Thousands of teenagers across the south east of England will be collecting their A-level results tomorrow.

But the number of worried teenagers receiving counselling about exams has increased by 20 per cent.

There were 1,127 counselling sessions related to exam results stress in 2015-16 - up from 937 the previous year, according to new figures from the charity Childline.

A quarter of sessions took place in August, which is the same month that grades are published.

Many of those who got in touch said they were worried about disappointing their parents, had a fear of failure, or were suffering under the pressure linked to academic achievement.

And girls were five times more likely to contact the helpline than boys, the findings show.

The stress can affect young people's ability to sleep, cause depression and eating disorders or trigger anxiety attacks, Childline said.

Peter Wanless, chief executive of the NSPCC, which runs Childline, said the increase in counselling sessions demonstrates the pressure to perform well in exams can be difficult for young people to handle.

"We hear from lots of young people each year who are really worried about their results and what the future may hold. If they want to talk, Childline is always here to listen," he said.

"It's important to remember there is life beyond exam results. Disappointing grades are not the end of the world, even if it doesn't feel that way at the time."

One 15-year-old boy who contacted the charity said he feels like he will "explode" waiting for his GCSE results next week.

"I have really high expectations and want to do really well, but I'm scared that I was so stressed doing my exams that I might not have done my best," he told Childline.

"I can't sleep most nights because I'm constantly thinking about my results and feel like I've wasted my summer because this has been in the back of my mind the whole time. I don't want to feel like a failure."