with rather than engage in a conversation with them .
These are opportunities when children have to hear, digest what is said and respond. This impacts on their listening and communication skills.

Plus the idea of parenting is sometimes saying NO to something and having clear boundaries.
Social media also can have a negative effect.

Then there are environmental factors - the food we eat filled with hormones and pesticides can’t be good.
Plus where do so many men put their mobiles - right next to the sperm making department, often for many hours a day. That can’t be good and although people say that hasn’t been proven to have a negative effect, do we really know?

Plus as early years teachers we have so many things to cover and tick off which don’t necessarily enhance a child’s learning.
When I started teaching many years ago, the nursery curriculum was a few pages long, I was trusted to teach and could concentrate on doing this rather than documenting everything, taking photos of this and that and interrupting the flow of teaching and learning. Not spending time on ‘showing evidence’ that so-and-so could do this. It takes away time from actual teaching doing this. Time which is finite and precious in a nursery morning/ afternoon.
I knew what each child could do and how to move on their learning. Teaching was a wonderful profession to be in. I was trusted and respected. I miss those days.

If you look at countries that have superb educational results, they learn through play until a child is ready to learn more formally. Children learn to write when they are ready to hold a pencil and not forced to do so. And don’t get me started on phonics and reading too early!

Apologies for such a long post but I am passionate about early years learning and the many missed opportunities for young children.

I read, sing and talk to my two year old son but he still has a speech delay. I know other parents whose children are the same. It isn't the parents fault. The child just doesn't say much.

Don’t panic, there is many reasons.
I hate peoples assume that of course the reason is parents and phones
not the fact that many conditions not just SEN but physical conditions are more know now and have a better understanding.

Child MH services are appallingly under-resourced imo.

Friend's son waited over 6 years for an autism assessment, and CAMHS wouldn't even consider his other potential MH issues until that was done. His MH has got so much worse in that time that he will need a lot more help/intervention than he might have done had he been assessed at 10, when he was first referred.

He rarely leaves the house, never goes out alone and almost always hides in his room when anyone other than his brother visits. He's been out of school most of that time, so even if, by some miracle, he gets the help he needs and his MH improves, he'll have no qualifications and it's hard to think what job he could possibly do.

The system has totally failed him.

I am a child psychologist and I 100% agree with you.

Sure, but how about other periods in modern history, such as the war years? Surely they were even more stressful, but we didn't see the same effects in children/schools. Or at least not as far as I am aware.

@Notoyoutube that's half the problem thought isn't it? We are often more afraid of the judgement of neighbours or society than we are of the harm to the child.

No I don't think there needs to be a public enquiry. There have always been children who are badly behaved, no consequences in schools for bad behaviour.

DLA – Disability Living Allowance is non means tested financial support from the UK government for people with a mental or physical disability to provide assistance with personal care or mobility needs. It is a benefit to help with additional costs related to disability, illness and health.

Taken from The Autism Page.

The countries with the best educational results, eg. Finland, don't even start kids in formal schooling until they they are 7.

The drop from 1900 to 1930 is amazing! That’s when antibiotics were invented isn’t it?

Yes, but its based on actual care needs - not a diagnosis

And I should know, my ASD child with an underlying genetic disorder receives it.

People need to educate themselves instead of spouting uneducated bilge about disability benefits.