We think every day should be World Mental Health Day. Because more needs to be done to help those who need it. We’re working with teens to highlight their wellbeing and to give them a voice. We’re also giving parents support in our brand new series of Raising Teens, starting on Monday 4 November on BBC Sussex and BBC Surrey. This series we’re looking at teen anger, alcohol, grief, self-harm, family breakdowns, eating disorders, loneliness and the teenage brain. Each episode includes the voices of teens, interviewed by our teen reporter Lola, and advice from parents and experts. 

On World Mental Health Day, we’re calling for more should be invested in our young people – from a better education system – one that feeds our children’s minds and creativity and doesn’t exclude those who don’t fit – youth clubs and out of school support, all of which has seen a huge cut in funding over the past decade. The number of teenage suicides has risen 67% between 2010 and 2017 in England and Wales according to the Office for National Statistics. We think there should also be more support for parents and carers, teachers and health workers dealing with the rise in young people with mental health issues.

You can catch up on all of series 1 of Raising Teens which covers social media, school stress, sleep, resilience, body image, relationships, the teen brain and teen language. 

Plus, here are a ton of really useful links that we’ve collected along the way from all the amazing experts we spoke to.  If we’ve missed any really good organisations from our list, let us know in the comments below. Thank you!