The figures paint a bleak picture. Anxiety and depression are at an all-time high among young people, with one in eight estimated to have a diagnosable mental health disorder. Meanwhile, suicide remains the leading cause of death among boys and young men between the ages of five and 19.

Shining a spotlight on the issue is a start, but it doesn't go far enough. For meaningful change, we need solutions. Which is why Men's Health has dedicated the past six months to investigating this crisis – and how it might be reversed. We spent a week in a south London school, consulting teachers, therapists and students about the measures they have seen transform young people's lives, as well as meeting with policy makers and government officials. You'll find the results of our investigation in the June issue of Men's Health, along with personal stories from teenage boys themselves.

As part of our call for reform, Men's Health is supporting the charity YoungMinds in its fight for change at a societal, institutional and governmental level. The average person will spend more than 7,000 hours of their life in school, making it the ideal platform for identifying the first signs of distress and instilling good habits that will help young men to safeguard their wellbeing for a lifetime.

The problem? Schools are not currently incentivised to prioritise their students’ emotional wellbeing. And with the system so drastically underfunded, directing resources towards initiatives that favour health and happiness, rather than academic achievement, now presents more of a challenge than ever. We need a shift in our national priorities. We need to #GiveThemAHeadStart.

Here are the changes we are calling for:

- Ofsted inspections should emphasise the importance of good mental health. Schools should be assessed on how effectively they promote the wellbeing of their students.

- An understanding of wellbeing and mental health should be part of teacher training – both at the start and as part of teachers' continuous professional development.

- The government must make sure all schools have designated funding for mental health. With budgets under pressure, it's vital that they have the resources they need to enact a culture change.

You can find out more about YoungMinds' campaign work and their plan of action Wise Up to Wellbeing in Schools by visiting youngminds.org.uk. Share your thoughts and stories with #GiveThemAHeadStart

Lettermark
Scarlett Wrench

Scarlett Wrench is the Senior Editor at Men’s Health UK.

With more than 12 years’ experience as a health and lifestyle editor, Scarlett has a keen interest in new science, emerging trends, mental well-being, and food and nutrition. For Men’s Health, she has carried out extensive research into areas such as wellness in the workplace, male body image, the paradoxes of modern masculinity, and mental health among school-age boys.

Her words have also appeared in Women’s Health, Runner’s World and The Sunday Times.