Thousands of school kids as young as six being treated in A&E for ‘mental health crises’, doctors reveal

THOUSANDS of primary school kids are being treated in A&E for suspected mental health crises, doctors reveal. The number of six to nine-year-olds in casualty due to a meltdown surged 62 per cent between 2019 and 2025, a report found. The increase — from 3,870 to 6,269 — was the fastest rise of any age group under 18, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) said. Critics say doctors, parents and campaigners are trying to treat normal emotions and bad behaviour as medical problems. NHS figures analysed by the RCPCH showed that mental health A&E visits for all children aged six to 17 rose 36 per cent, from 55,525 in 2019 to 75,491 in 2025. Professor Lynn Woolsey, of the Royal College of Nursing, said: “This rise is a damning indictment of a failing system, with desperate families left with nowhere else to turn. Read More on Health “The reality is that A&Es are wholly unsuitable for children in mental health distress.” Medics say kids in mental health crises may have self-harmed or have suicidal thoughts, bad behaviour, anxiety, or a medical emergency caused by an eating disorder. But retired child psychiatrist and author Dr Sami Timimi said: “Six to nine-year-olds do not have mental health crises. “They may have behavioural problems, struggle with learning difficulties or be responding to family events, but calling these ‘mental health crises’ shows just how far the ideology of medicalised psychiatry has penetrated.” Most read in Health How to get help EVERY 90 minutes in the UK a life is lost to suicide It doesn’t discriminate, touching the lives of people in every corner of society – from the homeless and unemployed to builders and doctors, reality stars and footballers. It’s the biggest killer of people under the age of 35, more deadly than cancer and car crashes. And men are three times more likely to take their own life than women. Yet it’s rarely spoken of, a taboo that threatens to continue its deadly rampage unless we all stop and take notice, now. If you, or anyone you know, needs help dealing with mental health problems, the following organisations provide support: - CALM, www.thecalmzone.net, 0800 585 858 - Heads Together,www.headstogether.org.uk - HUMEN www.wearehumen.org - Mind, www.mind.org.uk, 0300 123 3393 - Papyrus, www.papyrus-uk.org, 0800 068 41 41 - Samaritans,www.samaritans.org, 116 123