A recent Department for Education (DfE) report ‘The relationship between Mental Ill Health and Absence in Students aged 13-16 year olds’ sheds a light on how mental health challenges contribute to school absenteeism. Drawing from the second cohort of the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England (LSYPE2). Here we summarise the findings of this research which offers valuable insights into the connection between mental well-being and educational engagement and discuss how bullying is a significant cause of both poor mental health and school absence and therefore how important it is to prevent bullying.
The study was conducted over 3 ‘waves’, or academic years - 2012/2013, 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 - amongst young people aged 13/14, 14/15, 15/16 looking at the rate of absenteeism, particularly in comparison to pre-pandemic levels. The study found that, in correlation to the rise in school absences, there has also been an increase in mental health problems amongst children and young people. The report uses longitudinal data (data which tracks the same sample over a period of time) to demonstrate the link between poor mental health and school absences.
Poor mental health correlates with school absenteeism
The report confirms that across absence types identified, those who were classified as absent had poorer mental health. The relationship between mental health and absence was evident when looking at authorised absences. Furthermore, those who stated that they were less happy with their lives were more likely to be absent.
The relationship between poor wellbeing, absenteeism and bullying
The research revealed a clear link between poor wellbeing, absenteeism and bullying. Firstly, it found that "Students who had been bullied had a GHQ-12 [General Health Questionnaire] score of 3.24 (SD: 0.07), almost three times that of students who had not been bullied (1.11, SD: 0.03)”, therefore identifying the link between negative school experiences, and poor wellbeing. The report further demonstrated that bullying significantly affected pupils wellbeing, showing how students that had been bullied "had much lower life satisfaction (2.85, SD: 0.05), felt things in their life were less worthwhile (3.04, SD: 0.06), were unhappier (3.04, SD: 0.06), and had higher feelings of anxiety (3.83, SD: 0.07) compared to those who had not been bullied (satisfaction: 1.81, SD: 0.02; feeling worthwhile: 1.88, SD: 0.03; happiness: 1.9, SD: 0.03; anxiousness: 2.51, SD: 0.04), indicating poorer mental health among bullied students."
The research also highlighted that negative school experiences, such as bullying, affect attendance: “Finally, school experiences are closely linked to attendance. Students who like more of their teachers are less likely to be absent across all absence types and all absence thresholds, and students who have been bullied are also more likely to be absent”.
The report by the DfE concludes that multiple factors, including a young person not experiencing bullying, could contribute to reduced stress, reduced anxiety and a feeling of safety in the schools environment.
This evidence supports what we already know about bullying, mental health and school absence
The report supports other information and research that assert children and young people (CYP) experiencing bullying show indications of poorer mental health, and continue to do so in their adult years.
Findings from our ‘Bullying, School Experience and Wellbeing: A picture of pupil experience in England 2024’ report (conducted in 2023 as part of our UAB programme) told us that pupils who report being bullied, either face to face or online, have poorer experiences at school than those not being bullied. In addition to this, pupils who reported bullying others are most likely to report poor experiences at school, demonstrating that that bullying effects the mental health and well-being of both parties. Furthermore, our research found that pupils who have been bullied and those who bully others are significantly more likely to report poor wellbeing - with those who bully the most likely to report poor wellbeing.
That’s why we’re urging the government to take action on preventing bullying in schools
To call for systemic change, ABA have developed policy recommendations, which includes the following recommendation about school absence:
Recommendation 7: School absence records should record bullying as a reason for children being absent from school. Ofsted inspections should be triggered when these absences are high.
You can see more information about our policy recommendations here
The Department for Education have announced that that there will be a roll out of school mental health support to reach up to 900,000 more pupils this year and we welcome the expansion. It is evident that there is a significant link between bullying and mental health. One in four children experience bullying and the impact has been referenced above: research tells us the effects do not stop at the school gates. Peer-to-peer support and early intervention are vital, and we know that children need to feel safe, supported and that they belong in order to thrive in education.
Currently, there are no national requirements for schools in England to provide anti-bullying training to staff, no requirement to record levels of bullying, and no sustained government support for whole-school anti-bullying programmes – previous governments have provided anti-bullying programmes for much of the last 25 years but these came to an end during the last government and have not currently been reinstated.
The ABA's elected Advisory Group call on the government to act now: provide anti-bullying training and whole-school anti-bullying programmes, make bullying data collection mandatory, and ensure that every member of school staff understands what bullying is and how to prevent it. Only then can we truly address the causes of poor mental health, exclusion and attendance in our schools.
The Anti-Bullying Alliance are committed to addressing the link between mental health and bullying, and we recognise the impact it has on children and young people. To support schools, and the children’s workforce in tackling the interlinked issues, ABA has various resources and advice:
Free CPD Online course on mental health and bullying
Read our short guide for GPs on the subject of bullying, developed in partnership with YoungMinds
See further resources around bullying and mental health on our dedicated website page