Feeling that you belong at school

There is a great difference between being at school and feeling that you belong at school. You can sit in the same class every day and still feel like an outsider. You can have friends and still feel that you do not quite fit in.

You can be part of the school on paper – without feeling part of the community.

What does research say about the sense of belonging at school?

School connectedness and a sense of belonging have been shown to be important parts of the school climate. Research indicates that students who feel a stronger sense of belonging to their school also tend to have better mental wellbeing.

A systematic review of 48 studies found that belonging and connectedness to school were associated with fewer wellbeing problems and fewer risk behaviours.

A later systematic review of 86 studies goes further into what that sense of belonging is itself shaped by – among other things relationships, the school environment and students' opportunities to take part.

Belonging is built in everyday life

This matters because belonging is rarely created through a single activity.

It is created in everyday life.

When a teacher remembers what you said last week.

When someone asks whether you want to join in.

When your ideas are actually taken seriously.

When it is acceptable to be different.

When adults show that they expect you to succeed.

And when you feel you have a place in the group even on the days when things are not going well.

It also means that work on belonging is not only about students who already feel left out. It is about creating a school where as many students as possible have the repeated experience of mattering to others and mattering in the setting.

There is an important difference between "You may join in" and "You are one of us."

The first is about permission.

The second is about belonging.

And perhaps that is precisely why school climate matters so much for mental health. As human beings we need more than knowledge and safety. We also need to feel that we belong.

Research cannot say that a sense of belonging alone protects a student from mental ill health. But the body of evidence indicates that school connectedness is an important protective factor, and that the school's relational environment matters for students' wellbeing.

"Do you feel that you belong here?"

It is one of the most important questions a school can ask a student.

What does research say about the sense of belonging at school?​

Belonging is built in everyday life​

Further reading​

What does research say about the sense of belonging at school?

Belonging is built in everyday life

Further reading