Measuring child wellbeing

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Measuring child wellbeing

• Sam Coope and Ian Storrie
• Scottish Government
• Education Analytical Services

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What is Wellbeing?

• Wellbeing is a positive and sustainable state
  that allows individuals, groups or nations to
  thrive and flourish.
• Wellbeing comprises objective descriptors and
  subjective evaluations of physical, material,
  social and emotional wellbeing, together with the
  extent of personal development and purposeful
  activity, all weighted by a set of values.

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What is Wellbeing? (Contd)

• Wellbeing is a positive physical, social and
  mental state it is not just the absence of pain,
  discomfort and incapacity. It requires that basic
  needs are met, that individuals have a sense of
  purpose, that they feel able to achieve important
  personal goals and participate in society.
• It is enhanced by conditions that include
  supportive personal relationships, strong and
  inclusive communities, good health, financial and
  personal security, rewarding employment, and a
  healthy and attractive environment.
• Governments role is to enable people to have
  a fair access now and in the future to the
  social, economic and environmental resources
  needed to achieve wellbeing. An understanding of
  the effect of policies on the way people
  experience their lives is important for designing
  and prioritising them.

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CHILD WELLBEING TIMELINE
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How we got to where we are
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UNICEF Domains of Wellbeing

• Material Deprivation Relative Income,
  Households without jobs
• Health Safety Infant Mortality, Immunisations
• Educational Well-being School Achievement,
  Post-15 Education
• Relationships Family Structure, Peer
  Relationships
• Behaviours Risks Health Behaviours,
  Experience of Violence
• Subjective Well-being Self-assessed indicators.

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Overall - unicef
  Average Ranking Material Deprivation Health Safety Educational Well-Being Relationships Behaviours Risks Subjective Well-being
Netherlands 4.2 10 2 6 3 3 1
Sweden 5.0 1 1 5 15 1 7
Denmark 7.2 4 4 8 9 6 12
Finland 7.5 3 3 4 17 7 11
Spain 8.0 12 6 15 8 5 2
Switzerland 8.3 5 9 14 4 12 6
Norway 8.7 2 8 11 10 13 8
Italy 10.0 14 5 20 1 10 10
Ireland 10.2 19 19 7 7 4 5
Belgium 10.7 7 16 1 5 19 16
Germany 11.2 13 11 10 13 11 9
Canada 11.8 6 13 2 18 17 15
Greece 11.8 15 18 16 11 8 3
Poland 12.3 21 15 3 14 2 19
Czech Republic 12.5 11 10 9 19 9 17
France 13.0 9 7 18 12 14 18
Portugal 13.7 16 14 21 2 15 14
Austria 13.8 8 20 19 16 16 4
Hungary 14.5 20 17 13 6 18 13
United States 18.0 17 21 12 20 20 N/A
UK 18.2 18 12 17 21 21 20
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Barnardos Index of Wellbeing

• Looks at 7 key indicators of wellbeing child
  poverty, NEET, PISA scores, suicide rates,
  teenage pregnancy, birth weight, and dental
  health
• Indicators combined to create one measure an
  index of child wellbeing.
• Barnardos asked SG to become involved and take
  forward development of their work.

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Overall - Barnardos
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Overall - Barnardos
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What next?

• Limitations of UNICEF/Barnardos approaches
• Going back to first principles.
• Why measure child wellbeing?
• Are we measuring it adequately already?

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Why measure wellbeing?

• Agreement on
• whats important
• what constitutes progress
• Maintain focus and stimulate attention
• The handrail of policy

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Why compare ourselves to others?

• Shows countries relative strengths weaknesses
• Shows what is achievable in practice
• Shows us that wellbeing is (to an extent)
  policy-susceptible
• More important for newly devolved nations?

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Why measure child wellbeing?

• ..or, what makes kids different?
• Well-becoming
• Well-being
• The right to be happy and well
• Adult vs child perceptions of wellbeing

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How do we measure it already in Scotland?

• Surveys
• Health Behaviours of Schoolage Children (HBSC)
• Growing Up in Scotland (GUS)
• Collections of indicators
• ScotPHO (Public Health Observatory) work
• Getting It Right For Every Child (GIRFEC)

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Department for Children, Schools and Families

• Creation of the new Dept for Children, Schools
  and Families
• Evidence report aimed to
• Inform CP policy development
• Present a wider and more up-to-date picture of
  wellbeing than available previously
• DCSFs work is based on a legal concept (set out
  in the Children Act 2004) of wellbeing which
  equates children and young people's wellbeing
  with the 5 Every Child Matters outcomes (healthy,
  safe, enjoy and achieve, positive contribution,
  economic well-being). 

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Northern Ireland Assembly

• All children will thrive and look forward with
  confidence to the future
• Children and Young People are
• Healthy
• Enjoying, learning and achieving
• Living in safety and stability
• Experiencing economic and environmental
  wellbeing
• Contributing positively to community and society
  and
• Living in a society which respects their rights.
• Indicators being refined and enhanced to
  incorporate Childrens rights aspects

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Welsh Assembly Government

• Child Wellbeing Monitor agreed in August 2007
• Approximately 7 pages each on
• Early Years
• Education and learning opportunities
• Health, freedom from abuse and victimisation
• Access to play, leisure, sporting and cultural
  activities
• Respect
• Having a safe home and community
• Freedom from Child poverty
• Measure of progress over time rather than
  geography

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Government of Ireland

• National Childrens Strategy (2000), leading to
  State of the Nations Children (2006)
• Domains used include
• Physical Mental Wellbeing
• Emotional and Behavioural Wellbeing
• Intellectual Capacity
• Spiritual and Moral Wellbeing
• Identity
• Self-care
• Family Relationships
• Social Peer Relationships
• Social Presentation
• Measure of progress over time rather than
  geography

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Government of Ireland

• 10 Year commitment to improve data collection in
  relation to children
• Launched Growing Up in Ireland in January 2007

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What will we measure in future?

• ?