Schools Health and Wellbeing Improvement Research Network (SHINE)

The SHINE Network was established in 2018 and aims to help transform health and wellbeing outcomes for young people in Scotland through high quality, school-based health improvement research and data-driven innovation. Specifically, SHINE aims to:

  • Develop a national infrastructure and building research capacity in Scottish schools to support a whole school approach to health and wellbeing.
  • Provide expertise and training for educationalists in the use of HWB data, to support schools, local authorities, their communities and partners with an evidence-based, whole-school approach to wellbeing.
  • Shape the national educational improvement agenda through delivery of high-quality health improvement research to inform policy and practice.
  • Contribute to UK and international academic research on the role of schools in supporting the health and wellbeing of children & young people.

SHINE membership is open to all Scottish schools and we currently have over 500 schools in the network. We are proud to include local authority primary and secondary schools, independent schools and special schools from the Shetland Isles to the Scottish Borders in all 32 Local Authority areas. Schools that join the SHINE Network are offered:

  • Individual school health and wellbeing reports from the SHINE Online Pupil Mental Health Survey and from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) Survey in Scotland (for participating schools).
  • Resources to support school health improvement activities, including research briefings, interactive online data, webinars and evidence-informed resources.
  • Professional development and network events to support learning and networking with other schools.
  • Opportunity to participate in a range of research projects through the SHINE Affiliate Project system.

SHINE was previously funded by an MRC Mental Health Data Pathfinder award and is currently supported by core funding.

Visit the SHINE website.

Publications

Huggins, C. F. et al. (2021) TeenCovidLife: a resource to understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescents in Scotland. Wellcome Open Research, 6, 277. (doi: 10.12688/wellcomeopenres.17252.1)

Lyall, L. M. et al. (2020) Accelerometry-assessed sleep duration and timing in late childhood and adolescence in Scottish schoolchildren: a feasibility study. PLoS ONE, 15(12), e0242080. (doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0242080) (PMID:33259503) (PMCID:PMC7707491)

MRC/CSO Social and Public Health Sciences Unit logo 800 wide