Poll of 10,000 teachers also finds ‘overwhelming’ exam anxiety and rising absenteeism linked to poor mental health
Almost half of primary school teachers are seeing pupils with eating disorders “at least occasionally”, rising to four in five at secondary level, according to a survey by the UK’s largest education union.
The findings emerged in a poll of 10,000 teachers in English state schools about pupils’ mental health, which also revealed “overwhelming” exam anxiety in secondaries and dwindling numbers of counsellors to support students.
Asked whether they had observed children showing signs of an eating disorder in the past year, 45% of primary teachers and 78% of secondary teachers said they had seen it at least occasionally.
Of those, 4% at primary level said they saw evidence of eating disorders “regularly”, compared with 14% of secondary teachers and 20% in special schools and pupil referral units.
