A recent comprehensive investigation spearheaded by the University of Bath has unveiled striking disparities in physical activity levels among primary school children across England. The study, remarkable for its scale and depth, monitored over 17,000 pupils and approximately 2,300 educators within 165 primary schools during the 2021-2022 academic year. Despite adherence to a uniform national curriculum, these schools demonstrated wildly divergent patterns of student movement and exercise during school hours, challenging preconceived notions about uniform policy outcomes.
Crucially, the research employed state-of-the-art wearable accelerometer technology, meticulously collecting activity data from children over an average span of 25 school days. This technological approach allowed for precise quantification of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), alongside step count metrics, illuminating nuanced behavioral trends that simple observational methods might miss. The sheer breadth of this data collection ranks this as the largest empirical assessment of its nature within England, offering an unprecedented lens into spatial and social determinants of child physical activity.
Among the emergent findings, a sobering revelation stands out: only about 30% of pupils achieved the recommended minimum of 30 minutes of MVPA during the school day. This finding spotlights a systemic challenge within school physical activity promotion. Intriguingly, the study revealed drastic inter-school variation, with some schools recording averages as low as 8 minutes of MVPA per child, whereas others exceeded 40 minutes, marking a fivefold difference. Step counts echoed this range-wide disparity, fluctuating from a mere 1,800 steps to upwards of 10,000 steps per pupil daily.
Socioeconomic factors featured prominently in shaping physical activity patterns. Children attending schools categorized by higher deprivation levels—measured by the proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals—engaged in around 25 fewer minutes of MVPA weekly. This signals entrenched health inequities manifesting even during hours intended to provide equitable activity opportunities. These deprivation-linked disparities corroborate broader public health concerns about uneven access to resources and structured activity across socioeconomically stratified communities.
A particularly nuanced aspect of the study was the examination of gender differences in physical activity. While boys generally exhibited greater activity levels, the gender gap was far from uniform. Remarkably, in approximately 5% of schools, girls surpassed boys in MVPA metrics, and several other schools revealed minimal disparity between genders. This finding interrogates longstanding stereotypes that boys are inherently more active and underscores the influence of school culture and leadership in shaping equitable physical activity environments.
Counterintuitively, playground size was not correlated with increased physical activity. This challenges the simplistic assumption that a larger outdoor space naturally fosters greater movement. Instead, this suggests that qualitative factors—such as the organization of play, activity facilitation, and cultural emphasis on movement—may be the true drivers of pupil activity. These insights call for a reevaluation of infrastructure-focused interventions that neglect behavioral and pedagogical dimensions.
The presence of active teachers emerged as a salient predictor of pupil activity levels, illuminating the multifaceted role of school staff in modeling and encouraging exercise. Schools with more physically engaged teachers tended to have children who were themselves more active, indicating that staff behavior and school leadership dynamics can substantially influence student health behaviors. This highlights the ecological nature of physical activity promotion within educational settings.
Lead author Georgina Wort, from the University of Bath’s Department for Health, emphasized the public health implications of these findings. She underscored that while policy frameworks are uniform, real-world implementations and outcomes are heterogeneous, leading to unequal health and wellbeing benefits among children. Wort noted that the large variability in activity levels calls attention to the urgent need to reassess and tailor intervention strategies comprehensively.
The research also adds to mounting evidence of persistent health inequalities, particularly illuminating how structural barriers limit physical activity for children in economically disadvantaged contexts. The study’s findings stress that these inequities cannot be resolved through environmental changes alone, such as increasing playground dimensions, but require multifaceted approaches addressing socioeconomic determinants and school culture.
Professor Dylan Thompson, co-author from the University’s Department for Health, proposed novel uses of wearable activity trackers not just as research tools but as practical educational instruments. He suggested that real-time data could help teachers to identify and support less active pupils, as well as pinpoint sedentary periods within the school schedule. Such data-driven approaches could empower schools to create targeted, effective interventions and foster peer learning between schools of differing activity levels.
The reflections of Tim Hollingsworth, Professor of Practice in Sport and former Chief Executive of Sport England, highlighted a broader societal failure to prioritize children’s health and activity adequately. He advocated for comprehensive shifts that extend beyond formal sports provision, emphasizing the need for whole-school engagement in physical activity promotion throughout the entire school day. Hollingsworth’s perspective resonates with the study’s findings, underscoring the critical role of teacher empowerment and cultural change in reversing current trends.
Funded by the Economic & Social Research Council’s South West Doctoral Training Partnership, this pivotal study further cements the role of interdisciplinary, data-informed educational health research. By bridging quantitative data acquisition with actionable insights, the project sets a new benchmark for understanding and addressing physical activity inequities in childhood—a fundamental step towards mitigating long-term public health burdens associated with sedentary behavior and childhood obesity.
With the publication appearing in the esteemed Journal of Physical Activity and Health, this research invites policymakers, educators, and health professionals to reconsider strategies for promoting equitable physical activity. It calls for integrated frameworks blending behavioral science, educational policy, and community engagement to deliver consistent opportunities for meaningful physical movement to every child, irrespective of their socioeconomic or geographic context.
Subject of Research: Variability in physical activity levels among primary school children during school hours across England, focusing on demographic, socioeconomic, and school-related determinants.
Article Title: Using Data-Driven Insights to Explore the Variability in Pupils’ Physical Activity Between English Primary Schools
News Publication Date: 24-Sep-2025
Web References: http://dx.doi.org/10.1123/jpah.2024-0868
Keywords: Children, Health disparity, Physical exercise, Public health, Sports, Social sciences, Education policy, Educational facilities, Education research, Obesity, Childhood obesity
