The recent annual report from HAPPEN Wales reveals key insights into the health and wellbeing of primary school children in Wales.
With over 7,000 responses from more than 600 schools, HAPPEN can better understand physical, emotional, and social health trends while giving children a voice, helping schools shape more effective wellbeing strategies under the new Welsh curriculum.
The findings from the annual report show consistent trends in areas like physical activity and social support but a decline in children’s understanding of why staying active is important. This year’s report also highlights the importance of sleep, nutrition, and emotional wellbeing as areas for further attention.
Key findings from the report included:
Physical health
- Daily Physical Activity: The report reveals an increase in daily physical activity among children, with 23% reporting being active for at least one hour daily in 2023-2024, up from 19% in the previous year.
- Active Travel: 66% of children can walk to school, yet 38% report use an active method of travel, such as walking or cycling.
- Understanding Benefits of Activity: Despite the rise in physical activity, the number of children who understand why physical activity is good for them has declined, dropping from 94% in 2021-2022 to 84% in 2023-2024.
- Motivation: 93% of children were motivated to be active if it was fun with friends. Other motivators included learning new skills and competing in a team.
- Screen Time and Sleep: 40% of children spent two hours or more on screens daily, while 70% slept at least nine hours per night.
- Dietary Habits: Only 25% of children reported consuming five portions of fruits and vegetables daily, 8% had fizzy drinks and 23% consumed sugary snacks daily.
Mental health and wellbeing
- Autonomy & Competency: 83% of children felt they were doing well at school. While only 54% said they felt safe in school.
- Wellbeing: A significant majority of children (70%) reported being happy with their health, and 77% reported being happy with their lives as a whole.
- Mental health: 29% reported experiencing emotional difficulties, and 17% reported behavioural difficulties, suggesting the need for additional support services.
Community
- Local area: 92% feel happy with their local area, and 70% feel safe playing there.
The HAPPEN report highlights improvements in physical activity levels and ongoing nutrition and emotional wellbeing challenges among primary school children in Wales. These findings aim to inform schools, health professionals, and policymakers about shaping and implementing improvements to the specific needs of young children.
Dr Michaela James, lead researcher at HAPPEN, said: “HAPPEN is driving positive change in primary schools across Wales by empowering schools to make individual changes to their curriculums. Pupil voice is really important to our research so bringing this to the forefront via the self-report survey has allowed HAPPEN to represent the wants and needs of young people. As the network continues to grow, we are excited to work with even more schools to support children’s health and development.”
By participating in the HAPPEN Survey, schools can gain valuable insights into their pupils’ health and wellbeing, track changes, and evaluate their practices. Once completed, HAPPEN-Wales provides individual school reports aligned with the new curriculum, offering a comprehensive picture of health and wellbeing within each school.
For more information and to register your school, please visit the HAPPEN website.