Factors Affecting Mental Health and Wellbeing in Children and Young People in Northern Ireland

International evidence charts a decline in wellbeing in young people in the Western World over the past decade. In the Youth Wellbeing Prevalence Survey of children and young people (CYP) in Northern Ireland (NI) aged 2-19 years, 12.6% met the criteria for any mood or anxiety disorder.

In keeping with the wider evidence on mental health, childhood adversities were associated with higher risk. Prevalence rates were higher among children living in an area of deprivation, children living in a single parent household, those living in urban areas and children living in households where an adult was in receipt of benefits. Higher rates of poor mental health were associated with having poor physical heath and additional educational needs. The proportions reporting high-risk behaviour were also high, with one in six (aged 11-19) engaging in disordered eating. One in 10 reported self-harm, and one in eight said that they had thought about, or attempted, suicide. The prevalence of mental illness in the youth population in NI is broadly similar to that of other regions of the UK.

The Office of the Mental Health Champion for Northern Ireland funded questions on mental health, worries, supports and barriers to talking in both the 2023 Young Life and Times and the Kids’ Life and Times surveys 2023. This report showcases those findings from both surveys including that 45.2% of 16-year-olds in NI have probable mental ill-health (female 52.9%, males 32.8%). The findings also revealed that the wellbeing of 11-year-olds in NI has declined in recent years to its lowest ever score since 2016. 

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