FOI/202500452605 · FOI · not held
Health and Wellbeing Census sexual experience questions: FOI release
Information requested
Information on the source of the Health and Wellbeing Census sexual experience question and response options.
Response
I enclose a copy of some of the information you requested in the format you asked for.
Some of the information you have requested is publicly available from existing websites. Under section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you. If, however, you do not have internet access to obtain this information from the website(s) listed, then please contact me again and I will send you a paper copy.
While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, I hereby provide you with formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have some of the information you have requested. The reasons why we do not have the information are explained in the response.
Your questions, and our response, are set out below.
Question/ sub question/ answer option a. Previous survey or surveys the question/ answer option sourced from, exact wording used in that/those survey/s and links to information about that/those survey/s b.Youngest age AND year group stage of children/young people completing each of the source surveys c.For each source survey, were children/ young people responding fully anonymous? If not, please explain the extent to which they could be directly or indirectly identifiable, whether intentionally, or unintentionally in event of data breach. d. If exact wording didn’t come from previous surveys, please confirm if the HWBC content team created or edited the wording, or where the wording came from, and provide an annex with all correspondence, meeting notes and approvals relating to the creation of the wording 1.People have varying degrees of sexual experience. How much, if any, sexual experience have you had? a. This question is sourced from the Growing Up In Scotland (GUS) Sweep 10 – 2019/20 young person questionnaire and Northern Ireland Statistic’s and Research Agency (NISRA) Young Persons’ Behaviour and Attitudes Survey (YPBAS) Questionnaire Version B. Section 25(1) applies as information on each survey and question wording is otherwise already accessible here: Growing Up in Scotland | About GUS Growing Up in Scotland Sweep10 Face-to-face Questionnaires.pdf Young Persons’ Behaviour & Attitudes Survey | Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency Previous YPBAS Questionnaires | Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency b. Section 25(1) applies as information on the age of those who took part in Sweep 10 of GUS is otherwise already accessible here: Life at age 14: initial findings from the Growing Up in Scotland study - gov.scot. Sweep 10 of GUS was intended to be answered in S3, but a minority of participants were in S2, S4 or S5 at the time of interview. Section 25(1) applies as information with regards which year groups are asked what questions in YPBAS can be seen in published materials. You may also wish to contact NISRA who may be able to help you. c. Participation in GUS is confidential and the results are not made available to anyone in a form which identifies individual young people. Scottish Government does not hold any identifying details about GUS participants and receives anonymised datasets of their survey responses only. GUS datasets are not available to the general public and can only be accessed by researchers who submit an application to the UK Data Service. Before release, GUS datasets undergo disclosure checks, to ensure that an individual cannot be identified from their survey responses. As the study is longitudinal, the research contractor (who is the data processor) must retain contact details so that participants can be invited to future waves of the study. Names and addresses of participants are not stored together with the data obtained. A data breach would therefore need to access both datasets and link them together for survey responses to be identifiable. The research contractor stores data on secure servers which are compliant with the relevant ISO standards and uses encrypted devices to the FIPS 140-2 standard, minimising the possibility of a breach. If welfare concerns are identified, the research contractor is permitted to share information if that is necessary in order to safeguard the young person. This is common ethical practice when researching children. There has only ever been one incidence of this on GUS, where limited data was provided to the police investigating the death of a child. s.17(1) no recorded information is held for YPBAS as the Scottish Government is not responsible for the survey. However, you may wish to contact NISRA who may be able to help you. d. s.17(1) no recorded information is held as exact wording came from the surveys stated. 2. Small amount (e.g. kissing, some intimate touching on top of clothes)? a. See the response to 1a. b. See the response to 1b. c. See the response to 1c. d. See the response to 1d. 3. Some experiences but no sexual intercourse (e.g. touching intimately underneath clothes or without clothes on)? a. See the response to 1a. b. See the response to 1b. c. See the response to 1c. d. See the response to 1d. 4. More experiences, including oral sex? a. See the response to 1a. b. See the response to 1b. c. See the response to 1c. d. s.17(1) no recorded information is held. The Health and Wellbeing Questionnaire Content Group, chaired by NHS Health Scotland (now Public Health Scotland), created and agreed a set of core ageappropriate questionnaires. Notes and minutes of the Content Group were either not taken or have not been stored on local systems. However, you may wish to contact Public Health Scotland who may be able to help you. Wording of the response option included in the Health and Wellbeing Census was updated to reflect the language used in the Relationships, Sexual Health and Parenting (RSHP) tool. Alongside the age and stage appropriate learning activities available in the tool, information about sexual activity language is in FAQ question 19. 5. Vaginal or anal sex? a. See the response to 1a. In addition, the wording of this response option draws on Perth and Kinross Evidence2Success (E2S) 2013 wellbeing survey. Section 25(1) applies as information on the E2S survey and question wording is otherwise already accessible here: PERTH AND KINROSS COUNCIL Paper Questionnaire_14 plus years old_School Wellbeing Survey_P&K.docx b. See the response to 1b. Section 25(1) applies as information with regards which age groups are asked what questions in the E2S survey can be seen in published materials. However, you may wish to contact Perth and Kinross who may be able to help you. c. See the response to 1c. s.17(1) no recorded information is held for the Perth and Kinross Evidence2Success (E2S) 2013 wellbeing survey as the Scottish Government is not responsible for the survey. However, you may wish to contact Perth and Kinross who may be able to help you. d. s.17(1) no recorded information is held. The Health and Wellbeing Questionnaire Content Group, chaired by NHS Health Scotland (now Public Health Scotland), created and agreed a set of core ageappropriate questionnaires. Notes and minutes of the Content Group were either not taken or have not been stored on local systems. However, you may wish to contact Public Health Scotland who may be able to help you. Wording of the response option included in the Health and Wellbeing Census was updated to reflect the language used in the Relationships, Sexual Health and Parenting (RSHP) tool. Alongside the age and stage appropriate learning activities available in the tool, information about sexual activity language is in FAQ question 19.
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Contact Please quote the FOI reference Central Correspondence Unit Email: contactus@gov.scot Phone: 0300 244 4000 The Scottish Government St Andrew's House Regent Road Edinburgh EH1 3DG
Detected exemption language
Under section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you. While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, I hereby provide you with formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have some of the information you have requested. Section 25(1) applies as information on each survey and question wording is otherwise already accessible here: Growing Up in Scotland | About GUS Growing Up in Scotland Sweep10 Face-to-face Questionnaires.pdf Young Persons’ Behaviour & Attitudes Survey | Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency Previous YPBAS Questionnaires | Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency b. Section 25(1) applies as information on the age of those who took part in Sweep 10 of GUS is otherwise already accessible here: Life at age 14: initial findings from the Growing Up in Scotland study - gov.scot. Section 25(1) applies as information with regards which year groups are asked what questions in YPBAS can be seen in published materials.
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