Children as little as six-year-olds battling mental health illnesses in the UK are increasing by tens of thousands, findings from the National Health Service said.

Six- to 17-year-olds are presenting mental health crises such as eating disorders and self-harm. The number of children attended to at the Accident & Emergency ward grew from 55,525 in 2019 to 75,491 in 2025, according to an analysis by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.

The analysis on data obtained through the Freedom of Information Act showed that the minors had to wait for as long as 12 hours to see a doctor, with the majority showing signs of aggression and emotional distress.

Sam Jones, a mental health physician at the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, said the issue had become a national crisis.

“Emergency departments are a vital safety net, but they were never designed to be a place where children in mental health crisis wait for days at a time,” said Ms Jones. “This is a national crisis that will only get worse without urgent intervention.”

Gemma Byrne, who works at the mental health charity Mind, urged the government to improve the health sector for minors in mental crisis, noting the A&E was not conducive for children for such long hours.

“A&E can be a frightening environment for anyone in mental health crisis, let alone a child. Making them spend more than 12 hours there is simply unacceptable,” she said.