One small step? Links between educational transitions and young people's wellbeing
This report draws on children's and young people's responses to The Children's Society's Annual Household Surveys conducted in 2022 and 2023. It looks at subjective wellbeing among children and young people in England and Wales during school years associated with educational transitions (comparing years 6 and 7, 9 and 10, and 11 and 12).
For some of the measures considered, young people in year 7 have lower subjective wellbeing on average than their counterparts in year 6. This raises concerns about the potential effect of the transition from primary to secondary education on young people's wellbeing.
23 pages
Key findings
Key findings
- Mean life satisfaction scores are lower among children and young people in year 7 than those in year 6.
- Females have lower mean life satisfaction scores than males across several school years associated with transitions including years 9, 11 and 12.
- A smaller percentage of children in year 6 record low wellbeing than in subsequent years.
