Toxic Education: How Schools Are Damaging Young People’s Health and Wellbeing and How We Can Fix Them

Young people’s mental health is in crisis, with many - especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds - struggling academically and with the later transition to employment. Feeling excluded, many young people turn to harmful behaviours, such as vaping and alcohol use, for escape and a sense of belonging.

Schools are increasingly expected to address these issues but often lack the time and expertise to do so effectively. Based on the author’s research, including the successful ’Learning Together’ trial - an innovative programme that improved mental health, reduced bullying and raised academic achievement - this book provides a blueprint for a fundamental shift in how schools support young people.

Essential reading for teachers, public health workers and policy makers tackling the health and educational inequalities affecting young people today.

Chris Bonell is a sociologist and public health researcher who specialises in adolescent health and interventions to improve this. He teaches at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and previously worked at the University of Oxford and the Social Exclusion Unit. He provided scientific advice to the UK government and the World Health Organization during the COVID-19 pandemic, and he is a member of the Department for Education Science Advisory Council. He lives in Walthamstow with his partner and two children.