Younger pupils' mental health risk

Children who are among the youngest in their school year have an increased chance of mental health problems, according to doctors.

A study of more than 10,000 British children has found pupils who are younger than their classmates are more likely to have a psychiatric disorder. The risks applied to students in primary and secondary school and maybe even at university.

The researchers suggested teachers should make greater allowances for young children.

They found that 8.3 per cent of children in the oldest third of the class and 8.8 per cent of children in the middle age range had a psychiatric disorder. This included anxiety, depression, behavioural and emotional difficulties.

However, children in the youngest third had much higher rates - 9.9 per cent had a psychiatric disorder.

Several studies suggest that teachers often forget to make allowances for relative age, expecting too much of the younger children and being more likely to see them as failing.

Streaming children according to their relative age within each year group may be helpful, as may allowing children to repeat a year, the researchers suggest.