The way children live their lives in the Bradford district is revealed in the findings of a new lifestyle survey.

Commissioned by NHS Bradford and Airedale, the data highlights significant health inequalities among different communities.

More than 10,000 pupils in Years 4, 7 and 10 took part in the survey in 117 primary and 24 secondary schools, including three special schools and all pupil referral units.

Some of the survey’s key findings include:

  • Compared with an England sample, young people in Bradford were less likely to smoke, drink alcohol or have ever taken drugs.
  • About a fifth of pupils said they had at least five portions of fruit and/or vegetables on the day before the survey.
  • The vast majority of pupils in all year groups (86 per cent) did at least some hard exercise during the week before the survey.
  • Forty-five per cent of pupils surveyed live in communities classified as the 20 per cent most deprived in England.
  • Three-quarters of pupils had been to a dentist in the last six months.
  • Seventeen per cent of all Year 10 pupils reported being bullied at or near school.
  • Eighty-eight per cent of pupils thought it was important to go to school.

The findings will go to the Bradford Children’s Trust board and help formulate services aimed at tackling obesity, smoking, alcohol and substance misuse, as well as improving emotional health, personal safety and a range of long-term health and wellbeing outcomes.

Anita Parkin, director of public health, NHS Bradford and Airedale and Bradford Council, said: “This survey gives us a wealth of information not only about their diets, physical activity and mental wellbeing, but also about their attitudes and exposure to risks such as drug and alcohol misuse, not wearing a seatbelt in cars and sexually transmitted infections.”

Kath Tunstall, strategic director of children and young people’s services, Bradford Council, said: “This information will help children and young people make healthy choices and improve their wellbeing.

“It will also provide a good platform on which to strengthen children’s services and our health inequalities work. It will provide a rich picture for schools and inform their understanding of the needs of their students.

“A number of priorities for action have been identified from the survey.”