Health Behaviour of School Aged Children (HBSC)

The Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study examines the relationships between young people’s health behaviours, including diet, alcohol use and digital technology use, and the wider social, demographic and environmental factors that shape them. These include family relationships, friendship networks, school experiences, age, gender and ethnic background.

The Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study is the longest-running international research programme focused on young people’s health and wellbeing. Established in 1982 and conducted in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), the study now includes 51 countries and regions across Europe and North America. Data are collected every four years, providing valuable insights into trends in young people’s health, wellbeing and social circumstances over time.

England has participated in the last seven survey cycles since 1997. The current survey, led by CHSS, has recruited more than 10,000 young people from schools across England. Analysis is currently underway, with reports of the findings expected in early 2027

Research into young people’s health and health behaviours and the factors influencing them is essential for the development of effective health education and health promotion policy.

Youth engagement is an important component of the project, helping to ensure that young people’s perspectives inform the interpretation and dissemination of findings. Through this work, young people contribute insights into issues that affect their physical, emotional and social wellbeing, helping to strengthen the relevance and impact of the research

The project has also supported research capacity building through the funding of three PhD studentships. The students are undertaking further analysis of the HBSC dataset, including research exploring opportunities for health data linkage.

Planned outputs include:

• A national report for England
• A contribution to the international report
• Conference papers on emerging findings at the HBSC meetings in Autumn and Spring each year
• International collaboration papers with HBSC colleagues

Through close partnership with colleagues at the Department of Health and Social Care and the Department of Education, HBSC seeks to add the necessary knowledge about young peoples’ health and wellbeing to influence policy, for example, how health education and health behaviours are built into the education strategy for England. Impacts may also result for schools at a local level through our individual school feedback and teaching plans, and directly on young people as the school environments adapt to meet their needs.