Children and young people in Vantaa feel that their health is better than before
Children and young people feel that the state of their health is good. Children and young people are heard, an increasing number of them exercise for at least one hour per day and few still smoke. This was found by the School Health Promotion study conducted by THL, with responses from nearly 11,000 students in Vantaa in spring 2025.
Photo: Loc Nguyen
An increasing number of children and young people in Vantaa feel that the state of their health is good, according to the School Health Promotion study. 79% of Vantaa’s 8th–9th graders feel that the state of their health is fairly good or very good. This is an increase from the previous survey (2023).
The negative impact of the coronavirus years on young people’s experiences of the state of their health is generally stabilizing. In all age groups, boys’ experiences of their health are better than those of girls.
The changes in the use of intoxicants among young people are positive: fewer students smoke or consume alcohol. In addition, more children and young people in Vantaa exercise at least one hour per day.
An increasing number of children and young people in Vantaa feel that they are seen and heard
The loneliness experienced by children and young people, which increased after the coronavirus years, continues to decline in all age groups. Girls report experiencing loneliness more often than boys: 18% of 8th–9th grade girls feel lonely, whereas the corresponding figure for boys is 8%. Vantaa is producing a guide for preventing loneliness among children and young people, in cooperation with children and young people themselves. As such, the thoughts of children and young people on loneliness as well as measures that could reduce loneliness in Vantaa are being collected in daycares, schools and educational institutions throughout the fall and winter.
The communication between children and young people and the adults at schools has improved in both primary and secondary school. For example, 23 elementary schools in Vantaa employ school coaches, who do not participate in teaching. Instead, their task is to be an easily approachable adult who has time for students.
“I feel that it’s very important that young people are able to talk to the adults in the school, and it's cool to see improvement there. It makes the school feel much safer,” says Vantaa Youth Council member Tasnim Islam.
Vantaa wants to prevent and intervene in bullying
An increasing number of students (63–91%) have not experienced any bullying during the school year. However, bullying as a phenomenon has not decreased in Vantaa. The city wants to prevent and intervene in bullying using all possible means, such as the work of bullying experts.
“We take all students’ experiences of bullying seriously. We at Vantaa are committed to working persistently together with different experts to solve this challenge. In my own work, I get to have important discussions and strengthen our understanding of bullying as a phenomenon as well as our ability to prevent and intervene in bullying. I also support staff members in investigating long-term cases of bullying and bring light and help to these challenging situations,” says Anna Surakka, expert in intervening in bullying.
Satisfaction with school food has increased
Satisfaction with the quality and flavor of school food has increased. 54% of 4th–5th graders feel that the quality of school food is good, while in 2023, the corresponding figure was 44%. Satisfaction with the amount of food, mealtimes and the amount of time reserved for them has increased in several age groups. However, many still skip school meals.
“In Vantaa, we have observed that many students don’t eat at school. In order for as many children and young people as possible to eat lunch at school, the city has increased the amount of money allocated to school food and made carefully considered changes to meals. These came into effect in August, at the start of the new school year. Students were also heard when making the changes,” says basic education district manager Johanna Honkanen.
What is the School Health Promotion study?
The School Health Promotion study is a national survey conducted by the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) every other year. The School Health Promotion study's respondents are 4th–5th and 8th–9th graders, as well as 1st and 2nd-year students in upper secondary school and vocational school.
The results of the study for the entire country, municipalities and wellbeing services counties can be found through THL’s result service: thl.fi (in Finnish)
