The most comprehensive study of primary school children in Wales reveals nearly a third of learners (30%) reported elevated or clinically significant emotional difficulties in 2024.
The School Health Research Network's (SHRN) Student Health and Well-being Survey in Primary Schools of more than 50,000 children also found that nearly seven in ten learners reported problems sleeping. One in three learners reported using social media a few times a week or every day – rising to one in two among 10-11-year-olds. Most learners said they had positive connections with teachers, peers, and school life.
These and other insights are included in the inaugural primary school report from SHRN. Researchers, educators, policy-makers and health practitioners say the findings are informing effective interventions to help learners.
SHRN is a policy-practice-research partnership between Cardiff University, Welsh Government , and Public Health Wales . Established in all secondary schools in Wales since 2013, the network's expansion into primary schools began with a pilot in 2022, culminating in the inaugural report in 2024.This latest phase aims to provide insights into the issues affecting children from the age of seven to 11.
Dr Kelly Morgan, director of SHRN at Cardiff University's DECIPHer , said: "Funded by Welsh Government, our first national SHRN primary school report sheds light on a range of issues affecting children in Wales – with the data on well-being likely to be a big focus for schools and health professionals. Although seven in ten (69%) learners rated their life satisfaction as eight or higher out of 10, mental health symptoms tended to be more common, and life satisfaction lower, among learners from less affluent families. Life satisfaction tended to dip slightly as learners got older, but emotional and behavioural difficulties didn't show the same clear pattern by age."
Our recent expansion of SHRN into primary schools offers an opportunity for joined up working across childhood and adolescence, and an avenue to better understand and support events such as transition to secondary school. This phase is recognised as one of the five key transitional periods in the lives of children and young people.
Other key findings reveal:
- Half of learners have reported being bullied at school;
- Fewer than half eat fruit or vegetables daily;
- One in ten learners report clinically significant behavioural difficulties;
- Around one in seven learners go to bed after 10 pm;
- Half of learners own a smartphone;
- Vaping is emerging among learners in year 5 and 6;
- Half of learners report exercising at least five times a week.
Schools are already using SHRN data to inform their practice, with bespoke anonymous school reports issued to participating schools. These reports are increasingly being used to support school development planning, prepare for Estyn inspections, and strengthen whole-school approaches to mental health and well-being.
At Cogan Primary School in the Vale of Glamorgan, pilot data highlighted areas for development in children's well-being and peer relationships by Year 6. With support from The Health and Well-being Promoting Schools team, the school introduced the Flourish programme - a targeted initiative designed to support self-esteem and emotional resilience, helping pupils thrive both socially and emotionally.
Tom Lewis, Health and well-being lead at Cogan Primary School, said: "SHRN has allowed us to put support in place that quickly made a positive difference to the wellbeing of our year six cohort. We have continued to use this initiative with great results. It's invaluable for teachers to be able to access robust evidence such as this to ensure all our learners thrive."
Lorna Bennett, Consultant in Public Health, Public Health Wales, said: "The new SHRN Primary Schools data gives us a vital opportunity to better understand children's health and well-being in Wales. Through the Welsh Network of Health and Well-being Promoting Schools, Public Health Wales works closely with schools to help create positive, supportive environments where learners can thrive. These findings highlight our ongoing commitment to using the latest data and evidence to inform whole school approaches to health and well-being. We will continue to focus on supporting emotional and mental well-being, and to work together with schools, local authorities, and partners to put evidence into action to support positive health and well-being outcomes for every child."
Report co-author Dr Shujun Liu, also based at Cardiff University's DECIPHer, said: "This report captures the voices of our primary school children and the issues affecting them. By sharing their thoughts and experiences, the children taking part in this research have made a vital contribution to shaping efforts aimed at improving not only their health and well-being, but the health and well-being outcomes for children across Wales.
"We are also deeply grateful to the teaching staff whose time, support, and encouragement were instrumental in enabling learner participation. Their commitment to fostering environments where children feel safe and empowered to express their views and opinions has been central to the success of this survey and the wider SHRN network."
Overall, 510 primary schools took part in the study from across all twenty-two local authorities in Wales, representing 42% of all state maintained primary schools. One independent school participated. In total, 51,662 learners in Years 3 to 6 completed the SHRN questionnaire.
Cabinet Secretary for Education, Lynne Neagle said: "The School Health Research Network (SHRN) plays an important role in amplifying children and young people's voices, and I am pleased that this year we have been able to extend the survey to primary schools nationally.
"It is important that we hear directly from children and young people to better understand how they are feeling and what is impacting them for us to shape future work we do.
"Parts of this report made for sobering reading; it is a priority for me to support children and young people's mental health and wellbeing. As a government we are investing over £13 million annually in our Whole School Approach to mental health, with over £3 million going directly into school-based counselling.
"Alongside this, we continue to support schools to work with families and the wider community to understand their learners' needs and meet them.
"I want to thank the children who took part in the survey, with the information playing an important role in shaping government priorities, including the Curriculum for Wales, Well-being of Future Generations Act, Mental Health Strategy, and Healthy Weight: Healthy Wales. We will also use these results to inform our revised anti-bullying guidance for schools."
