Half a million children across the UK are unhappy with their lives, the latest report from The Children’s Society has estimated.
The charity, which carried out the research with 30,000 children aged eight to 16, is calling for a “radical new approach” to increase happiness levels among children.
The Good Childhood Report 2012 reveals that children who have low levels of happiness are less likely to enjoy spending time with their family and friends and are more prone to worry about the way they look, potentially leading to eating disorders and depression.
The report found stability is an important factor for children, with almost a quarter (23 per cent) of children who have moved home more than once over the past 12 months having low levels of wellbeing.
Elaine Hindal, The Children’s Society’s campaign for childhood director, said: “We are calling for a radical new approach to childhood, placing wellbeing at the heart of everything we do. We want our country to be the best place for our children to grow up. Yet unless we act now we risk becoming one of the worst and creating a lost future generation.”
The problem of inequality was also identified in the report with around a quarter of children saying they often worry about the way they look and “fit in” with their peers.
The report found bullying to be a major issue affecting wellbeing with 36 per cent of children bullied more than three times in the past three months significantly more likely to experience low levels of wellbeing compared to six per cent of children who had never been bullied.
The Children’s Society has now identified six key ingredients for a happy childhood:
• having the right conditions to learn and develop
• having a positive view of themselves
• experiencing what matters to them
• having a positive relationship with their family and friends
• living in a safe and suitable environment
• having the opportunities to participate in positive activities to help them thrive
The Archbishop of York Dr John Sentamu said the report should act as “a wake-up call to us all”.
“The moral test for any society is how it treats its most vulnerable, including children,” he said.