From TikTok to Crisis
Understanding the Growing Concerns Over Online Platforms and Young Minds
I spend a lot of time talking to you all about keeping children safe online and why it’s important to understand the risks that exist. As somebody whose future has ultimately been shaped by a life-changing mental health condition, it would be remiss of me not to spend time talking about the effects that the online world can have on the mental health of children.
Digital platforms are a core element of children’s lives and the statistics reveal a severe and escalating crisis, placing unprecedented strain on young people and support services across the UK.
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The number of children experiencing mental health difficulties today provides context for the importance of discussions on the topic of online child safety:
Prevalence has nearly doubled in recent years. In 2023, approximately one in five children and young people aged 8 to 25 had a probable mental health condition. This figure is starkly higher than the estimated one in eight children in 2017.
The likelihood of young people having a mental health problem has increased by 50% in the last three years. This means that roughly five children in a classroom of 30 are likely to have a mental health problem.
Half of all mental health problems are established by the age of 14, underscoring the vital need for early intervention during childhood and adolescence.
The most common mental health challenges reported among young people are emotional disorders, including anxiety and depression.
It is important to know these statistics and what they result in because we are talking about children, they could even relate to your own children and it is often very easy for people to ignore statistics and think “it will never happen to my child”, such thinking is extremely dangerous though.
I should tell you that when I started my role analysing criminal pornography I ignored many of the warning signs regarding my mental health, much of that was the bravado effect but also a lack of knowledge on my part and I spent a lot of time thinking “Im ok, I will be ok”, I am far from Ok now and hope that people will learn from my errors in that respect.
The online world is a way of life for most children these days and they don’t necessarily differentiate between the online world and the real world. It is a great resource for connection, but many of you who follow me know it also poses great risks.
Young people will often use social media to openly discuss personal struggles, which has certainly helped to reduce the unwarranted stigma surrounding mental health. This has extended the availability of online therapeutic resources, with some mental health professionals on platforms like TikTok who have amassed millions of followers.
We should also remember that this rapid immersion of children in digital life also presents significant risks to their well-being:
There are growing concerns about the impact of platforms like TikTok on children and young people’s mental health.
Policy is actively being developed regarding the challenges posed by online communities and online safety.
Preventative strategies must address wider causes for poor mental health, including harms (both online and offline).
Resources are urgently needed to help young people use online spaces to support their mental health, not harm it, and to offer tips for healthier news consumption, countering behaviours like “Doomscrolling”.
Naturally, this rise in need has placed huge pressure on the specialist services designed to help and this has led to longer waiting times and a delay to the required care. Worryingly, 70% of young children and teens who experience mental health problems have not had appropriate interventions at a sufficiently early age.
By the time help is sought via formal Children & Young People’s Mental Health Services, it is often at a crisis point:
For 59% of young people awaiting support, their mental health reports getting worse during the wait.
Referrals for children “in crisis” rose by 7.7% in 2023-24.
Being “in crisis” was the single most common referral reason for Black children (29% of referrals) and children recorded as having an “other” ethnicity (24% of referrals) in 2023-24. This highlights significant health inequalities and suggests that early needs for these groups are frequently missed or unsupported, forcing intervention only once the child is in acute distress.
Even when referred in crisis, the median waiting time for intervention remains five days. Furthermore, close to half (44%) of those referred for being ‘in crisis’ in 2023-24 had their referrals closed or were still waiting for their second contact by the end of the year.
From my perspective, the goal should not be to rely on technical controls to filter out content but instead foster a culture of resilient digital citizens and ensure that all children have timely access to mental health support before a crisis occurs.
The difficulty in accessing NHS mental health care, commonly referred to as CAMHS underscores the importance of other measures such as community and preventative measures:
Prioritise Prevention and Early Intervention: The focus must shift away from a diagnosis-led model towards needs-led social support. This means increasing access to open-access mental health services, such as Young Futures Hubs, delivered directly in local communities.
Support Non-Clinical Pathways: Community support, like The Children’s Society’s BEAM and Pause wellbeing services, are shown to reduce psychological distress and are often more appealing to groups less likely to engage with NHS services, such as young men and LGBTQ+ and ethnic minority communities.
Encourage Safe Self-Referral: Children's self-referrals are generally associated with shorter waiting times. Local areas should ensure their services accept self-referrals from young people, streamlining the process so problems can be picked up sooner.
Address Online Harms in Policy: We need cross-government strategies that address the wider determinants of poor mental health, including online harms. The government has a critical opportunity to ensure that children and young people’s mental health is central to the forthcoming NHS 10 Year Plan.
I think that the evidence is clear: investing in children’s mental health is not just a moral imperative, but also an economic necessity, offering a significant return on investment through reduced lifetime costs and increased societal productivity.
For parents, this means moving beyond reactive safety measures to proactively ensuring children are equipped with the skills and support networks to navigate both online stress and real-world pressures.
Hopefully this has been an interesting read for you and of some use, please do remember to share it across your own social media platforms and discuss it with other parent’s. Any questions or comments, then as always, please reach out to me.
As always, thank you for your support. Please share this across your social media, and if you do have any comments, questions, or concerns, then feel free to reach out to me here or on BlueSky, as I am always happy to spend some time helping to protect children online.
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