Conference Agenda

Background: Understanding how students perceive school-based physical activity (PA) interventions is critical for sustainable implementation. This study examined the acceptability of a multicomponent school-based health promotion intervention from the students' perspectives.

Methods: This qualitative study is part of a cluster-randomised controlled trial. The intervention added three weekly hours to the school day: (a) structured PA, (b) homework support sessions with activity breaks, and (c) walks with audiobooks. Data were collected through 23 focus group discussions with a total of 142 students (72 boys, 70 girls) in grade 8 (aged 13–14) across three school years (2021/2022–2024/2025) and analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis.

Results: Four themes captured students' experiences: Enjoyment and meaning are activity-dependent, with playful, choice-based PA formats experienced as engaging, while the purpose of walking was less evident to some of the students; Social connection shapes engagement, as peer interaction enriched PA and walks but distracted from homework support; Autonomy over participation matters, with students valuing non-graded, voluntary formats over mandatory structures; and Context shapes the experience, where scheduling and environmental conditions influenced acceptability. Overall, PA was experienced most positively, homework support was valued when academically relevant, and walks with audiobook generated mixed responses.

Conclusions: Acceptability varied across components and was shaped by autonomy, social context, teacher engagement and structural fit. These findings offer guidance for practitioners and policymakers designing and scaling health-promoting interventions in school settings and informs the conditions under which multicomponent programs can be feasibly implemented.

Background and aim of the study: Adolescent physical inactivity represents a growing public health concern. Digital tools can support health-enhancing physical activity if they are co-created, privacy-preserving, and screen-time aware. LJ-MOVE »Discover Ljubljana« is a gamified mobile application designed to promote health-enhancing physical activity among secondary school students by combining movement with urban exploration and digital well-being safeguards.

Methods: Development followed an Urban Living Lab (ULL) process within the CITY-MOVE project, led by the Community Health Centre Ljubljana and co-produced with the Municipality of Ljubljana, digital wellbeing non-governmental organisation, and adolescents. A comprehensive evidence review and focus groups were conducted to derive user needs and functional requirements. These requirements were then translated into a technical blueprint through iterative co-design workshops. App’s core functions include step counting, map-based “Discover Ljubljana” missions at 16 points with QR codes and short quizzes, daily/weekly challenges, achievements, avatar customisation, and optional leaderboard features with a hybrid reward system (virtual items and locally sponsored prizes). Implementation will be piloted for 6 weeks in selected secondary schools. Evaluation focuses on feasibility and user experience, using engagement analytics and the user version of the Mobile App Rating Scale (uMARS).

Results: Co-creation prioritised features such as adolescent interaction, personalisation, visible progress, and meaningful rewards—while addressing barriers such as privacy for minors and risks of excessive competition/screen time through predefined safe messages and digital detox.

Conclusions: ULL and LJ-MOVE app provide a blueprint for collaboration among schools, municipalities, and primary health care services that is both implementable and grounded in privacy-by-design principles.

Introduction:

Despite the well-documented benefits of active travel for both individual health and the environment, prevalence rates remain moderate (47-53%). Previous reviews have predominantly focused on social and environmental determinants of active travel. This review aimed to synthesize and compare intraindividual correlates and determinants of active travel among children and adolescents.

Methods:

Following PRISMA 2020 guidelines and registered in PROSPERO (CRD42024604211), a systematic literature search was conducted across Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, EBSCOhost, and TRID. We identified associative studies examining intra-individual influences on active travel in childhood (≤18y). Methodological quality was assessed using the JBI Checklist for Cross-Sectional Studies. A hierarchical category system was developed to classify variables into four primary domains: physical, cognitive, affective, and social capabilities. Data were synthesized using multi-level random-effects meta-analysis.

Results:

From 6,866 identified records, 114 studies (published 2003-2024) were included in the meta-analysis. The majority targeted adolescents (n=69) and children (n=55), with two involving preschoolers. Results revealed substantial associations for both affective (N=43,762; r_pool=.127; p<.001) and cognitive factors (N = 33,846; r_pool = .131; p<.001) with active travel. Conversely, physical (N=2,087,765; r_pool=.035; p=.011), sociodemographic (N= 1,005,694; r_pool=.029; p=.003), and social factors (N=11,577; r_pool=.035; p=.403) showed little-to-no relationship with active travel. Despite high heterogeneity (84.4%<I²<99.6%), findings were robust against publication bias and outliers.

Conclusions:

The meta-analysis delivers a nuanced insight into the personal factors ‘driving’ active travel. These findings establish a solid foundation for identifying intervention components to effectively promote active travel among youth.

