The everyday school experiences of children and young people with Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Rice, J and Wilkinson, C ORCID: 0000-0002-9313-6585 (2025) The everyday school experiences of children and young people with Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Education, 30 (3). ISSN 0300-4279

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Abstract

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) is a chronic condition increasingly affecting children and young people. While research often focuses on the impact of IBD on attendance and attainment, little is known about pupils’ everyday school experiences of IBD in the UK. This qualitative study explored how seven pupils with IBD navigate school life. Semi-structured online interviews were thematically analysed, revealing daily negotiations around medication, diet, toilet access, hospital appointments, and physical education. Fatigue, brain fog, and invisible symptoms compounded challenges, and were often misunderstood by teachers, wider school staff and peers. Supportive measures were inconsistently applied, and social relationships offered both protection and stigma. Findings highlight the need for consistent accommodations, teacher training, and peer education.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Children; chronic illness; Iinflammatory Bowel Disease; school; qualitative; 3901 Curriculum and Pedagogy; 39 Education; Crohn's Disease; Autoimmune Disease; Digestive Diseases; Inflammatory Bowel Disease; 7.1 Individual care needs; 4 Quality Education; 1301 Education Systems; 1302 Curriculum and Pedagogy; 3903 Education systems
Subjects:	L Education > L Education (General) R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine > RA0421 Public health. Hygiene. Preventive Medicine R Medicine > RJ Pediatrics > RJ101 Child Health. Child health services
Divisions:	Education
Publisher:	Informa UK Limited
Date of acceptance:	8 December 2025
Date of first compliant Open Access:	21 September 2026
Date Deposited:	21 Sep 2026 14:25
Last Modified:	21 Sep 2026 14:25
DOI or ID number:	10.1080/03004279.2025.2604110
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/29490

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