Glasgow pupils lead eating disorders project as concerns rise

“You pick up on things – when someone is having a bad day, when they might need a little extra support,” she explains.

“Pupils study one and a half hours of ballet, five days a week. They are under the lights, in front of huge mirrors – it is easy to develop a critical mindset.”

The number of young people in Glasgow reporting issues around eating disorders and bullying linked to body shaming is on the rise.

Data gathered through the city’s school counselling service and pastoral care network revealed that between January and December 2022, 2772 pupils used the service, and of those, 77 raised issues around eating disorders and body image. Between January 2023 and March 2024, 4501 students accessed the service, and the number mentioning eating disorders and body image jumped to 122.

A working group was established to look at the need for guidance for schools around eating issues, led by teachers and support staff from Knightswood Secondary School and The Dance School of Scotland.

Megan Peasgood with some of the students (Image: Colin Mearns/Newsquest)

The guidelines they developed, which cover a range of issues - including how to spot the signs of potential eating disorders – will be rolled out across all city schools before the end of the year.

Depute head Lynne Seagrave says: “We work on the belief that where teenagers are concerned, all behaviour is communication.

“We took part in a comprehensive training programme, supported by the city’s educational psychologists, and from there we developed a policy around what it means to be a mentally healthy school.

“We also created a mental health and wellbeing online hub and newsletter for parents, and crucially, spoke to the young people about what they needed from us.”

Lynne Seagrave (Image: Colin Mearns/Newsquest)

It was an enlightening process, adds Lynne. “It was the little things, like they wanted any app we used to be accessible on a phone screen, because that’s how they access information,” she explains.

“The work has helped shape our PSE (personal and social education) curriculum, and S4 pupils can now complete a national qualification in health and wellbeing.”

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In the course of the project, one of the themes which emerged was the high number of young people who had an unhealthy relationship with food and body image.

“This is a highly competitive, highly pressurised environment,” says Lynne. “There is other work out there, but it is out of date, created pre-Covid, before young people’s lives became increasingly digital.

“We’re really proud to have had this unique opportunity to help create something that will be used in other schools.”

She adds: “It will evolve, through time and teaching. We just want to help young people make the right choices, and seek help as early as possible.”

In an industry known for its toughness, things are changing, says Megan, who trained at the Central School of Ballet in London and worked with Scottish Ballet and other companies, before moving into teaching.

“The change has to start in school, with youngest pupils,” she adds, adding frankly: “A lot of things deemed acceptable when I was starting out are just not any more.

“Listening to the pupil voice is key and that didn’t happen back then – you just had to be quiet and get on with it.”

Megan adds: “I do wish this kind of support had existed when I was training – that is part of the driving force for me getting involved in the working group.

“We are creating a very nurturing environment, where there is always support.”

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The pupils being put through their paces in the studio believe the work done by the school on mental health and wellbeing has been vital.

Lawrie Banks, 17, is a sixth-year pupil on the musical theatre course.

“It’s really important to have these guidelines, because this is a high-pressure environment, and lots of us live together as well, so it’s important we are able to speak to people if we need to,” he says.

“We’re all very judgemental of ourselves.”

Fifth year pupils Mirren Luong, Laura-Marie Barzey, Louie Munro, Libby Ross and Jaimee Cheung, who are all 16, agree.

Jaimee explains: “There is not one ‘perfect dancer’, or performer. We all find ourselves sometimes thinking, why can’t I look more like them, or be able to do what they do?

“What the school teaches us is that uniqueness is important.”

The group agrees that having structured guidelines in place will help students “help their friends to get support.”

“Eating disorders is something we all see, it happens,” says Jaimee, bluntly, to nods of agreement from the rest of the students.

“It is a problem. As well as dancing and performing, we still have our academic studies and that can be a lot.”

She adds: “But everyone is here because they are all passionate about the same thing. We all love the arts, and there is nowhere else you feel like that. So you do feel supported in so many ways.”