A UK survey found that 43% of children aged 11 to 17 had used AI to discuss relationships, exam stress or difficult emotions. The same research found that many children who sought professional mental health help did not get the support they needed, raising an uncomfortable question about what chatbots are being asked to fill.
Watch Desk analysis
What happened
The survey of 2,000 children, published by Barnardo’s and the National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society (NCPS), found that four in ten had tried to get professional help in the previous year. Of those, just 27% said they received the help they needed, according to SocialCareToday’s report.
Most respondents said they would rather speak to someone they knew during a difficult time: nearly six in ten would turn to family or carers, and 18% to friends. Just 4% said they would use AI. These figures describe different preferences and uses, not a simple choice between people and chatbots.
Why it matters
The survey suggests children can turn to AI even while preferring human support, and that barriers to professional help remain part of the picture. For some young people, a chatbot may be an available place to start talking. But that is not the same as showing it can replace a counsellor, or that children should have to rely on one when care is hard to access.
Barnardo’s chief executive Lynn Perry said children were not choosing AI over people, but turning to chatbots because professional support was often difficult to access. Perry called for greater investment in face-to-face mental health services alongside stronger safeguards and regulation for children using AI and chatbots.
Our read
The useful takeaway is not that children have swapped people for machines. The survey points instead to two realities at once: children generally favour talking to people, and some are using AI when they need support. Access to effective care deserves attention alongside safeguards for AI. A chatbot can be a stopgap; it should not become the system’s answer to a waiting list.
What to watch
- Whether Barnardo’s and the NCPS provide further detail on the survey’s methods and findings.
- What safeguards and regulation the organisations are proposing for children using chatbots.
- Whether policymakers address barriers to professional and face-to-face support.
Discussion spark: If children use AI for emotional support while professional help is hard to access, should policy focus first on regulating chatbots or improving access to human care?
Sources and evidence
- Children turn to AI when mental health support is out of reach – SocialCareToday (27 October 2026, 00:00 UTC)
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