Analysis shows that before the pandemic, in 2019, around 42% of year 9 students – both boys and girls – “strongly agreed” that they felt safe at school. However, by 2023, this had fallen to 26% – just 1 in 4.
However, the decline is particularly pronounced for teenage girls – while boys’ feelings of safety in school fell by 10% between 2019 and 2023, girls’ feelings of safety have fallen by 22%.
The findings are based on an analysis of data from the annual international TIMSS research and while the decline in feelings of safety has been reflected in other countries in the TIMSS data, the fall is more pronounced in England (the average country saw a 13% decline compared to England’s 16%).
Figure 1: The percentage of year 9 pupils in England strongly agreeing that they feel very safe at school (source: Jerrim & Kaye, 2025)
The analysis also reveals that between year 5 and year 9 there is a 31% decline in the proportion of pupils who say they feel safe at school – the third worst across the participating countries (behind only Cyprus and Portugal). This 31% figure compares poorly to the average TIMSS country which saw a 20% decline.
Furthermore, while year 5 girls reported feeling slightly safer at school than boys, by the time they reach year 9 boys are much more likely to say they feel safe at school compared to their female peers.
The analysis has been published in a research paper by John Jerrim and Neil Kaye from the Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities at University College London (Jerrim & Kaye, 2025).
As well as students’ feelings of safety, the paper highlights a sharp decline in their overall emotional engagement with school since Covid-19.
It acknowledges previous research showing that students’ emotional engagement at school usually falls at key points – not least between years 7 and 8 but nonetheless warns that things have worsened post-Covid.
The paper states: “Our results have shown how there has been a sharp decline in children’s emotional engagement with school since the pandemic. This has particularly impacted pupils now in secondary school, with certain areas (e.g. whether young people feel safe and their sense of pride at school) seeing especially large declines.
“Indeed, in these specific areas, secondary pupils in England appear to have been affected more than their peers in other countries. Some clear differences across demographic groups have also emerged, with greater post-pandemic declines in secondary pupils’ emotional engagement occurring among girls than boys.”
The paper does not suggest why we have seen this fall in emotional engagement and feelings of safety – emphasising that limitations in the data mean this is a snapshot of “a single point in time”.
However, the paper concludes: “The declines in pupils’ emotional engagement with school documented in this paper are likely to be linked to the rising levels of school absences seen in many countries across the world. Indeed, if pupils don’t like being in school, don’t feel safe in their environment and have poor relationships with others (peers and teachers) they will lack the motivation needed to attend.
“Interventions are thus likely required to help boost secondary pupils’ emotional engagement with their school. This is particularly needed among girls, focused on specific issues such as supporting their sense of safety while at school and the strength of the relationships they have with others.
“Indeed, previous research has suggested that successful interventions that have promoted pupils’ sense of belonging at school ‘promoted positive interactions between students and between school staff and students’. Such support is likely to need to be maintained throughout at least year 7 and 8, and not just focused on the immediate transition into secondary school.
“Unless more is done now to support pupils’ emotional engagement with school, absence rates may well remain stubbornly high, with teenagers’ academic and personal development suffring as a result.”
In an article published by FFT Education Datalab discussing the findings, Professor Jerrim adds: “These results paint a stark picture. England now has a real problem with the number of young people who don’t feel safe at school. This has clearly worsened since the pandemic and is now a major challenge likely impacting the wellbeing and educational outcomes of teenage girls.
“This is something that requires immediate attention. A minimum expectation most parents have is for their child to feel safe while they are in the school grounds. Unfortunately, for many, this is no longer the case.”
- Jerrim: The rise of teenage girls feeling unsafe at school, FFt Education Datalab, 2025: https://ffteducationdatalab.org.uk/2025/04/the-rise-of-teenage-girls-feeling-unsafe-at-school/
- Jerrim & Kaye: The decline in pupils’ emotional engagment with school: How does England compare to other countries? (CEPEO Working Paper 25-03), UCL Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities, 2025: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ucl:cepeow:25-03