Boys and young men in crisis says a new report
Boys and young men are in crisis, according to a new report from the UK highlighting a range of health and social issues, many of which are relevant in Australia.
The Lost Boys report from the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), a centre-right think tank, sets out to identify some of the key health and social issues facing boys and young men in the UK. It is intended to be a call for action, with the CSJ promising to seek out solutions for the issues raised in the report.
Andy Cook, CEO of the Centre for Social Justice, said:
“What we have uncovered is stark. Boys are struggling in education, more likely to take their own lives, less likely to get into stable work, and far more likely to be caught up in crime. The numbers don’t lie - something has shifted, and we cannot ignore it any longer.
“It’s not just about Andrew Tate or online influencers; they are the symptoms, not the cause. The deeper truth is that too many boys are growing up without the guidance, discipline, and purpose they need to thrive.”
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Six areas for action
The six key areas covered in the Lost Boys report are:
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Employment
The report says young men are struggling in the UK job market. In mid-2024, 15.1% of men aged 16-24 were not in education, employment, or training (NEET), compared to 11.2% of women - an increase of over 150,000 men since before the pandemic. Male-dominated industries such as manufacturing, agriculture, and construction have declined, shrinking from 40% of the UK’s economy in 1970 to just 16% in 2023. Secure, well-paid jobs for non-university-educated young men are disappearing, impacting mental health and marriageability. Government inaction could cost £16 billion in lost tax contributions and welfare spending over five years. -
Education
Boys are falling behind academically at every stage. While 75% of girls are school-ready at age five, only 60% of boys meet the same standard. At GCSE (Year 10), boys score half a grade lower than girls across subjects, and at A-level (Year 12), the gap increases to over a grade and a half. Girls now outnumber boys at university by three to two, and in new vocational ‘T Level’ qualifications. Boys are also twice as likely to be excluded from school. Additionally, 41% of sixth form (Year 11 and 12) students have been taught that boys are a "problem for society." The report says urgent reform is needed to prevent boys' underachievement having lasting consequences for the economy and social stability. -
Families and Fathers
The CSJ says the UK is experiencing an “epidemic of fatherlessness”. One in five children - 2.5 million - grow up without a father at home. Nearly half of first-borns no longer live with both biological parents by age 14, compared to just 21% in 1970. The cost of family breakdown now exceeds £64 billion annually. The effects of absent fathers are severe: 76% of incarcerated youths report having no father at home. With each prisoner costing the state £50,000 per year, investing in father engagement could be both lifesaving and economically beneficial. -
Crime
Crime disproportionately affects young men, both as perpetrators and victims. As of September 2024, 96% of the 86,966 prisoners in England and Wales were male. In the Youth Estate, 529 of 540 incarcerated children were boys. Young men are also the primary victims of violence - 87% of homicide victims aged 16-24 were male in 2022/23, and men accounted for over 90% of hospital admissions for knife crime. Gangs and criminal exploitation disproportionately target boys, with British males under 17 making up the largest group of modern slavery victims. -
Health
Boys' health is at a historic low says the report. One in four Year 6 boys is obese, contributing to the £6.5 billion annual cost of obesity-related illness. Steroid use among boys as young as 13 is rising, posing severe health risks. Eating disorders, previously rare in boys, now affect 5.1% of young males. Suicide rates in boys aged 15-19 are 3.5 times higher than in girls. -
Technology and Pornography
The report argues that the digital age is reshaping childhood, often negatively for boys. Almost all 12-year-olds now own smartphones, with the average age of first exposure to pornography at 13 - though one in ten sees it as young as nine. Over 88% of pornographic content contains violence, influencing real-world behaviours. Reports of ‘sextortion’ have risen by 257% in just one year, with boys making up 91% of victims. Child-on-child sexual abuse now accounts for more than half of all cases, and 90% of offenders are male. Additionally, the National Centre for Gaming Disorder - set up in 2020 - reports that 90% of its patients are male, reflecting the grip of gaming addiction on boys.
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