What do young people worry about? 5 of the biggest concerns for children in 2025 - including cost of living

• A new survey has found nearly two thirds of UK teens are anxious about the future
• Many of their biggest fears about around money and job security in the years to come
• A tech giant is challenging teens to try and solve some of these issues using technology, in its annual competition

From AI threatening job security to the rising cost of living, UK children say they have big worries about the future.

Samsung recently commissioned a poll of 1,000 11 to 15-year-olds across the UK, to find out what their biggest concerns were. It came as the tech giant launched its fifth annual Solve for Tomorrow Next Gen tech challenge earlier this month - which encourages young innovators to design tech that could help to solve some of these societal issues.

Overall, almost two thirds (64%) of the young people surveyed felt anxious about the future. There is still hope though, with 81% expressing a desire to make a positive difference to the world. But many felt they would need a little more help getting there, with about half (49%) feeling what they learn in school doesn’t currently prepare them to tackle today’s big issues.

But what exactly were they most worried about, and how big an issue are these fears? Here’s what you need to know:

1. The rising cost of living

The biggest societal issue young people worried about was revealed to be the rising cost of living, which was bothering nearly two out of three of them (61%). Seven in ten of them felt more worried about it than they did a year ago, which the survey showed was mostly fuelled by fears about the potential impact on their parents’ financial situation - worrying a huge 77% of children.

A Parliamentary report released last year found that the cost of living in the UK has increased “sharply” since 2021, with more than half of adults still reporting rising costs as of October 2024. Some 90% attributed this to food prices, while 72% said gas and electricity bills were a big factor. At the same time incomes are falling in real terms, by about £10 a week since 2019.

Still, there is some help at hand for the most vulnerable households. Earlier this year, the Government extended its Household Support Fund scheme, which helps families struggling with the cost of living, into at least 2026.

2. Online safety

After the rising cost of living, online safety was the next major source of concern among young people. Of those surveyed, nearly half (47%) were worried about the potential harm or danger they might face while using the internet, while about 58% reporting feeling more concerned about it than they did a year ago.

Ofcom - the UK’s communications regulator - said that young internet users told them seeing violent content online was “unavoidable”, while self-harm and eating disorder content was “prolific”. Of the young people who had seen pornography online, the average age they first encountered it was 13 - while three in ten 8 to 12 year olds had seen something online they found worrying.

Luckily, this is an area in which the Government has recently committed to action. From July, all websites, apps and social media platforms will have to carry out more robust age checks on users, and reconfigure their algorithms to prevent harmful content being shown to children. Young users will also be protected from being contacted by strangers, and will have more say over the content in their feed.

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3. Climate change

Climate change was next, concerning about 43% of children polled. They have good reason to worry, with 2024 holding the dubious honour of being the hottest year on record, according to the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.

It was also the first to exceed 1.5C above pre-industrial levels - considered to be a dangerous tipping point in the battle to mitigate some of the worst impacts of climate change. This is in large part being driven by man-made greenhouse gas emissions, many of them from fossil fuels.

The UK’s current aim is to reach net zero emissions by 2050. Although some strong progress has been made on this, the UK’s Climate Change Committee last year raised concerns about whether the country is on track to meet this ambitious goal.

4. Their own physical safety

A little over one in three (36%) of children expressed concern for their own physical safety.

A 2024 report by children’s charity NSPCC - the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children - found that about one in 14 children across the UK had been a victim of physical abuse, while a 2025 report found around one in 20 children had been sexually abused.

Physical safety was a motivating factor behind one of last year’s Solve for Tomorrow challenge winners. Lorelei, Ruby, and Riya, from London’s Croydon High School, were awarded first place in the 13-15 category for their entry - a covert safety bangle designed to support girls and women whilst travelling alone.

5. Job insecurity

Rounding out children’s top five concerns was job insecurity in the future, which is bothering nearly one in three (32%). Specifically, they expressed concerns about how they will get a job to support themselves when they are older, with nearly one in four (23%) fearing that they didn’t have the necessary skills to cope in an increasingly digital and AI-driven world.

Another recent survey, commissioned by Berkshire-based independent girls’ school Downe House, which also polled more than 1,000 teens, found that while overall about 41% were optimistic about the role of AI in shaping their future, about one in five (18%) were not. Almost half (47%) of the pupils surveyed said that they were worried about AI leading to job losses in their current field of interest in the future.

The survey also found young people were getting most of their information about AI, its capabilities and limitations from social media, despite 66% saying they wanted to learn more about it in school. One teacher said there was clearly a gap in their learning on this front, and it was up to schools to help fill it in.

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