BY JACK WELCH

FOR school pupils it is that dreaded time of year once again – new uniforms, new academic challenges and for many, the build up to those exams which often make or break their futures.

However, as new research has illustrated during this summer break, that dread can often mean much more than pressures of revision.

In a new social media campaign led by the Diana Award charity’s, Anti-Bullying Pro team, this week which has already received support from a series of familiar faces in sharing their difficult experiences at school, #Back2School has highlighted the extent of struggles young people face.

Nearly a quarter alone, 24 per cent, of those who participated in the survey said they felt suicidal, indicating the pressure that schools face themselves in combating the everyday misery of some pupils.

The online world has only helped to intensify some of these problems, with much of the harassment continuing off school premises.

Comparing this with data by The Children’s Society in their Good Childhood Report, it also found only 26 per cent were overall happy going to school and a decline of good wellbeing as pupils moved from Primary to Secondary education.

Though the findings make for rather bleak reading on the state of a child’s happiness, it is never right to just generalise alone.

The challenges for schools, parents and government lie much deeper, with effective personal support of pupils and a strong PSHE education now needed more than ever to at least try and combat these downward trends.