Schools go smartphone-free to address online harms

Schools go smartphone-free

“We had a ‘phone switched off and in your bag’ policy for years. It was completely ineffective,” says Damien McBeath, head teacher at John Wallis Academy, which launched its own smartphone-free policy in January, shortly before the formation of SFC. “Since Covid, we have seen a real decline in socially acceptable behaviour – lots of TikTok trends, pupils bundling into toilet cubicles, incidents of online predators – sapping pupils’ attention.”

In his 25 years as a head teacher, McBeath adds smartphones have been “a tidal wave of issues and disruption”.

In October 2024, SFC also launched a formal Smartphone Free Schools campaign, which has already inspired a number of other schools to attempt the policy. SFC says the concerns McBeath has are echoed by other teachers, who have reached out to the group for guidance and support.

“We have been inundated with stories from teachers grappling with the effects of smartphones, from distraction in lessons to cyber bullying and sharing of inappropriate content. This is an urgent situation that needs immediate government support,” says Fernyhough.

Will Orr-Ewing, schools engagement lead for the Smartphone Free Schools campaign, adds: “The average child gets hundreds of notifications on their phone throughout the school day – a constant call on their attention, which leads them to check their phone whenever they are out of a teacher’s eyeline, especially in bathrooms and breaktimes.

The average child gets hundreds of notifications on their phone throughout the school day – a constant call on their attention

“That is why we recommend that schools devise ways to take the phone off the child’s person for the full seven hours of the school day – either by use of pouches or lockers, or by prohibiting children from bringing in a smartphone at all, and recommending brick phones for travel instead.”

Since adopting the smartphone-free policy, John Wallis Academy claims it has seen immense benefits both for pupils and staff, including a 40% reduction in the number of detentions, an 80% reduction in the rate of in-school truancy, and a reduction in staff turnover from 30% to 17%.

Campaigners and teachers believe broader support from the government could lead to nationwide change. Currently, just 11% of UK schools have effective smartphone restrictions in place. In an open letter to the Department for Education in October, head teachers, governing bodies and local councils urged the government to commit funding to support schools that aim to go smartphone-free.

A new Online Safety Act needed?

Aside from parents and teachers, the proposed implementation of the UK’s Online Safety Act has also been met with discontent from civil society groups, which have argued during the act’s ongoing consultation that there is a need for tougher laws around online safety.

Digital safety charity 5Rights, for example, claims: “Ofcom’s proposals as currently drafted are light-touch and incomplete, and fail to meet the needs of children and the expectations of parliamentarians, civil society, parents and teachers.”

Digital secretary Peter Kyle similarly told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg that he was going to “close loopholes” in the Conservative government-led Online Safety Act, adding that the tech sector is the “only sector … that can release products into society without proving they’re safe before release”.

Support for more stringent legislation is also echoed by the public. Recent polling from the Molly Rose Foundation, for example, revealed overwhelming public and parental support for a new Online Safety Act, with 84% of parents and 80% of adults backing a new act to strengthen online safety measures.

Labour MP Josh MacAlister has also recently launched a Private Members Bill, which could potentially lead to providing statutory guidance on smartphone use in schools, and increasing the age of internet adulthood from 13 to 16. The MP – and former teacher – was vocal on the importance of this policy for disadvantaged children in particular.

The bill also aims to strengthen regulator Ofcom’s powers so that it can enforce a code of conduct to tackle the addictive-by-design nature of social media platforms such as Instagram and TikTok.

Concerns around addictive design models were echoed in a joint agreement on online safety from the UK and US governments, stating: “Both countries acknowledge that risk-based and safety, privacy and inclusivity-by-design approaches throughout design, development and deployment are fundamental to children’s safety and well-being online, alongside increased transparency and accountability from online platforms.”