WE FACE an urgent imperative to help the UK’s young people.

More than ever, we have a generation of youngsters in crisis. Barnardo’s research reveals an astonishing 88 per cent of under 18s lack confidence.

This figure is supported by the Young Women’s Trust who revealed today a generation of young women ‘wracked by anxiety, lack of confidence and despair.’

Increasingly we are seeing that ‘youthful optimism’ no longer exists.

This epidemic of low confidence and limited self-belief holds young people back from future success, but there is a more disturbing issue that we are also addressing.

Barnardo’s has been providing services for 150 years, and will continue to be there for young people for as long as it takes. But this is a national responsibility that goes beyond formal organisations like ours.

We all have a duty to show young people that we believe in them and will support them. Sixty-five per cent of adults we spoke to said they just ‘aren’t very good’ at telling youngsters they believe in them. This has to change now.

Javed Khan

CEO

Barnardo’s