School-based intervention study examining universal approaches for depressive symptoms and mental health literacy of pupils in Year 9 in England (AWARE): multi-school, parallel group, cluster randomised controlled trial

The AWARE trial aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of two universal school-based interventions, Youth Aware of Mental Health (YAM) and The Mental Health and High School Curriculum Guide (The Guide), in reducing depressive symptoms and improving mental health literacy among Year 9 pupils in England. While The Guide was found to increase intended help-seeking behaviors, neither intervention showed a reduction in depressive symptoms, with both associated with increased scores at long-term follow-up. The authors suggest that further investigation is needed to understand the potential negative impacts of these programs before wider implementation in schools.