REVEALED: More than a quarter of teenagers in Greater Manchester have self harmed

Nearly a quarter of 14-year-old girls have self-harmed in the last year, according to a new report by The Children's Society.

Based on figures obtained during a survey, the charity has estimated that nearly 110,000 children may have self-harmed across the UK, including 76,000 girls and 33,000 boys.

One young person told the charity: “I felt like self-harming was what I wanted to do and had to do as there was nothing else I could do. I think there is help for young people but not the right kind of help.

“Feeling not pretty enough or good enough as other girls did contribute towards my self-harming, however, I don’t feel just being a girl is the reason as I think boys feel the same way too”.

The Children's Society says issues including gender identity, pressure to look a certain way and gender stereotypes all played a factor in the way children saw themselves.

Matthew Reed, Chief Executive at The Children’s Society, said: “It is deeply worrying that so many children are unhappy to the extent that they are self-harming.

“Worries about how they look are a big issue, especially for girls, but this report shows other factors such as how they feel about their sexuality and gender stereotypes may be linked to their unhappiness.”

The Children’s Society’s new Good Childhood survey of 10-17-year-old children and their parents across 2,000 households, which is also part of the report, found children were least happy with school and their appearance.

The report suggests that happiness with family relationships could be the best protection for children because it has the biggest positive influence on their overall well-being.

The Children's Society is now backing our Where's Your Head At? campaign, calling for a dedicated mental health support worker in every school.

Matthew Reed added: “It’s vital that children’s well-being is taken more seriously and that much more is done to tackle the root causes of their unhappiness and support their mental health.

“Schools can play an important part in this and that is why we want the Government to make it a requirement for all secondary schools to offer access to a counsellor, regularly monitor children’s well-being and have their mental health provision assessed as part of Ofsted inspections.

“Issues like appearance, gender stereotypes and sexuality should be included in the new Relationships and Sex Education curriculum.

“However, early support for vulnerable children and families in the community, which can help prevent mental health problems from developing, is also vital, and ministers must urgently address the £2bn funding shortfall facing council children’s services departments by 2020.