One in nine children have a disability after post-pandemic surge in mental health problems
One in nine children now have some form of disability following a post-pandemic surge in mental health conditions and behavioural disorders.
The number of under-16s with a recorded disability has risen by more than a third in just two years since the pandemic, official figures show.
According to the latest data published by the House of Commons Library, 11 per cent of children had some form of disability in 2021-22, up from 8 per cent just before the pandemic, in 2019-20, and 6 per cent a decade earlier.
The growth has been fuelled by a rise in mental health conditions and behavioural disorders, including ADHD, according to experts, as well as increased understanding and willingness to diagnose such conditions.
It means as many as 1.6 million children are affected, contributing to the total 16 million people across the UK who are considered to have a disability.
Sam Ray-Chaudhuri of the Institute for Fiscal Studies suggested interventions such as lockdown had led to the “quite remarkable” rise in deteriorating mental health among children.
“For young people [Covid] had the most impact on mental health rather than physically – lockdown, disruption to schools, there has been a big rise in absenteeism,” he told The Times. “So it seems plausible there could be a decline in mental health over that period.”
More than 650,000 children receive a disability allowance worth up to £172.50 a week, the latest official figures show.
This is up by 17 per cent since before the pandemic, compared with an average rise of 3 per cent across all age groups.
The biggest increase in claims is reportedly among children with behavioural disorders such as ADHD, which have more than doubled and now make up a fifth of children’s claims.
Learning disability claims were up 37 per cent, and issues such as anxiety up 70 per cent.
‘Paying a developmental price’
Prof Tamsin Ford, professor of child and adolescent psychiatry at the University of Cambridge, said people were better at recognising these conditions in addition to there being a rise in cases.
She also said the cost-of-living crisis and difficulty accessing services were part of the problem.
“We have evidence-based treatments, there are things we can do,” Prof Ford told The Times. “If children have to wait for years to access treatments, they are paying a developmental price. If you are waiting from 16-18, that’s your A-levels.”
A government spokesman said: “We know that awareness of autism and other neurodevelopmental conditions has increased markedly over the past decade and we have seen a rise in the numbers of children and young people seeking formal diagnoses.
“We are committed to a welfare system that supports the most vulnerable but is fair on the taxpayer, and all benefits are subject to claimants meeting the eligibility criteria.”
