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1. Main facts and figures
- in 2017/18, an estimated 22.4% of children aged 4 to 5 in England were overweight, a similar percentage to 2016/17 (22.6%)
- in 2017/18, the percentage of children aged 10 to 11 who were overweight was 34.3%, a similar percentage to 2016/17 (34.2%)
- in the 4 to 5 age group, almost a third (30.8%) of Black African children were overweight in 2017/18, the highest proportion of any ethnic group
- in the 10 to 11 age group, 46% of Black African children were overweight, the highest proportion of any ethnic group
2. Things you need to know
What the data measures
The data measures the percentage of children in state-funded mainstream primary schools who are overweight or obese.
Estimates are shown for 2 school years:
- reception year (when children are usually 4 to 5 years old)
- year 6 (when children are usually 10 to 11 years old)
Children are defined as overweight or obese based on their body mass index (BMI), which is measured using their weight, height, age and sex.
Percentages are rounded to 1 decimal point.
Not included in the data
The data does not include children in independent schools and special schools.
The ethnic groups used in the data
Estimates are shown for the 16 ethnic groups used in the 2001 Census.
Methodology
Read the detailed methodology document for the data on this page.
5% of children did not take part in the National Child Measurement Programme in the school year ending in July 2018.
In the data file
See Download the data for confidence intervals for each ethnic group. Find out how we use confidence intervals to determine how reliable estimates are.
3. By ethnicity
| 2014/15 | 2015/16 | 2016/17 | 2017/18 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | 2014/15 4 to 5 year olds (%) | 2014/15 10 to 11 year olds (%) | 2015/16 4 to 5 year olds (%) | 2015/16 10 to 11 year olds (%) | 2016/17 4 to 5 year olds (%) | 2016/17 10 to 11 year olds (%) | 2017/18 4 to 5 year olds (%) | 2017/18 10 to 11 year olds (%) |
| All | 21.9 | 33.2 | 22.1 | 34.2 | 22.6 | 34.2 | 22.4 | 34.3 |
| Asian | ||||||||
| Bangladeshi | 21.6 | 43.0 | 20.3 | 42.7 | 21.4 | 44.3 | 20.7 | 43.9 |
| Indian | 14.9 | 35.1 | 14.5 | 36.3 | 14.9 | 36.7 | 13.8 | 36.5 |
| Pakistani | 19.8 | 39.1 | 19.2 | 40.6 | 20.2 | 40.6 | 20.4 | 40.2 |
| Asian other | 19.4 | 38.6 | 19.6 | 38.2 | 19.3 | 40.8 | 19.7 | 38.8 |
| Black | ||||||||
| Black African | 30.8 | 44.8 | 31.2 | 45.9 | 31.1 | 46.2 | 30.8 | 46.0 |
| Black Caribbean | 24.7 | 43.1 | 25.2 | 45.3 | 25.3 | 45.4 | 25.2 | 44.2 |
| Black other | 28.7 | 43.4 | 28.4 | 41.6 | 27.9 | 43.9 | 28.1 | 43.0 |
| Mixed | ||||||||
| Mixed White/Asian | 15.6 | 29.4 | 16.2 | 30.1 | 15.7 | 29.6 | 15.5 | 29.7 |
| Mixed White/Black African | 28.6 | 39.6 | 26.7 | 40.3 | 28.3 | 39.6 | 27.7 | 41.5 |
| Mixed White/Black Caribbean | 25.5 | 39.5 | 24.9 | 39.4 | 25.9 | 40.1 | 25.4 | 40.3 |
| Mixed other | 22.1 | 35.2 | 22.0 | 36.7 | 21.7 | 34.2 | 20.5 | 35.1 |
| White | ||||||||
| White British | 22.1 | 31.3 | 22.4 | 31.9 | 22.9 | 31.6 | 22.7 | 31.9 |
| White Irish | 23.8 | 31.8 | 24.7 | 32.8 | 26.6 | 33.3 | 23.7 | 31.7 |
| White other | 20.7 | 35.1 | 20.4 | 36.2 | 20.9 | 36.0 | 20.7 | 35.8 |
| Other including Chinese | ||||||||
| Chinese | 17.3 | 29.8 | 17.1 | 30.2 | 15.8 | 33.9 | 18.3 | 30.1 |
| Any other | 23.2 | 39.1 | 23.8 | 40.6 | 22.9 | 40.7 | 23.5 | 39.6 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity’ (CSV)
Summary of Overweight children By ethnicity Summary
- in 2017/18, on average 22.4% of children in England aged 4 to 5 years, and 34.3% of those aged 10 to 11 years, were overweight
- between 2014/15 and 2017/18, the percentage of children aged 4 to 5 who were overweight increased from 21.9% to 22.4%
- in the same period, the percentage of children aged 10 to 11 who were overweight increased from 33.2% to 34.3%
- the percentage of White British children aged 4 to 5 who were overweight increased from 22.1% in 2014/15 to 22.7% in 2017/18
- the percentage of overweight children aged 4 to 5 decreased in 2 ethnic groups between 2014/15 and 2017/18: Any other mixed background (from 22.1% to 20.5%) and Indian (from 14.9% to 13.8%)
- in the 10-11 year old group, the percentage of White British children who were overweight increased from 31.3% in 2014/15 to 31.9% in 2017/18 - for changes shown in all other ethnic groups, the number of children measured was too small to draw firm conclusions
- in both age groups, Black African children were the most likely to be overweight in 2017/18, with almost a third (30.8%) of those in the 4 to 5 age group overweight, and 46% of those in the 10 to 11 age group overweight
- in every ethnic group, a higher percentage of children aged 10 to 11 were overweight compared with children aged 4 to 5
4. Data sources
Source
Public Health Outcomes Framework - NCMP
Type of data
Survey data
Type of statistic
Official statistics
Publisher
Public Health England
Publication frequency
Yearly
Purpose of data source
The National Child Measurement Programme (NCMP) measures the height and weight of children in reception class (aged 4 to 5 years) and year 6 (aged 10 to 11 years) to assess overweight and obesity levels in children within primary schools. This data can be used at a national level to support local public health initiatives and inform the local planning and delivery of services for children.
Secondary source
National Child Measurement Programme
Type of data
Administrative data
Type of statistic
Official statistics
Publisher
NHS England
Publication frequency
Yearly
Purpose of data source
The National Child Measurement Programme (NCMP) measures the height and weight of children in reception class (aged 4 to 5) and year 6 (aged 10 to 11), to assess overweight and obesity levels in children within primary schools.
5. Download the data
This file contains the following: ethnicity, year, age group, value, numerator, denominator and confidence intervals