Worried or depressed about your exam results? Pixie Geldof's here to help...

Those Geldof girls are cornering the media in all sorts of ways. Hot on the heels of Peaches Geldof's surprise wedding, now little sister Pixie is showing concern for those people suffering after receiving their exam results.

Pixie has long been involved with the Samaritans and, according to their press office, supports the work they do as well as regularly attending events.

The Samaritans do admirable work, and young Miss Geldof, like elder sisters Peaches and Fifi,  may be a fine young lady, but I'm not totally convinced she is the most obvious person for depressed students to identify with today. If you've just received your results, they're not what you expected, and you may not get into the university you've aspired to, will Pixie really make you feel better?

She says, quite fairly: "Samaritans is important if you don't have anybody to talk to. If you are worried about exam results, stressed or feeling low, it's always nice to have someone on the outside of everything who doesn't know you and can't judge you."

But then she adds: "I do relaxation exercises and I talk to my friends and get lots of hugs. I like to be around people when I am feeling stressed."

Hmm, the thought is definitely there, but if she's getting lots of hugs, does she really understand what the Samaritans do? The organisation say that exams and study stress are one of the top reasons for people contacting them, and that during the A Level and GCSE results period last year, calls increased by 11 percent.

I'm pretty sure they're catering for lots of people who might not have quite such a supportive network around them as young Pixie herself...

More School Gate: Read our posts on the top subjects to get into through clearing, discuss whether examination standards have fallen and find out what to do if your results are better or worse than you expected.

Comments

[Tiny]

When your name is "Geldorf" it is easy to get your name in the headlines. After all, their father was famous for singing one song of note - a rotten song, written about a girl who slew small children on the way to school because she "hated Mondays". Lap it up girls - your name will open many doors.

[Jonathan]

What a pointless article! It is totally admirable that this young lady is spending some of her time helping people. If she answers the phone and listens to one young person, and relieves some angst or stress or, maybe even diverts a suicide - then she is doing good! Her background is totally beside the point. Maybe the journalist should take some time out to listen to people's problems as opposed to dreaming up ways to try to make a samaritan look bad. Really unbelievable!!

[Ian Petroc]

Yes, this is an incredibly snide snipe at an easy target. Samaritans know what they are doing and if it's OK with them, chances are it's all been thought through very carefully indeed.

Isn't it also a bit facile to be so cynical about her ability to understand the work of the Samaritans because she gets lots of hugs from her friends? With her involvement in the charity, isn't she in a better position to understand than, say, some journalist looking for NiBs and tittle-tattle for their column?

[C. W.]

Pixie Geldof and her sister go to expensive schools AND have private tutoring, along with most toff kids. With all this special focused attention, what the hell does she know about exam stress and the pressures of normal children at school? The sooner these two self-obsessed imbeciles disappear, the better.

[Oonagh]

If she's long been involved with the Samaritans, as you say, then I would imagine she does understand what it is they do.
That remark was a bit pointlessly snide, wasn't it?

[Bella]

Whilst Pixie may not dress or act like it sometimes, she's still a teenage girl going through the same things other girls go through. I think if anyone knows about depression it's this girl. Having had a mother die of a drug overdose on her 10th birthday is something to be depressed about, in my opinion.

[Hilary]

Young people may have support structures around them, but that doesn't mean they feel they have anyone they can talk to or confide in. Often, they feel totally alone, like they're the only one going through something. Sometimes, hearing things from someone their own age - even if that someone is rather more privileged and whose future less dependent on exam results than most - can be helpful. Like it or not, Pixie Geldof is an aspirational role model for many teenagers.