To take another recent example—in Northern Ireland, school-based anxiety has quadrupled. Parents and educators alike are clamoring for effective interventions to combat this urgent epidemic. More than 4,000 pupils with significant absenteeism are currently referred to specialists for assistance, highlighting a widespread crisis affecting children’s education.
Beverly Craig, a mother of two, has experienced the negative impacts of this phenomenon on her children. Casey, 14 years old, has not been in school since last Easter. In the meantime, her 12-year-old daughter Autumn has been out of school since September. Craig writes that both kids experience crippling anxiety at the mere prospect of going to school. He says they “freak out” or “go into meltdown” at the mere thought of having to go to classes.
Craig’s financial burden has only increased. As a result, she has to spend out of pocket on private tutors in English and math for her kids. As mental health consultant Bronagh Starrs emphasizes, families like hers experience a profound emotional impact. She says that “emotionally based school avoidance” is now “through the roof” in every school district on the Chesapeake Bay region’s Eastern Shore. She argues that Northern Ireland is going through an “epidemic” of school anxiety.
The ongoing crisis has the attention of local legislators. Cara Hunter, an SDLP assembly member, is currently in contact with around 200 families throughout Northern Ireland whose children refuse to attend school. In her five years at Stormont, Hunter was not afraid to address the big issues. She pegged the culprit as emotionally based school avoidance as the biggest problem.
“I’ve spoken with a number of parents who’ve actually had to leave their job because their child is not attending school, so it’s a massive issue across Northern Ireland.” – Cara Hunter
Hunter highlighted the need for improved support infrastructure, sharing that families often don’t know where to turn for help and many get discouraged in finding answers.
Chris Quinn, the Children’s Commissioner, on why we need to take high levels of anxiety around schools more seriously. He has ordered government officials to open an investigation into the matter. He points out that kids who are disengaged from school need extra energy, effort and resources to bring them back into the fold. Quinn shared that between 2019 and May 2025, almost 500 parents and guardians were criminally charged by the Education Authority. These parents were being taken to court for truancy for their children missing school for lack of excuses.
“We need to understand why these children and young people are not returning to school and explore whether their support needs are being met.” – Chris Quinn
Of the 4,120 children referred to the Education and Welfare Service, more than a third are still on a waiting list. These kids can’t afford to continue waiting for the relief they deserve. Despite improvements in regular attendance rates over the past three years, there remains a pressing need for emotional health and wellbeing programs tailored to these children’s needs.
Quinn wants to stress that school avoidance is more complicated than anxiety. It means addressing issues such as poverty, ill health, the after-effects of Covid-19 and cyber bullying.
“Additionally, with fewer educational psychologists in schools and the increasing impact of mental health issues, particularly since Covid, we must do more to support children and young people’s wellbeing.” – Chris Quinn
The powerful stories told by Beverly Craig paint a clear picture of the nightmare that has become the everyday reality for too many families. She described the extreme reactions her children exhibit when confronted with school-related stress:
“It ranges from not being able to eat, not being able to sleep, having just a complete meltdown trying to get through the doors, crying.” – Beverly Craig
The importance of identifying and treating school-based anxiety early is very much a pressing matter today. As more families grapple with this mounting crisis, professionals and authorities must act swiftly to provide necessary support and resources for affected children.