Support/Funding Source: None

BACKGROUND: Despite the widespread use of wearable devices to collect detailed information of movement behaviours (e.g., accelerometers), current physical activity guidelines and policy-relevant insights remain based on simple metrics, such as time in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Advanced approaches, such as functional data analysis (FDA), allow researchers to fully exploit these rich datasets and better characterise patterns of movement behaviours. This study illustrates how advanced analytics can help inform policymakers for the development of targeted interventions in young people. METHODS: Accelerometer data from the Belgian Food Consumption Survey 2022 (n=750; aged 3–17y; 48% female) were analysed. FDA was used to investigate how movement behaviours vary across the intensity distribution and throughout the day, considering sociodemographic and modifiable factors. RESULTS: Girls were less active than boys, particularly on weekdays. Older participants were generally less active during school hours on weekdays but more active in the evening. Marked differences were observed among adolescents on weekends afternoon/evening. Participants with overweight (including obesity) tended to be less active during school hours and during weekend evenings. Children with parents with higher education were more active after school on weekdays and throughout most of the weekends, except in the evenings. Sport club members were more active during school breaks and after school on weekdays, and throughout the day on weekends. CONCLUSION: Findings show the potential of advanced analytics to provide a nuanced understanding of the patterns of movement behaviours and to help policymakers design tailored and effective interventions. FUNDINGS: European Union's Horizon Europe research (No 101072993)

Background and Aim: Pupils with disabilities are disproportionately affected by physical inactivity, placing them at greater risk of adverse health outcomes. This first population-level study aimed to quantify PA among pupils with disabilities and compare levels with peers without disabilities across jurisdictions and school level (primary and post-primary).

Methods: Cross-sectional data were drawn from Ireland's 2022 CSPPA study, capturing self-reported disability status and days of MVPA in the past week (categorised into 4 groups; 0-2 days = reference). Complex samples analysis accounted for school clustering; logistic regression examined disability status and PA outcome associations, stratified by region and school level, controlling for age, gender, and family affluence.

Results: The final sample (n=8,889; 48% male, 49% female, 3% other); 28.5% from NI (n=2530); primary school: NI=25%, ROI=26%. Disability prevalence was ~25% (NI=26%, ROI=24%). Daily MVPA was greater among pupils without disabilities than with disabilities across all strata (NI primary OR=2.4, 1.3-4.5; NI post-primary OR=2.1, 1.4-3.0; ROI primary OR=2.7, 1.7-4.2; ROI post-primary OR=1.9, 1.5-2.5). Significant differences were also observed for cognitive difficulties (REF) vs no difficulties: NI post-primary (OR=2.3, 1.4-3.7); ROI primary (OR=2.1, 1.1-3.8); ROI post-primary (OR=1.4, 1.0-1.9); and behavioural difficulties (REF) vs no difficulties: NI primary (OR=2.8, 1.3-6.0); NI post-primary (OR=3.2, 2.0-5.1); ROI primary (OR=2.5, 1.5-4.3); ROI post-primary (OR=1.6, 1.3-2.0).

Conclusions: Marked disparities in daily PA exist between pupils with and without disabilities in both countries, highlighting the need for inclusive strategies. Findings should inform PE/PA/Sport policy and inclusion frameworks.

Funding: Sport Ireland, Sport NI, Healthy Ireland (Sport Ireland 2021 #1246).

The purpose of the project was to foster and encourage a systems approach to physical activity promotion in West Wales. Informed by the WHO Global Action Plan for Physical Activity a systems thinking training programme was developed with a regional sport and physical activity partnership to support them to embed a systems approach into ways of working across their region. The target group were stakeholders in sport and physical activity in the West Wales Sports Partnership region. This project is innovative because it acknowledges that to adopt a systems approach, stakeholders require both knowledge and confidence to implement new ways of working.

Systems thinking workshops (n=5) were designed and delivered over a 12-month period in West Wales, covering four local authority areas. Workshops were attended by stakeholders (n=93) involved in sport and physical activity from across the region. A mixed method evaluation included a pre and post workshop survey and qualitative interviews to capture learning from implementation.

Survey results demonstrate that levels of knowledge, confidence and likelihood to adopt a systems approach improved post training. Interviews provided evidence of a shifting of perspective from programming to a more people and places focus; ‘it has definitely shifted our thinking’.

Actively engaging with multisectoral organisations and leaders across a region to foster a collective, new way of working, reflects a contemporary ambitious approach. It demonstrates a commitment by a regional organisation to embrace systems thinking and foster better collaboration and seek alternative, systems-based solutions, to physical inactivity in West Wales.

Background: The built environment influences physical activity and obesity, but cultural and infrastructural contexts may shape how women utilize these environments. This research compared perceptions of the built environment and their associations with physical activity and body mass index (BMI) among women in Hungary and Jordan. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted 6 months long with 800 adult women, (Hungary n=401, Jordan n=399) aged 18–45 years. Data were collected using the Physical Activity Neighborhood Environment Survey (PANES), International Physical Activity Questionnaire–Short Form (IPAQ-SF), and self-reported anthropometrics. Non-parametric tests analyzed variations in built environment subthemes among physical activity and BMI classifications. Results: Hungarian participants indicated notably elevated scores for amenable environments, walkability/cyclability, traffic safety, and the overall built environment, whereas Jordanian women felt a stronger sense of safety from crime. Women engaged in moderate-to-high physical activity and those with a normal BMI indicated more supportive surroundings compared to their peers who are less active or overweight/obese. Owning a car was accompanied to reduced physical activity, especially in Jordan (92% ownership compared to 61% in Hungary). Conclusion: Supportive environment with features such as accessible parks, safe walking infrastructure, and active transportation systems, were associated with higher physical activity and optimal BMI among female adults. Nonetheless, dependency on cars and restricted green areas, especially in Amman, could inhibit these advantages. Urban planning and public health initiatives must incorporate cultural and infrastructural elements to encourage women’s active living.