Ministers in England confirm plan to ban school mobiles

Teaching unions note that the guidance includes practices already in use, as most schools already have relevant policies

Ministers in England have confirmed their plans to ban mobile phone use in schools, issuing guidance for headteachers. Some unions remarked that this guidance included practices already in place.

Nonetheless, one headteacher welcomed the Department for Education’s plan, noting that it would give schools the confidence to implement a change that would benefit students, even though it might face resistance from parents.

The guidance is non-statutory and provides schools with several options to enforce the ban, including requiring students to leave their phones at home, handing them in upon arrival, storing them in inaccessible lockers, or allowing students to keep them as long as they are not used or audible.

The widespread use of smartphones in schools—Ofcom data shows that 97% of children have one by the age of 12—has raised concerns not only about distraction but also about the potential for bullying or other social pressures.

There are broader concerns about children’s phone usage and their access to harmful content. Esther Ghey, mother of the murdered teenager Brianna Ghey, has urged tech companies to take more responsibility and called for restricting under-16s from accessing social media.

Ghey has also advocated for phone manufacturers to create specific products for under-16s that block access to harmful content, especially after it was revealed that the individuals who killed her daughter had viewed violent material prior to the murder.

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan stated, “Schools are environments for learning, and mobile phones are, at the very least, a disruptive presence in the classroom. We are equipping our dedicated teachers with the means to address this issue, aiming to enhance behavior and enable them to focus on their core mission—teaching.”

The 13-page guidance from the Department for Education (DfE) states that schools should clearly communicate the phone policy to students, including providing reasons for the ban. It also emphasizes that teachers should refrain from using phones in schools unless necessary for work purposes.

The guidance also stresses the importance of parental involvement in implementing the ban, recommending that parents should contact students through the school office rather than directly.

In a foreword to the guidance, Keegan wrote that it aimed to “achieve clarity and consistency in practice, support headteachers and leaders, and empower staff to act.” She argued that there was currently a wide variation in how schools regulated phone usage.

Geoff Barton, the general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, expressed concern about the amount of time some children spend on phones. However, he described the new guidance as “a policy for a problem that doesn’t exist.”

He stated, “This compulsive use of these devices is not occurring in schools, where robust policies are already in place, but rather outside of school. Most schools already prohibit mobile phone use during the school day or permit it only in specific circumstances.”

Daniel Kebede, the general secretary of the National Education Union, commented, “Since most schools already have policies addressing mobile phone issues, this guidance is unlikely to have much impact and could divert attention from the numerous challenges in education.”

On the other hand, Vic Goddard, the executive principal of two schools in Essex, including Passmores Academy in Harlow, featured in Channel 4’s “Educating Essex” series, stated that Passmores had recently implemented a complete phone ban. He described this move as transformative, with a positive response from both parents and students.

“We had very few parental issues, contrary to our expectations,” he said. “The students felt that the social pressure had been lifted from them. Undoubtedly, this guidance will benefit schools. However, the challenge we face is that anything that might lead to conflict with parents will always be difficult.

“We are dealing with a generation of parents who did not grow up with phones. We believed that giving children a phone would keep them safe, but in reality, it exposed them to a world of online harm and pressure.”

Tom Bennett, an adviser to the Department for Education (DfE) on school behavior, remarked, “While mobile phones are widespread, we are increasingly aware of the harm they can cause to a child’s social and educational development.”