Health Behaviours in School-Aged Children 2026-27
Perth and Kinross Council · 16 September 2026
Back to Learning and Families Committee — 16 September 2026 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
Page 1
Our vision is a Perth and Kinross where everyone can live life well, free from poverty and inequalities ___________________________________________________________________ Committee or Board: Learning and Families Committee Date of Meeting: 16 September 2026 Report Title: Health Behaviours in School-Aged Children 2026/27 Report Number: 26/250 Report Author: Lynsay Johnston, Community Mental Health Programme Manager Organisational Lead: Arun Singh, Strategic Lead – Children, Families and Justice ___________________________________________________________________ 1. Purpose 1.1 The purpose of this report is to advise Learning and Families Committee members regarding the plans to undertake a survey of children and young people in P6 to S6, attending Perth and Kinross schools. This survey will be based on the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children Scotland Study (HBSC) undertaken by the University of Glasgow on behalf of the World Health Organisation (WHO). 1.2 Sections 1. Purpose 2. Recommendation 3. Background/Context 4. Main Issues 5. Proposals 6. Conclusion 7. Impact and Value Assessment 2. Recommendation It is recommended that the Committee: 2.1 Considers the contents of the report and supports the proposals to undertake a health and wellbeing survey in academic year 2026/27.
Page 2
3. Background/Context 3.1 HBSC is a cross-national study which aims to increase understanding of young people’s health and wellbeing, health behaviours and social context. The study is run by a research team at the University of Glasgow. 3.2 The survey includes important aspects such as family and peer relationships, the school experience and the socio-economic environment in which they are growing up. 3.3 The survey asks about a variety of topics relating to health and wellbeing and health behaviours. Topics include sleeping habits, electronic media use, eating habits, physical activity, school life, friends, family life, substance use, and sexual health (S4 only). 3.4 The HBSC survey is conducted every four years and collects data from young people attending school, aged 11, 13 and 15 years. The study collects data from around 1500 to 2000 young people in each age group. 3.5 The data collected by HBSC are used to provide population-level statistics and none of the results from the study can be used to identify individuals. These statistics are used to inform the development of policies and programmes tailored to the needs of young people at local, national and international levels. 3.6 During academic year 2021/22, Perth and Kinross schools participated in the unconnected Health and Wellbeing Census Scotland 2021 - 2022, developed by the Scottish Government. The key findings were provided in the report Scottish Government Health and Wellbeing Census (Report No. 23/89 refers) which was presented to the Learning and Families Committee on 15 March 2024. 3.7 In December 2025, the Scottish Government’s Chief Statistician made the decision to discontinue the Health and Wellbeing Census. 4. Main Issues 4.1 It is important to improve and target local services to meet the needs of children and young people as early as possible. Providing early support to them, and their families, can help avoid bigger concerns or problems developing. 4.2 To continue improving local services, it is important that we understand the health and wellbeing needs of children and young people. The best way to do this is to support them to tell us themselves. 4.3 There are currently no surveys which cover the breadth of topics offered by the HBSC and are accessible to most young people attending school.
Page 3
4.4 It would be beneficial to develop our local understanding by increasing the number and widening the age-range of children and young people sharing their views via a reliable and meaningful study such as the HBSC. 4.5 The data gathered will help better understand the current health and wellbeing needs of children and young people across school communities in Perth and Kinross. The data will also provide an important baseline for measuring change across the life of the new Perth and Kinross Integrated Children’s Services Plan (ICSP) 2026-2029 (Report No. 26/137 refers). 4.6 It is proposed that a survey, based on the HBSC, is completed during academic year 2026/27. The national questionnaire may be adapted according to our local needs. 4.7 The adaptations will be identified and completed by a Task and Finish Group which will consider the questions, administration (including ethics and data protection), parent and carer concerns and analysis of the data gathered through the survey. 4.8 The Task and Finish Group will: • Review questions which collect unnecessary data, duplicate information already available, or lack a clear and justifiable purpose to ensure these are not included. • Ensure that duplicate or substantially similar questions are not included where the information is already captured through other measures or tools (for example, the Educational Psychologist Service's use of the Glasgow Motivation and Wellbeing Profile). • Review ethical considerations throughout the development process, including informed consent, data protection, question wording, accessibility, and sensitivity. This review will balance the need to obtain meaningful data with the responsibility to minimise distress and protect the wellbeing of children and young people, including consideration of appropriate support following survey completion. 4.9 To progress, it is recommended that a Task and Finish Group is established with the following suggested membership: • Principal Educational Psychologist. • Wellbeing and Inclusion Officer. • Youth Work Team Leader. • Secondary School Depute Headteacher. • Primary School Headteacher. • Performance Officer. • IT Data Services Coordinator. • Public Health Scotland Children and Young People’s Team Leader. • NHS Tayside. • NHS East of Scotland Research Ethics Service.
Page 4
• Third Sector Interface Perth and Kinross. • Information Governance Officer. • Campaigns and Consultation Team Leader. • News and Media Coordinator. 4.10 The Task and Finish Group will report into the Getting it Right for Every Child (GIRFEC)/ICSP Oversight Group to ensure all identified concerns have been resolved before the survey is administered. 4.11 After the review is finalised the Task and Finish Group will update the GIRFEC/ICSP Oversight Group and transfer responsibility to an implementation team. 5. Proposals 5.1 It is proposed that: • Perth and Kinross Council (PKC) undertake a health and wellbeing survey based on the HBSC study. • A Task and Finish Group is established to review the questionnaire and mechanisms required to progress the health and wellbeing survey in academic year 2026/27. • An Elected Members Briefing Note and Briefing Session to share updates is scheduled for November 2026. 6. Conclusion 6.1 The HBSC provides valuable insight into the health and wellbeing needs of children and young people across Scotland. These insights can be strengthened in Perth and Kinross to help inform service planning and resource allocation. 6.2 There is a continued need to update our evidence base to understand changing needs, identify emerging issues and establish a baseline for measuring progress against the new ICSP. It is therefore proposed that PKC undertake a health and wellbeing survey in academic year 2026/27. 6.3 The establishment of a multi-agency Task and Finish Group will ensure that survey content, ethics, data protection, governance and stakeholder concerns are fully considered before implementation. 6.4 This approach will enable PKC to gather meaningful and robust information from children and young people while ensuring appropriate safeguards and public confidence in the process.
Page 5
7. Impact and Value Assessment 7.1 This report has been classified as being an operational report and as such does not require a full Impact and Value Assessment.