Young people are experiencing a mental health crisis, and the Church has an opportunity to rise to meet the need.

As we head towards World Mental Health Day on 10th October, think about the young people in your community.

Think about the teenager who seems confident on the surface but hasn’t slept properly in months.

Think about the 16 year-old who has hundreds of followers online, yet feels completely alone.

Think about the quiet young person sitting there carrying big questions in their head about who they are, whether they matter, and what the future holds.

Research from our Youth Culture and Trends report in 2023 painted a clear picture: two-thirds of young people (67%) say they are worried about the future, with 68% identifying having a safe space to be themselves as one of their most important needs, and one in four young people citing mental health as their primary concern.

Rates of anxiety and depression among teenagers have risen sharply, with questions of identity: “Who am I?”, “Do I belong?”, “Am I enough?” have become more complex as this generation of young people deal with increased political instability, concerns around climate change, and increased pressure from digital platforms.

The Church is not a substitute for professional mental health support, but it can be something that professional services alone cannot provide: a consistent, caring community where young people are known, and feel valued, secure in the knowledge that they are “fearfully and wonderfully made”.

Providing young people with a sense of belonging, and ensuring that they have a space that feels safe and supportive, might sound simple but it could be everything.

Being present, not fixing

One of the most important shifts a Church can make is this: moving from the instinct to fix to the practice of being present and listening. Young people experiencing anxiety, loneliness or identity confusion do not primarily need answers. They need adults who will sit with them in the hard places without flinching, without rushing to resolve, and without making them feel like a problem to be solved.

What consistency and belonging actually do

The evidence on what protects young people’s mental health is remarkably consistent: trusted relationships with caring adults, a sense of belonging to something beyond themselves, structure and routine that creates predictability, and the experience of being genuinely heard.

Derrick Evans MBE, popularly known as Mr Motivator, experienced exactly this through The Boys’ Brigade. Growing up and navigating the challenges of adolescence, The Boys’ Brigade gave him something school could not:

“BB created relationships that lasted a lifetime. School friendships came and went, but the ones formed through The Boys’ Brigade were deep and enduring. It gave us a sense of belonging and purpose.”

Older members who had become leaders served as role models, not through formal programmes, but simply through being present and living with integrity.

A visit I made to one of our local groups a few years ago, happened to coincide with one of their young members’ birthday. The BB leaders had bought a cake, and we sang happy birthday. It was only later on when it was explained to me by the leaders that the young person hadn’t received any birthday cake or real celebrations at home that I realised how important this simple act actually had truly been.

This summer at one of our youth leadership training courses, Zak, a young leader from Motherwell when asked what BB meant to him, explained: “It’s the friends and the family you get from BB that I’ll never forget.”

What these examples describe – belonging, purpose, trusted adults, and deep friendship reads like a checklist for good mental health and wellbeing.

A nationally resourced partnership

Recognising both the scale of the crisis and the unique position of the local Church to respond, The Boys’ Brigade has been working with YoungMinds, the UK’s leading mental health charity for young people. This brings together 140 years of trusted community presence with specialist mental health expertise, giving churches and leaders the professional tools they need to respond well.

Through the partnership we’ve been giving leaders practical, trusted resources for them to use across our four age groups. We’ve also been encouraging our groups to get involved in our Fundraising Challenge to support the work of YoungMinds and will be taking part in their ‘Hello Yellow’ campaign.

Simply showing up

You do not need to be a counsellor or a mental health expert to make a profound difference in a young person’s life. You need to show up. To listen. To create a space where they are genuinely known and genuinely welcome – where they hear, week after week: you matter, and you are not alone.

Jonathan Eales
Chief Executive

Find out more

If you’d like to find out more about partnering with the BB in your Church, visit boys-brigade.org.uk/discover or email ministry@boys-brigade.org.uk

Find out more about YoungMinds’ Hello Yellow campaign at youngminds.org.uk/support-us/fundraising/helloyellow