Childline Wales figures 'extremely worrying', NSPCC says

Childline said it can make a "life-changing difference" for young people to share concerns

More than 600 children in Wales contacted Childline with suicidal thoughts last year, NSPCC Cymru has said.

The charity, which runs the helpline, said it is "extremely worrying".

17% of the 7,600 online or phone sessions it provided to under-18s in 2015/16 concerned self-harm or suicide - the highest rate in the UK.

The Welsh Government said it is investing £8m a year in young people's mental health services.

The children's commissioner for Wales said "more needs to be done" to ensure children have the right support.

The NSPCC has released figures for each of the four nations of the UK for the first time.

In England, there were 189,143 counselling sessions, in Northern Ireland 4,896, and in Scotland 13,687.

Desperate levels

An NSPCC Cymru spokesman said it was important to understand why children are "reaching such desperate emotional levels" and urged young people to get in touch.

He added: "It's extremely worrying that so many young people in Wales have contacted Childline with thoughts of suicide or self-harm.

"It can make a life-changing difference for any child dealing with worries and anxieties to speak to someone who cares and wants to listen.

"Our counsellors deal with a wide variety of issues. The good news is that we know they can help protect children from acute pain and even save lives."

Bullying was the reason for 7% of counselling sessions

The Wales figures show that of 7,602 sessions:

• Low self-esteem/unhappiness was the biggest concern, with 1,203 enquiries, or 16% of the total

• There were 971 counselling sessions about family relationships, or 13% of the total

• Bullying, including online bullying, formed 7% of enquiries

• Sexual abuse accounted for 3% - or 243 - of counselling sessions.

Suicide and self-harm accounted for 15% of all counselling sessions in both England and Scotland.

Children's Commissioner for Wales, Sally Holland, said the figures would inform services

The Children's Commissioner for Wales, Sally Holland, welcomed the figures.

She said they would inform the "planning and delivery of emotional and mental health and wellbeing services for children and young people."

"It's vital that children and young people who experience mental health problems have access to timely and appropriate support, and there is still more to be done to make sure this happens," she added.

"I have called for mental health prevention and early help to be a core element of a supportive whole-school approach embedded within the new curriculum for Wales."

'Committed'

Wales currently has 175 Childline volunteers across two bases in Cardiff and Prestatyn, and children are counselled in both English and Welsh.

Childline founder Esther Rantzen visited the Senedd on Tuesday to encourage more people to volunteer for the charity, which was set up 30 years ago.

A Welsh Government spokesperson said it is "committed" to reducing rates of suicide and self-harm.

"We are investing almost £8m annually in specialist child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) to help improve timely access to treatment.

"Talk to Me 2, our national action plan, seeks to prevent and reduce suicidal behaviours and self-harm at national, regional and local levels and identifies young people as a priority group."