Hume Resilience Youth Surveys

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In 2023, we worked in partnership with Resilient Youth Australia and 25 local schools to survey 7,010 students in Years 3 to 12 to obtain insights into how our young people were faring in terms their strengths, life satisfaction, hopefulness, anxiety and depression, coping style, risk and protective behaviours.

There were 7,010 students who completed the survey in 2023. Of these: 

  • 3,285 identified as female. 
  • 3,558 identified as male.  
  • 130 preferred not to say; and 
  • 37 identified as other. 

Findings: Key strengths and challenges

Primary School Grade 3 to 6 Summary

There were 2556 students surveyed in Grade 3 to Year 6 level. The data below outlines the key strengths and challenges for this cohort.

Key strengths:

  • 89% have love and support from family.
  • 90% have at least one good friend at school.
  • 89% feel safe at home.
  • 87% try hard at school.

Key challenges:

  • 57% can’t talk about the things that upset them.
  • 43% are using a device between 10pm/midnight and 6am.
  • 50% do not read for fun.
  • 42% do not feel they are given useful jobs at school.

Download a snapshot report for 3-6(PDF, 3MB).

Secondary School Year 7 to 12 Summary

There were 4,454 students surveyed in Year 7 to 12. Data below outlines the key strengths and challenges for this cohort.

Key Strengths:

  • 93% are not bullied online.  
  • 91% have at least one good friend at school. 
  • 91% feel safe at home. 
  • 86% have love and support from family.

Key Challenges:

  • 39% do not have a teacher who encourages them.
  • 35% do not feel safe at school.  
  • 33% do not have an adult in their lives that they can talk too. 
  • 24% have threatened to physically hurt someone. 

Download a snapshot report for 7-12(PDF, 3MB).


Resilient Youth Australia presentation 28 March 2023

The presentation explains how the Resilient Youth Survey measures student wellbeing and how schools will be able to use the data to support advocacy, planning and programming.

Please reach out to Melinda Xeres, Middle Years and Transitions Officer on melindax@hume.vic.gov.au if you have any questions.

What is Resilience?

Resilience is the ability to draw upon the strengths within yourself and from around you to flexibly respond to life while remaining true to yourself and creating positive relationships with others.

What is the Resilience Youth Survey?

The Resilience Survey is an online survey which collects, analyses and reports the resilience of young people at a different ages in terms of their strengths, life satisfaction, hopefulness, anxiety and depression, coping style, and risk and protective behaviours.

Specifically, the survey measures the resilience and wellbeing of your young people across 9 key domains: Understanding Self, Social Skills, Positive Relationships, Safety, Healthy Body and Healthy Mind, Learning, Positive Attitude, Positive Values, Positive Identity.

What are the benefits of doing the survey?

Given the challenges of COVID over the past couple of years, it is important to understand how young people are faring in terms of the health, wellbeing and resilience.

In particular, the survey benefits:

  • School Principals and School Leaders
  • Classroom Teachers
  • Wellbeing Staff
  • Students

Benefits include:

  • Evidence-based strategic planning – schools have access to detailed, user-friendly survey reports and school leaders can put efficient and effective data-based strategies in place to enhance their student education outcomes and school community wellbeing.
  • Detailed year – level information- schools can understand each year-level and can compare year-levels (cross-sectional) and past year cohorts (longitudinal comparisons) within the parameters of education outcomes and student resilience.
  • Build a Positive Learners Mindset – the survey data is invaluable for class teachers, enabling them to analyse and understand the key factors for student success, the resilience characteristics of their classes and enabling them better to engage their students as positive learners for improved wellbeing and academic results.
  • Student Voice – the survey is confidential and anonymous. In this way, the survey elicits honest answers from students, empowering them to share responsibility for developing and enhancing their own resilience, mental health and wellbeing.