Green schoolyards: an evidence-based co-creation project with the City of Stockholm with schoolyard greening reconstructions to increase physical activity and wellbeing in school children

This is a co-creation project between the City of Stockholm, Cancerfonden, Arwidssonstiftelsen and Karolinska Institutet with the aim to establish an evidence-based approach for schoolyard reconstruction and investigate how schoolyard reconstructions influences physical activity levels and wellbeing among school children.The following research questions will be addressed:What is the causal effect of schoolyard reconstruction on the physical activity, wellbeing and sick leave of school children?What components in the schoolyard reconstruction interventions are associated with school children’s changes (if any) in physical activity, wellbeing and sick leave?The project will be designed as a non-randomized intervention with two conditions: intervention schools (schoolyard reconstruction) and control schools (no schoolyard reconstruction).

Units of observation will be 2ndand 5th grade children (in total 3,600 children.The schoolyard reconstruction intervention components will all include greening but vary by the school (e.g., increase schoolyard size etc.), reflecting the local needs.

In total, five schoolyard reconstructions per year in Stockholm public schools, will be included in the project during the years 2022-2025 (in total 20 schools).This project has the potential to improve physical activity and markers of health in children, across all socioeconomic groups, and perhaps population health in the long run, by physical activity promoting schoolyard reconstructions.