The European Network of Health Promoting Schools works towards the following 15 features:

<sub>- Accepts that the health of the school community will be promoted by a combination of health education and all the other actions which a school takes to protect and improve the health of those within it.
- Demonstrates a concern for the well-being of all staff as well as pupils.
- Ensures that pupils and all staff are consciously involved in the health promoting process.
- Ensures that health education has a specific time allocation in the formal curriculum through personal and social education programmes and through main subject specialisms.
- Ensures that consideration for health permeates the 'hidden curriculum'. This includes among other things, the overt promotion of the importance of caring and respectful relationships, the physical environment and facilities of the school.
- Emphasises real partnership between the school, the home and the community.
- Ensures that the health and caring services play a significant and valued part in providing health and immunisation services as do psychological and social work services and other agencies concerned with the health of all pupils, their families and all of the staff.
- Makes time to consider and publish its values and how these values will be promoted and acted upon in the total life of the school
- Ensures that the school gives equal importance to the processes and the experiences of learnings as well as the content.
- Accepts as a basic principle the need for the school to promote the self-esteem of pupils, parents, and staff in all its interactions.
- Provides a choice of stimulating opportunities for pupils so that they can experience involvement and success in a range of absorbing and satisfying learning and leisure activities.
- Makes clear links between the health education programmes of the classroom and the school health services.
- Ensures that staff and parents are given opportunities to participate in health education/health promotion activities as a part of a programme of staff development and parent meetings.
- Ensures that signs of stress in pupils and staff are taken seriously and active steps are taken to provide support, reduce stresses and increase the coping strategies of pupils and staff.
- Recognises that the school meals service and other food-providing services have an important role in promoting the health of the members of the school community.</sub>