Nearly half of Westmeath teens have been bullied, report finds

By Navjyoti Dalal

A major new survey of more than 1,000 young people in Westmeath found that nearly half - 47% - said they had been bullied at school.

The finding was among those contained in the first Planet Youth survey of young people in the Midlands, which also documented responses from youths in Laois, Offaly and Longford.

The Westmeath report, based on responses from 1,027 students, was published as part of the wider Planet Youth Midlands Report 2025 and was launched at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Athlone recently.

Those surveyed were post-Junior Certificate students in secondary schools and some out-of-school settings such as Youthreach centres and community training centres.

The finding that 47% of respondents in Westmeath said they had been a victim of bullying in school was 4% higher than the regional average of 43%.

The surveys finding on how Westmeath's young people felt about their school environment were a mixed bag.

On the one hand, 84% said they had friends at school who cared about them and 72% said they had adults at school who cared about them, but only 42% agreed that they felt good at school. Less than half, 44%, said adults at school would notice when they were having a hard time and would offer help.

The report offered an insight into the mental and physical health of Westmeath's youths. Just 47% of respondents rated their mental health as good or very good, compared with 53% across the Midlands.

The gap in mental health deemed 'good or very good' between the sexes was wide, with 58% of boys rating their mental health positively, compared with just 39% of girls. Some 65% of respondents rated their physical health as good or very good, against 69% regionally.

Growing mental health challenges were evident from the report as 43% of the Westmeath young people surveyed said they'd had suicidal thoughts, which was 4% above the regional average of 39%. The report cautioned that its findings show patterns and do not prove cause and effect.

About one in five (22%) had looked for help or support with mental health issues, and 46% felt they could do with some help.

Daily vaping and cannabis use in Westmeath was above the regional average. While 41% of Westmeath students had vaped, which was close to the regional figure of 42%, some 17% said they vaped daily, compared with 15% regionally. Cannabis use was reported by 13% of Westmeath students at some point in their lives (11% regionally), while 6% said they had used cannabis within the past month.

On alcohol consumption, Westmeath came in below the regional average. Some 68% of students in the Lake County said they had used alcohol at some point, compared with 71% across the Midlands. Shockingly 26% of the youths surveyed, more than one in four, said they had tried alcohol by the age of 13. Among those who had consumed alcohol, 36% said they had been drunk in the past month.

Also noteworthy were the survey's findings on screen use and pornography exposure. The vast majority (85%) of Westmeath students said they had a phone in their bedroom at night, and 24% said they had watched pornography by age 13 or younger.

Two-thirds of respondents said they were on social media for three or more hours per day, whereas 18% said they had been asked to send a sexually explicit image of themselves in the past year.

The report found strong family foundations. Some 88% of Westmeath students said it was easy to receive caring and warmth from their parents or carers, and 80% said their parents or carers know where they were in the evenings.

Outside school, only 41% said there was a suitable outdoor youth space in their area. Some 42% lived rurally and relied on parents or carers for transport, and 18% said there was no suitable public transport available at weekends.

Dr Una Fallon, Consultant in Public Health Medicine with HSE Health Improvement for Dublin and Midlands, said the survey had “generated an unprecedented local dataset” and had identified “both significant strengths and important challenges within our communities.”

Speaking by video at last week's launch, Minister of State for Public Health, Wellbeing and the National Drugs Strategy Jennifer Murnane O'Connor said the Task Force deserved credit “for involving young people in this research, as it is critical that we listen to their voices”.

Antoinette Kinsella, Co-ordinator of the Midland Regional Drug and Alcohol Task Force (MRDATF), which commissioned the report, described it as “a mirror held up to our communities across the Midlands” and said she looked forward to the “action planning phase of this project”.

The survey was carried out in November and December of last year and gathered anonymous responses from 3,378 post-Junior Certificate students in 40 secondary schools and 12 out-of-school settings across Laois, Offaly, Longford and Westmeath. It was funded by the Department of Health and the HSE.

A 26-member Midlands oversight committee drawn from 15 agencies, including Longford and Westmeath Education and Training Board, An Garda Síochána and Foróige, will now consider the findings and develop a response.

The county and regional reports are available online at: planetyouth.ie