The proportion of students who eat school lunch daily varies regionally

According to the School Health Promotion study, the proportion of girls who ate school lunch daily has decreased during the monitoring period since 2017 and the proportion of boys since 2023. At the national level, boys eat their daily school lunch more often than girls.

Only a small proportion of young people both have breakfast and exercise and sleep enough

The School Health Promotion study has examined lifestyles according to whether young people exercise for at least one hour a day, whether they sleep eight hours a night on weekdays and whether they eat breakfast every schoolday.

According to the spring 2025 study, about half of 8th and 9th graders ate breakfast on weekday mornings, and slightly more than one in four said that they had exercised at least one hour a day during the past week.

About two-thirds slept at least eight hours a night on weekdays. However, all the above-mentioned lifestyles were reported by only 17 per cent of boys and nine per cent of girls. 

The proportion of those who have experienced bullying has not decreased

The School Health Promotion study asked how often the respondents had experienced bullying from other students during the spring term. About one in three students in grades 4 and 5 of basic education and about one in four students in grades 8 and 9 had experienced bullying. Almost one in ten had experienced weekly bullying at school. About one in four primary and secondary school students who had experienced bullying during the spring term said that a school employee knew about it. 

Most young people can discuss their issues with their parents often or quite often

Around 80 per cent of students in grades 4 and 5 of basic education and around 70 per cent of students in grades 8 and 9 felt that they could discuss their issues with their parents often or quite often. The 8th and 9th graders' experience of this has increased significantly since the turn of the millennium, when about 40 per cent felt that they could discuss their issues with their parents often or quite often. For primary school students, data have been collected since 2017.

About the data in more detail

Read the entire statistical report (Julkari)

Result service of the School Health Promotion study

The national, municipality-specific, and regional results of the School Health Promotion study are published in the Result service of the School Health Promotion study, THL's Statistics Cube and Statistics and Indicator Bank Sotkanet.

In the Tableau view, you can view results by school level and official gender. In the comparison view of the indicators, the results can also be examined by the language of instruction of the educational institution (Finnish/Swedish) or respondent’s origin.

Educational institutions and education providers will receive their results password-protected in September of the year in which the survey was carried out. 

Background information

The quality report of the School Health Promotion study
Privacy notice of the School Health Promotion study 2025
Privacy notice for the contact register of comprehensive schools, upper secondary schools and vocational institutions (in Finnish, also available in Swedish)

Source

The information on this page is based on the School Health Promotion study. 
The School Health Promotion study

Data description

The statistical report on the wellbeing of children and young people publishes the key results of the School Health Promotion Survey for the whole country.
Well-being of children and young people – School Health Promotion study 2025

Every two years, the School Health Promotion study produces monitoring data on the experiences of children and young people aged 10–20 about health, wellbeing, school attendance, studying and lifestyle. The study will be carried out in educational institutions throughout Finland as an online questionnaire under the supervision of a teacher. Students and students respond to the survey anonymously. Participation is voluntary. The guardian of a child under the age of fifteen can choose to prohibit the pupil from participating in the survey.  <linkki uudelle hankesivulle>

Respondents to the study 

  • students in grades 4 and 5 of basic education,
  • students in grades 8 and 9 of basic education,
  • 1st and 2nd year students under the age of 21 in upper secondary schools and vocational institutions.

Children's and young people's own experiences of their wellbeing are important in knowledge-based management in wellbeing services counties, municipalities and educational institutions. 

Update schedule

The School Health Promotion study is carried out every two years. The results will be updated in September 2027.  

Contact information

The School Health Promotion study's information line is available at 029 524 6082. E-mail address: kouluterveyskysely(at)thl.fi.

The email addresses of the research group are in the format [email protected]

Jenni Helenius,  Development Manager, tel. 029 524 8406
Hanne Kivimäki,  Senior Researcher, tel. 029 524 7281
Anni Matikka,  Specialist, tel. 029 524 7322
Pauliina Luopa,  Researcher, tel. 029 524 6008

Result service of the School Health Promotion study:
Eetu Ervasti,  Statistical Researcher, tel. 029 524 8570