Robert Halfon joins virtual roundtable with students from Stewards Academy, Essex

Last week, members of the student council at Stewards Academy in Essex took part in a virtual roundtable organised by Place2Be, to talk with Robert Halfon, MP for Harlow and Chair of the government’s Education Select Committee.

The pupils discussed how their mental health has been impacted by lockdown and the disruption to their education.

She added:

“A lot of [students] have talked about sleep issues because they're anxious. Their body clocks all over the place because they're going to bed a lot later and not getting up ‘til later and that has really impacted on young people's mental health.”

Several of the students who took part in the conversation have parents who are keyworkers, and described their concern for their parents and reluctance to ask them for help when they are already coping with a lot.

One student, whose mother is a police officer, said:

“My mum’s the first person I go to if I have any worries and at times like these it scares me because if I add those burdens on to her, her mental health might go down. Not only is it her mood, but it affects the whole household too.”

Others commented on their fears about falling behind with schoolwork:

Some of the students felt they had experienced some positives as a result lockdown and that they had been able to put in place a range of coping mechanisms for themselves.

One 15-year-old student shared:

“I'm a lot closer with my family and I've been exercising a lot more, so I feel like it’s quite good for my mental health.”

And a 14-year-old girl explained:

“I‘ve spent time by myself on my own in my room and I feel like this massively improved my anxiety, 100%. I worked on how I see myself.”

Robert Halfon MP expressed his gratitude for the young people’s willingness to share their thoughts and ideas.