House of Commons · Westminster Hall
07 February 2024 · 5 other contributors · 8,952 words
Opened by Charlotte Nichols Lab Warrington North
Responding minister: Damian Hinds
Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.
Charlotte Nichols raised concerns about mindfulness in schools — [james gray in the chair] in Westminster Hall. A government minister responded.
Key points
Key requests to Government
The hon. Member asks that the Government commit to bringing mindfulness into all schools as part of a solution to mental health and recruitment crises. She believes this can provide long-term benefits by reducing reliance on mental health services and improving overall well-being, though she acknowledges it is not a panacea.
MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said.
Opened the debate
The hon. Member Charlotte Nichols is concerned about the mental health crisis facing young people and the challenges faced by teachers, including a record number of teachers leaving the profession and rising sick leave levels. She highlighted the tragic case of Brianna Ghey, whose mother set up the Peace in Mind campaign to bring mindfulness into schools. The initiative has raised over £50,000 since September 2023 for mindfulness programmes in Warrington.
As Esther's constituency neighbour, he mentions the benefits of mindfulness beyond schools and highlights its long-term advantages for individual health. He agrees that training young people in these skills will be beneficial for years to come. Agrees that schools should prepare children academically and for future jobs, but also highlights the importance of mindfulness in addressing digital world pressures. Supports time spent outside but believes techniques learned there can be beneficial inside classrooms. He asked the Minister about calls for social media platforms to prevent under-16-year-olds from accessing their services, citing the impact on young people's mental health.
She highlighted the mental health crisis in schools, noting that children are struggling with stress and anxiety more than ever before. She also mentioned the need for a curriculum review to balance academic standards with student wellbeing, and stressed the importance of early intervention and recruitment of new staff to address the backlog in child and adolescent mental health services.
Jim Shannon thanked the hon. Member for Warrington North and highlighted the immense pressures faced by children today, including exam pressure and social media expectations. He noted higher rates of anxiety and mood disorders in Northern Ireland compared to mainland UK, with one in eight young people experiencing emotional difficulties. Shannon also raised concerns about adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) affecting nearly half of young people aged 11-19. He emphasised the importance of mental health work being a partnership between schools and parents.
Expressed deep concern about the wellbeing crisis among young people, noting an increase in mental health issues and obesity. He highlighted the importance of outdoor education for building resilience and improving mental health, advocating for a week-long funded residential outdoor experience for all children. Emphasized the need to involve young people in planning youth provision programmes and suggested simplifying driving licences for teachers to remove barriers to outdoor trips.
More than 300 parliamentarians have taken part in mindfulness courses, and he encourages the hon. Lady to join an upcoming course as well. He emphasises that mindfulness should be a whole-school approach rather than targeted at specific students with issues.
Government Response
Damian HindsIt is good to see you in the Chair for today's debate, Mr Gray. I congratulate the hon. Member for Warrington North on bringing this important subject to Westminster Hall today. Schools and colleges should be respectful and tolerant places where bullying is never tolerated. The Government actively explore approaches that could improve young people's mental health and wellbeing, such as mindfulness interventions. We are offering all state schools and colleges a grant to train a senior mental health lead by next year; over 14,400 have claimed such a grant so far, including four fifths of the schools in Warrington. The training supports the leads to assess and implement interventions that are suitable for their setting, which can include mindfulness. We are funding a large-scale programme—over 300 schools have been involved—and the findings will help us evaluate the impact of a variety of interventions on mental health and wellbeing. In September 2020, we made health education, including mental health education, compulsory for all pupils in state-funded schools. The Government take staff wellbeing seriously; £1.5 million has been invested to deliver a three-year mental health and wellbeing support package for school and college leaders. We are continuing to roll out the mental health support teams to schools and colleges, which will cover at least half of pupils by March 2025.