Physical activity of children in Ireland 2018

The National Physical Activity Plan states that all children should achieve at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) daily to meet the National Physical Activity Guidelines. The gender distribution shown indicates a clear dichotomy between the share of male and female students meeting the National Physical Activity Guidelines with 23 percent of male primary school children meeting the guidelines, compared to only 13 percent of female primary school children. This distribution is also evident with the post-primary school respondents with 3 percent of male students meeting the guidelines, compared to only 13 percent of female students.

Share of children meeting the physical activity guidelines in Ireland in 2018, by gender and stage of education

Gender	Male	Female
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Release date

November 2019

More information

Region

Ireland, United Kingdom (Northern Ireland)

Survey time period

2018

Number of respondents

6,651 respondents

Age group

10-18 years

Supplementary notes

The Children’s Sport Participation and Physical Activity Study 2018 (CSPPA 2018) was a follow up to CSPPA 2010 looking at participation in sport, physical activity and Physical Education among children aged 10 to 18 on the island of Ireland. CSPPA 2018 was the first study to look at these issues in an all-island context.

For the Republic of Ireland, the 114 schools which participated in 2010 and were eligible were invited to participate. 74 of these agreed to take part, with 12 new schools being included for a total of 86 schools. This allowed 4,697 primary and post primary students to provide input. In Northern Ireland 29 schools and 1,954 primary and post primary students were involved. In total, 6,651 children aged 10 – 18 took part in the study. In addition, a small number of school administrators were interviewed about participation in sport in schools, school facilities and resources available for sport.

Physical activity is defined within the National Physical Activity Plan as ‘any bodily movement produced by the skeletal muscle which causes energy expenditure greater than at rest and which is health enhancing’.

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