Health promoting school models
There are many different health promoting school models in use throughout the world, all aiming to improve the health and well-being of everyone in schools.
World Health Organization
Health promoting schools are part of the World Health Organization (WHO) Global School Health Initiative (GSHI), which was launched in 1995. A broad definition of a health promoting school was also set out at that time as follows.
A health promoting school is one in which all members of the school community work together to provide pupils with integrated and positive experiences and structures, which promote and protect their health.
This includes both the formal and 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 Organization, 1995.
The WHO model of a health promoting school is one that is characterised by constantly strengthening its capacity as a healthy setting for living, learning and working.
Health promoting schools focus on:
- caring for oneself and others, creating conditions conducive to health
- making healthy decisions and taking control of life circumstances
- preventing leading causes of death, disease and disability
- influencing health-related behaviours through knowledge, skills and attitudes
- building the capacity for peace, education, social justice, sustainable development and more.
Read more about the World Health Organization's model for a health promoting school on the WHO website.
South Australia
The model created in South Australia is similar to the others described and places health promoting schools firmly within the context of creating supportive environments for learning and health.
The model is set within an overarching context of the formal curriculum, the school ethos and the relationship between the school and the local community. It illustrates the inter-relationship between three areas of influence:
- curriculum, learning and teaching
- school organisation, ethos and environment
- partnerships and services.
Further information is available from the Children's Health Development Foundation, Centre for Health Promotion, Women's and Children's Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia or visit the Children's Health Development Foundation website.
European Network of Health Promoting Schools
The European Network of Health Promoting Schools has produced a booklet featuring examples of health promoting school models from across its membership countries.
The booklet, 
PDF file: Models of Health Promoting Schools in Europe (Jensen and Simovska, 2002), reinforces the idea that different schools in different countries and situations must adapt the health promoting school concept to meet their own needs.
One of the key features of each health promoting school model is that it is a result of discussion and consensus among its creators and has meaning within a certain value framework and a particular context.
The introduction to the booklet states:
The health promoting school is more a process of contextual interpretation than an outcome of the implementation of global principles.
Tacade
In 1996 Tacade, a leading UK non-governmental body specialising in education for personal and social development, published Developing a Health Promoting Primary School.
Developing a Health Promoting Primary School aims to help schools formulate a whole school approach to policy and practice on health issues affecting the school community. The health promoting school is an umbrella for a number of policies and practices that collectively reflect the philosophy, principles, priorities and style of the school.
The model outlines six aspects of the health promoting school:
- curriculum
- ethos and climate
- environment.
- links with family and community.
- health and welfare of staff.
- role of specialist services.
Developing a health promoting primary school also emphasises how development is an ongoing process and suggests three distinct stages for policy development, policy implementation and keeping going.
Tacade can be contacted at:
Old Exchange Building
St Ann's Passage
King Street
Manchester
M2 6AD
Telephone: 0161 836 6850
Fax: 0161 836 6859
E-mail: info@tacade.co.uk
England
In England the National Healthy School Standard has been formulated with the aim of driving up standards, reducing health inequalities, promoting social inclusion and raising educational attainment.
It recognises a healthy school as one that is successful in helping pupils do their best and build on their achievements. It adopts the whole-school approach to health promotion.
The themes covered by the National Healthy School Standard are:
- personal and social education (PSE) and health education
- citizenship
- drug education (including alcohol and tobacco)
- emotional health and well-being
- healthy eating
- physical activity
- safety
- sex and relationship education.
The National Healthy School Standard accreditation standards are designed to:
- help develop sustainable education and health partnerships
- encourage participation of schools and young people
- promote quality management of local healthy schools programmes
- be responsive to school and local needs as well as national priorities
- gather evidence to demonstrate effectiveness.
More information on the National Healthy School Standard is on the Wired for Health website.
Wales
The Welsh model states that health promotion in schools should be holistic and integrated with all aspects of school life and not just taught as another part of the curriculum.
The Welsh Network of Healthy Schools has been established to help promote the development of health promoting schools and has formulated a set of key aims:
- to promote actively the self-esteem of all members of the school community
- to actively develop good relationships in the daily life of the school
- to identify, develop and communicate a positive ethos and appropriate social values within the school community
- to ensure that all pupils have the opportunity to benefit from stimulating educational challenges
- to take every opportunity to enhance the environment of the school
- to develop good school, home, community links and shared activities
- to encourage all staff to fulfil their health promoting role, through staff development and training
- to develop and implement a coherent health education curriculum
- to establish good links with associated schools to ensure smooth transition, both socially and in relation to a developmental health education programme
- to develop the school as a health promoting workplace with a commitment to the health and well being of all staff
- to develop the complementary role of all school policies to the health education curriculum, such that the curriculum reflects the contents of the policy and the policy reinforces the curriculum
- to develop partnerships with appropriate outside agencies and individuals, including the school health service, for advice and active support for health education and health promotion in the school.
These aims should be achieved in the context of local needs and priorities.
Visit the Welsh Network of Healthy School Schemes website for more information.
Scotland
Many councils and schools have benefited from working closely with their partners to develop a framework or model that takes account of local priorities and partnership agreements. Some of the advantages include:
- increased awareness of the concept of health promoting schools
- increased levels of integration and linking with other key local developments
- increased commitment to delivery and a shared responsibility
- integrated approaches to monitoring and evaluation.
In some areas in Scotland, work is underway to allow pupils, parents and the wider community the opportunity of contributing to the creation of a local health promoting school framework or model.
