Evelina London’s sleep medicine experts help develop lesson plans on sleep

Surprisingly, over half of young people get less than 8.5 hours of sleep on a school night, impacting their mental health and the ability to get up for school and learn effectively.

To help schools combat sleep-related issues, experts at Evelina London Children’s Hospital's sleep medicine service have been working in partnership with the PSHE Association to produce new 'sleep factor' lesson packs for key stage 5/post-16 students and update the existing lesson packs for key stage 1 to 4.

The service is one of the few comprehensive children's sleep centres in the UK, and its specialists had helped develop the PHSE Association’s original sleep lesson packs for key stages 1 to 4 in 2019.

The introduction of resources for key stage 5/post 16 students mean there are now evidence-based, age-appropriate sleep lesson packs available for every stage of the curriculum. Schools can use the lesson plans, teacher guidance slides and accompanying resources to help young people understand their own sleep needs and learn about the importance of enough good quality sleep for general good health.

Not only can a lack of sleep affect weight, mood and ability to learn; ongoing research highlights quality sleep is crucial for good mental health. Research also suggests that young people are spending less time outdoors and being active, and more time on screens, all of which can impact sleep quality.

Dr Tom Maycock, a paediatric registrar who was part of the expert team at Evelina London that worked on the KS5/post-16 materials, said:

"The lesson materials for older students aim to help prepare young people for their transition to the world of work and university, by focusing on how invaluable sleep is for meeting their professional and academic goals at a pivotal time in their lives when they are exercising more independence."

Each year, Evelina London’s sleep medicine service cares for more than 3,000 children and young people with a wide variety of sleep problems, from newborns to adolescents. The team provide clinical evaluation, diagnosis and management of children with all forms of sleep disorders including narcolepsy and sleep apnoea. The service also supports sleep difficulties in children with neurodevelopmental difference such as autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

You can find general information and advice for teenagers about sleep including top tips for getting a good night’s sleep on the teen sleep page on the Evelina London website.