Association between mental health disorders and patterns of education in children & young people

Associations between mental health disorders and poor school outcomes, high levels of absenteeism, and school exclusions have been reported in surveys and small cohorts in England and further afield. This project will explore these issues using linked routinely collected health and education datasets of the Welsh population available via the Adolescent Mental Health Data Platform (ADP) in Swansea University.

Aim

The aim of this study is to explore educational attainment, levels of school absenteeism and exclusion in Welsh children and young people diagnosed in their electronic health records with at least one of the following: attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), alcohol and drugs misuse, anxiety, autistic spectrum disorder (ASD), bipolar disorder, conduct disorder, depression, eating disorders, learning difficulties, other psychotic symptoms, schizophrenia, self-harm behaviour.

Project leads

Professor Ann John and Dr Yasmin Friedmann, Swansea University (ADR Wales).

This project is funded by ADR Wales via its core grant from the Economic & Social Research Council (ESRC) as an ADR UK partner.