Research Research Library

Research Library

Girls’ education is backed by evidence. The GSA Research Library brings together the latest reports, insights, and data on single-sex girls’ education.

~90,000

girls are educated in girls’ schools across the UK and robust research ensures their voices are heard.

Digital & AI

65% of students regularly encounter AI-generated content as concerns grow over AI-enabled sexual harm (September 2026)

Curriculum & Teaching

Girls enjoy reading significantly more than boys, but engagement declines with age (September 2026)

Attainment & Education Policy

Parental involvement in children’s education has fallen sharply since 2023 (September 2026)

Digital & AI

Delaying smartphones is linked to greater mental health improvements for girls (July 2026)

Mental Health & Well-being

Prolonged laptop use can cause heat-related skin damage in children (July 2026)

Digital & AI

Almost half of UK headteachers say their school has experienced pupil image misuse, manipulation or attempted extortion (September 2026)

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

Girls report higher rates of vaping and binge drinking, as child health continues to decline (July 2026)

Attainment & Education Policy

Girls who narrowly miss a GCSE maths pass face a particular wellbeing penalty from compulsory resits (July 2026)

Careers

UK graduate vacancies fall 45% to their lowest level in a decade (August 2026)

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The Girls’ Research Association

Digital & AI

65% of students regularly encounter AI-generated content as concerns grow over AI-enabled sexual harm (September 2026)

Everyone’s Invited research with 1,083 UK secondary school students finds that 65% see AI-generated or edited content daily or weekly, while 62% believe adults do not understand what it is like to grow up with AI. The report warns that tools including deepfakes and generative AI are intensifying existing forms of technology-facilitated gender-based violence, and calls for schools to strengthen education around consent, image-based abuse and AI-enabled sexual harm.

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Curriculum & Teaching

Girls enjoy reading significantly more than boys, but engagement declines with age (September 2026)

An Open University study of more than 4,500 pupils aged 7–14 in Jersey finds persistent gender differences in reading, with 47.9% of KS2 girls saying they love reading compared with 33.6% of boys. Girls also remain more engaged at KS3, where 14.7% say they never read for enjoyment compared with 23.1% of boys, although the research highlights a broader decline in reading enjoyment and frequency as children get older.

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Attainment & Education Policy

Parental involvement in children’s education has fallen sharply since 2023 (September 2026)

Parentkind’s National Parent Survey 2026, based on a YouGov survey of 6,053 UK parents, finds that just 59% feel involved in their child’s education, down from 80% in 2023. School-parent communication has also weakened: 65% say their school communicates well with parents, down from 71%, while only 40% feel schools act on parental views and feedback.

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Digital & AI

Delaying smartphones is linked to greater mental health improvements for girls (July 2026)

New IFS research finds that delaying smartphone ownership until age 14 is associated with improved children’s mental health, with schools where at least 20% of families signed a smartphone-free pledge seeing recorded social, emotional and mental health needs fall by around 8%. The effects were larger for girls, with psychiatric disability claims falling by around 8% compared with roughly half that reduction for boys, and were strongest among younger children whose smartphone ownership was actually being delayed.

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Mental Health & Well-being

Prolonged laptop use can cause heat-related skin damage in children (July 2026)

A BMJ case report describes a child who developed erythema ab igne (EAI), a heat-induced skin condition, after resting a laptop on his abdomen for up to eight hours a day during home schooling. The authors warn that increasing electronic device use may make EAI an under-recognised issue in children and that recognising the characteristic rash and asking about device use could prevent misdiagnosis and unnecessary medical investigations.

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Digital & AI

Almost half of UK headteachers say their school has experienced pupil image misuse, manipulation or attempted extortion (September 2026)

A UK-wide survey of 500 headteachers finds that 49% say their school has experienced an incident involving the misuse or manipulation of pupil images or an extortion attempt, amid growing concerns about AI-generated deepfakes. Despite 93% of heads being aware of the threat, fewer than half feel very confident about how to respond to a ransom demand, while only 43% say their consent processes fully address AI exploitation or deepfake risks.

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Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

Girls report higher rates of vaping and binge drinking, as child health continues to decline (July 2026)

The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health’s State of Child Health 2026 warns that child health outcomes in England have stagnated or worsened across almost every key indicator, with widening inequalities driven by deprivation, ethnicity and gender. The report highlights that girls aged 11–15 are more likely than boys to report having tried e-cigarettes (27% compared with 22%) and are more likely to report recent drunkenness (46% compared with 41%). It also warns that children’s mental health needs continue to rise while access to school-based support has declined, and calls for greater investment in children’s mental health services, emotional wellbeing support in schools, and action to reduce health inequalities.

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Attainment & Education Policy

Girls who narrowly miss a GCSE maths pass face a particular wellbeing penalty from compulsory resits (July 2026)

New CEPEO research finds that England’s compulsory GCSE English and maths resit policy is associated with lower wellbeing at age 17, even after accounting for prior wellbeing, cognitive ability and socioeconomic characteristics. Crucially, the effects differ by gender and subject: maths resits are associated with lower wellbeing among girls, particularly those who narrowly missed the original pass threshold, suggesting a significant “near-miss” effect. The researchers note that girls tend to report lower maths self-concept and greater maths anxiety, meaning compulsory resitting may reinforce existing feelings of low competence. By contrast, the negative effect of English resits is concentrated among boys.

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Careers

UK graduate vacancies fall 45% to their lowest level in a decade (August 2026)

The UK graduate job market has deteriorated sharply, with just 8,383 graduate vacancies advertised in July 2026, down 45% year-on-year and the lowest recorded by Adzuna since tracking began in 2016. The decline comes as record numbers prepare to enter university and employers face higher labour costs and increasing automation, with teaching, travel and construction among the few sectors still expanding opportunities for graduates.

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