How to help your teenager staying home during the extended lockdown period

Children’s charity Barnardo’s knows a thing or two about teenagers and with the news that the lockdown has been extended for at least another three weeks it is offering some useful advice online for parents.

Children and young people have told the charity the reasons that they are struggling with lockdown include missing social contact and peer support, getting away from family arguments and having too much focus on school work.

Developing independence and freedom is one of the central parts of being a teenager as they are much more focussed on living for today, having fun, testing boundaries and exploring their identity than they are following rules – and this explains why they might find lockdown so hard.

As well as identifying the struggles and what doesn’t help, the online support includes advice on how to approach any problem areas and how parents and carers can support teenagers, along with a list of things that might help. It also provides information of other organisations that can offer more support.

Steve Oversby, director for Barnardo’s North, said: “If you’re struggling to keep a teenager in the house and sticking to lockdown rules  you are definitely not alone.

“Each child is an individual and it’s important that you listen to the things they are struggling with the most and adapt things within the home, as best you can and are able to, to help them manage their responses.

“Most importantly, please remember that you are not failing as a parent it doesn’t mean your child is failing either. This is a difficult time for everyone, and there will be many other parents finding it difficult. Remember, it’s not going to last forever and we will get through this.”

For further information about Coronavirus, you can visit the charity’s Coronavirus Advice Hub which has articles and links for both adults and young people dealing with mental health, family activities, wellbeing and more.  ​​

Barnardo’s is the UK’s largest children’s charity. It was established by Dr Thomas Barnardo and celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2016. The charity works to transform the lives of the UK’s most vulnerable children and every year helps thousands of families to build a better future.

Last year more than 300,000 children, young people and families were supported by Barnardo’s through more than 1,000 services across the UK.

The charity works with amongst others young carers, care leavers, young people at risk of child sexual exploitation, disabled young people, foster carers and adoptive parents and it provides training and skills and parenting classes.