School Calendar

Year 6 Height and Weight checks

Height and Weight Checks for Children in Year 6

Every year in England, school children in Year 6 have their height and weight checked
at school as part of the National Child Measurement Programme (NCMP). Height and
weight measurements are used to calculate weight status. We collect this information
to build a picture of how children are growing to help plan better health and leisure
services for families. In most areas, parents receive their child’s measurement data as
this can be useful information about their child’s growth and provides an opportunity to
offer support to parents where required. Your child’s class will take part in this year’s
programme before the end of the academic year.
The checks are carried out by members of the Healthy Child Programme (HCP)
5-19 who have been appropriately trained. Children are measured fully clothed,
except for their coats and shoes, in a private space away from other pupils. The
programme will be delivered in a safe way, in line with the school and local authority’s
safety control measures and national guidance for schools and healthcare.
Maintaining the well-being of children in the NCMP
The wellbeing of children and families is very important. Measurements are conducted
in a sensitive way, in private and away from other children. Individual results are not
shared with your child or their school. The weight and height information are shared
only with you via a parent/carer feedback letter. It is your choice to share or not share
the information with your child.
The emotional impact of the NCMP has been researched and studies show that body
image, self-esteem, weight-related teasing, and restrictive eating behaviours do not
change as a result of being measured or receiving feedback. If you are concerned
about your child’s growth, weight, body image or eating patterns, seek further support
from a school nurse or General Practitioner (GP).
The information we collect and what it is used for is listed below:
• your child’s date of measurement, sex and date of birth are used
to calculate your child’s weight category
• your child’s name, date of birth and NHS Number are used to link
your child’s measurements in Reception and Year 6. Other data
sets held by NHS England and Department of Health and Social
Care, may also be linked to allow the addition of information from
health and education records, where lawful to do so, to
understand how and why the weight of children is changing, and
how this affects children’s health and education and how the care
children receive can be improved. This includes your child’s
health data relating to their birth, hospital care (including time in hospital and out-
patient appointments and diagnosis of medical conditions)

• mental health
• social care
• primary care - includes all healthcare outside of hospital such as GP and dental appointments,
• public health - including data relating to preventing ill health such as immunisation records
• records for when and the reason why people pass away
• medical conditions such as cancer, diabetes
• health, lifestyle and wellbeing surveys that your child has participated in
• your child’s ethnicity and address are used to help understand some of the reasons for the difference and changes in child weight across England
• your address is required to send you your child’s feedback letter.

This will include your child’s measurements together with information about healthy eating, being active and related
activities available in your area All the data collected is also used for improving health, care and
services through research and planning.

All this information is treated confidentially and held securely. No individual measurements will be given to school staff or other children.

How the data is used

The information collected from all schools in the area will be gathered together
and held securely by Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust (SCFT). We will
store your child’s information as part of their local child health record on the
NHS’s child health information database and share it with their GP.
All the information collected about your child will be sent by us to NHS England.
NHS England is responsible for collecting data and information about health
and care so that this can be used to monitor and improve the care provided to
people across England.
The information collected about your child will also be shared by NHS England
with the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) which is part of
the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) but in a de-personalised form
only. This means OHID will not be able to identify your child. OHID focuses on
improving the nation's health so that everyone can expect to live more of life in
good health, and on levelling up health disparities to break the link between
background and prospects for a healthy life.

Both NHS England and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities
(DHSC) will use the information from the National Child Measurement
Programme to better understand numbers and trends in child weight and body
mass index (BMI). This helps with the planning of services to support healthy
lifestyles in your area. No information will ever be published by NHS England or
the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (DHSC) that identifies your
child. NHS England use the data to produce National Child Measurement
Programme statistics reports showing trends at national and local community
level.
De-personalised information from the National Child Measurement Programme
may also be shared by NHS England with other organisations, such as
universities. This is to help improve health, care and services through research
and planning. This information cannot be used to identify your child, and NHS
England only ever shares information for research through formal assurance
and approvals processes, seeking advice from experts, as necessary.
Withdrawing your child from the National Child Measurement Programme
If you are happy for your child to be measured, you do not need to do anything.
If you do not want your child’s height and weight to be measured, or your child has a
medical condition that affects their height or weight please let us know using the
contact details provided below, by 20.09.2024
Tel: 0300 303 1137 option 2
sc-tr.westsussexhealthychildprogramme@nhs.net
Children will not be made to take part on the day if they do not want to.
Further information

Further information about the National Child Measurement Programme can be found at
The National Child Measurement Programme - NHS (www.nhs.uk)
A short video on the National Child Measurement Programme NCMP process animation
Information and fun ideas to help your kids stay healthy can be found at
Healthier Families - Home - NHS (www.nhs.uk)
Advice and tips on how to promote good oral care can be found here
Healthy Teeth Tips NHS
Further information about the West Sussex HCP team and how we can support you and your
child is available here School Nursing Service (sussexcommunity.nhs.uk)

Information about how SCFT collect and use information can be found at
Patient Information and How We Use It | Sussex Community NHS Foundation
Trust
Information about how NHS England and Office for Health Improvement and Disparities
collect and use information can be found at Personal information charter - Department
of Health and Social Care - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Information about the organisations NHS England has shared information from the National
Child Measurement Programme can be found at National Child Measurement
Programme - NHS England Digital
Yours faithfully,

Alison Challenger Lucy Butler
Director of Public Health Director of Children, Young People &

Learning

Another way to help maintain a balanced diet and physical activity for your
family is the NHS Healthy Steps email programme. Sign up for the 8-week
Healthy Steps emails and you will be sent lots of low-cost easy tips, fun games,
healthy swaps and tasty recipes on a budget.
Scan the QR code or visit healthysteps.uk to sign up.

How your child’s data is collected and processed as part of the National Child
Measurement Programme (NCMP)
Local authorities have a legal duty to collect the NCMP data. They do this by following
guidance from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities part of the
Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC). Local authorities are responsible for
making decisions on how the data is collected and for making sure it is protected.
Local NCMP service providers are contracted to carry this out; this might be through
the school nursing team working in schools or a local healthcare provider. The team
collecting the data enter it into the NCMP IT system, which is provided by NHS
England. The data may also be entered into a local child health information system.
Your local authority is responsible for sending the data to NHS England. NHS England
and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities are jointly responsible for the
data held at a national level. Your local authority is responsible for the data held
locally.
The diagram below displays what happens to your child’s data as part of the
NCMP.