The Government is firmly committed to the twin aims of raising standards in both health and education. These twin aims are inextricably linked.
We do not need research to tell us that, when children and young people are fit and healthy, they are more able to concentrate, learn and do well at school. The solid foundation that good education provides is a very positive determinant of the future health and wellbeing of our nation.
The recent White Paper Towards a Healthier Scotland (1999) highlighted the unenviable picture of our nation's health and identified the concept of the health promoting school as a key component of future health improvements. That is why becoming a health promoting school is integral to the new community school initiative.
This document is designed to help you strengthen your school's approach to promoting the health of your pupils. It is designed to fit coherently with more generic national advice illustrating how it can be applied in practice to support development in one important area of school effectiveness.
Whether you address health promotion as a discrete issue in your development planning cycle, or look on it as one element embedded in other audits or action plans, the normal basic principles of good self-evaluation and development planning apply.
This publication is based on good practice in health promotion identified by HM Inspectors in schools and education authorities across Scotland.
Collaboration and partnership of this kind between among HM Inspectors, education authorities and schools is at the heart of the Quality Initiative in Scottish Schools and has resulted in the development of a coherent and shared national approach. The Quality Initiative places schools at the centre of the drive to improve standards and quality and to meet realistic and challenging targets. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have contributed to this project.
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Bill Clark |
John Stodter |
Professor Andrew Tannahill |
This pack was developed by education officers and teachers of Aberdeen City Council in partnership with the HMI Audit Unit and HM Inspectors of Schools. . All education authorities and health promotion departments have been provided with the opportunity to make an input to the development process.
Officers and staff from the following education authorities and health promotion departments have contributed comments and advice at various stages in the drafting process:
Aberdeenshire Council
Angus Council
Argyll and Bute Council
City of Edinburgh Council
Dumfries and Galloway Council
East Ayrshire
The Moray Council
North Ayrshire Council
Orkney Islands Council
South Ayrshire Council
South Lanarkshire Council
Stirling Council
West Lothian Council
West Dunbartonshire Council
West Lothian Council
Borders NHS Primary Care Trust
Forth Valley Health Promotion
Greater Glasgow Health Promotion
Health Promotions - a division of Grampian Health Board
Lanarkshire Health Promotion
Orkney Health Promotion
Tayside Health Promotion
Western Isles Health Promotion Department.
Particular appreciation is owed to John Stodter, Director of Education, Aberdeen City Council and to the development team led by Stephanie Allison.
In addition, the University of Strathclyde and the Health Education Board for Scotland also provided comment and advice.
The project was managed by HMI Frances Corcoran; Stewart Jardine, National Officer, HMI Audit Unit; Stephanie Allison, Health Promotion Co-ordinator, Aberdeen City Council Health Promotions; and Ian Young, Schools Programme Manager Manager Schools, Health Education Board for Scotland.
The set of performance indicators to which this publication refers was developed by the Audit Unit, HM Inspectors of Schools, in collaboration with education authorities and schools.
What does it mean to be a health promoting school?
The health of all those learning and working in schools is an important aspect of effective education for all. The health and wellbeing of children and young people affect their ability to achieve and confidence to learn. Research highlights the clear links between good health and higher attainment and achievement as well as the converse that higher attainment and achievement in turn lead to a healthier nation.
The Government recognises the importance of health promotion. . All schools are required to provide health education, which ideally takes place within a stimulating yet safe and supportive environment that both promotes and protects the health and wellbeing of all members of the school community. . Within health promoting schools, not only is health education integral to the curriculum but the school ethos, policies, services, extra-curricular activities and partnerships foster emotional, mental, physical, social wellbeing and healthy development.
'A health promoting school is one in which all members of the school community work together to provide children and young people with integrated and positive experiences and structures, which promote and protect their health. . This includes both the formal and the informal curriculum in health, the creation of a safe and healthy school environment, the provision of appropriate health services and the involvement of the family and wider community in efforts to promote health.' (World Health Organisation, 1995)
Aspects of performance which are important to all effective schools lie at the heart of health promoting schools. . Shared aims, informed and committed leadership, a supportive ethos, a focus on learning and teaching, a systematic approach to self-evaluation and a good development planning process, in particular, all support school health promotion. . To put all of this in place, schools need a healthy and vibrant staff.
Why is it important to be a health promoting school?
Good health is a vital concern to us all, old and young. . It is of particular concern in Scotland, given our long record of poor health. . In some areas, such as in coronary heart disease statistics, there have been steady improvements in Scotland's health. . However in other key areas, for example, in the prevalence of accidents and teenage pregnancies, Scotland compares unfavourably with other developed nations.
Schools cannot be expected to solve every health or social problem in our society. . They can, however, make a significant contribution to increasing the quality of life for their students, staff and wider community by becoming health promoting schools. . Becoming a health promoting school provides a way for each school to listen to, and take account of, the views of pupils, parents and staff. . A positive, health promoting school ethos can influence health, attainment, achievements and expectations.
References to the importance of health promotion can be found in official publications about learning at all stages, as set out in appendix 1.
Aim of this publication
The aim of this publication is to help you to evaluate the quality of health promotion (including health education) in your school. . It is designed for teachers in pre-five, primary, secondary and special schools. . It is not primarily intended for use in other educational settings, such as centres for community and further education, although it may help staff in these contexts to reflect on the issues that are relevant to their own setting.