26 per cent of parents in West Country say they are struggling with the cost of sending their children to school.

• New National Parent Survey reveals 54 per cent of parents in the South West say they are worried about the cost of school uniform with 50 per cent expressing concerns over paying for school trips. 
• 1 in 6 parents in the South West report that their children have experienced depression, equivalent to 136,660 children, according to survey, with anxiety hitting almost 1 in 2 (47%). 
• One in 10 parents in the South West say they have a child who has turned to self harm.

The National Parent Survey, conducted by YouGov on behalf of the parenting charity Parentkind, reveals that 1 in 4 parents (26%) in the South West are struggling with the everyday costs of sending their children to school as the cost of living crisis continues to bite. This means 218,400 children are living in households in the South West that are struggling to afford the cost of sending their children to school.

In a large scale survey of parents, including many from South West England, the charity found that even middle class families are now feeling the pinch with one in six (15%) families across the UK with household incomes over £70,000 struggling to meet school costs.

Parents across the region are struggling to afford the cost of sending them to school with many parents in citing uniforms (54%) and school trips (50%) as the biggest financial headaches. 

Beyond the continuing cost of living crisis, researchers at Parentkind found that 91,520 children in the South West are growing up without age appropriate books outside of school with 82% of parents of school children stating that their child has enough access to these outside of school, a figure that will raise alarm bells among teachers and school heads in the region.

The study also found that 1 in 16 (6%) of parents across the South West have never attended a parents evening, raising concerns that schools aren’t speaking to the parents who need the most help.  

Parents are pessimistic about the future, with less than 1 in 3 (31%) South West parents saying their children will have a better standard of living than them and fewer than half (44%) saying they think their children will have better career prospects.

Mental anguish is a major worry with “shocking” levels of anxiety and depression reported by parents as a child and adolescent mental health crisis takes grip of our classrooms.

• 4 in 10 parents (40%) in the South West worry about the toll exams are taking on children with 1 in 6 (17%) saying their child has suffered from depression.
• Almost half (46%) parents in the South West worry about the time their children spend on electronic devices with 1 in 10 (10%) expressing that their child has been subject to cyber bullying and online abuse. 1 in 7 (14%) said their child felt the pressure to live up to the expectations of social media influencers.
• 10% of parents in the South West say their child has self-harmed, equivalent to 79,760 children across the region.
• 1 in 11 (9%) parents in the South West say their child doesn’t feel safe at school.

Parents in the South West are the most likely in England to do fun activities as a family at least weekly (71% versus a national average of 66%) and discuss books or current affairs at least weekly (77% compared to an average of 70%). They are also the most likely in England to say they speak to their child about their school day at least weekly (97% versus 91% on average). Despite that, parents in the region are more likely than those in other parts of the UK to cite insufficient time as a barrier for getting involved as much as they would like in their child's school (57% versus a national average of 49%). Parents are likelier to be concerned about anxiety in their child compared to anywhere else in the UK, with 50% saying so compared to a national average of 44%.

The National Parent Survey was conducted by YouGov in June this year. YouGov spoke to more than 5,000 parents across the UK making this one of the largest nationwide polls of parent opinion.

Commenting on the National Parenting Survey, Parentkind CEO and former teacher, Jason Elsom said:

"This survey is wake up call to schools and politicians around the country and parents in South West England are no different. The cost of living crisis is hitting more and more families, who used to have comfortable incomes but are now concerned about the cost of sending their children to school. Millions of children now face the grim reality of parents not able to buy new school uniform or the cost of school trips, covering the cost of school lunches is also a major worry for parents, especially those on the lowest incomes.

Our large scale survey also uncovered a major mental health and anxiety crisis in our schools, driven by exam stress and social media. In the worst cases there will be a child in every class hurting themselves deliberately. Parents think their children spend too much time on electronic devices and on social media. We need a more urgent conversation about the impact social media is having on our young people.”