The results of a survey into the happiness of the nation’s children were published yesterday revealing that a sizeable proportion of our children are unhappy. Of course, some sections of the media seized upon this as yet another example of our collapsing society but is it really? Shouldn’t we just pause for breath, take a step back and see what the survey was actually about. For example, what questions were asked of those taking part and what were their replies? What were the ages of those questioned?

In the midst of all the angst and browbeating there was a calming voice of reason and common sense in the form of an inner city secondary school headmaster who said that children, particularly those under 10 years rarely concern themselves with the long term so it is not fair to ask them about long term happiness. A child will often say he is unhappy if he has been denied an ice cream or has been prevented from using his computer because he was rude to his mother. That is short term unhappiness and it soon blows over.  

The person best qualified to comment on a child’s long term happiness is someone close to the child whether it be a parent or teacher. Adults have the advantage of experience and we should use this to help our children. Children need guidance and structure in their lives. They need rules and regulations, set boundaries and most of all they need leadership. They need to feel appreciated, they need to feel safe and secure and at home they need to feel loved. If they have all that then, of course, they will feel happy irrespective of the number of ice creams they consume!

Is there really a need to analyse our children and to burden them with the travails of modern life? Talking of burdens, is there really a need for schools to give  homework to infants? Childhood can and should be a joyous time and children should be encouraged to express themselves, to play and to have fun with their friends. Put simply, they should be allowed to be children, adulthood will arrive soon enough.