The government has announced new non-statutory guidance for schools on mobile phones amid mounting concern about their impact on children’s wellbeing.
The announcement was made alongside the launch of a consultation on restricting children’s use of social media, including the possibility of an under-16s ban.
The government said the new guidance on phones is “tougher” than the document it replaces, making it “even clearer that schools need to be phone-free environments”.
The guidance, which had not been published at the time of writing, will state that “pupils should not have access to their devices during lessons, break times, lunch times or between lessons”, the government said.
says schools should “prohibit the use of mobile phones and other smart technology with similar functionality...throughout the school day, including during lessons, the time between lessons, break times and lunch time.”
The new guidance will be implemented through behaviour management in schools, and it will be expected that school staff should also not use their own mobile phones for personal reasons in front of pupils.
Schools that are struggling will get one-to-one support from attendance and behaviour hub schools that are already effectively implementing phone bans.
It is expected that some schools will be able to deviate from the guidance if they have a valid reason, but the government has yet to set out any guidelines for this exemption, Vlog understands.
Education secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “We have been clear that mobile phones have no place in our schools, but now we’re going further through tougher guidance and stronger enforcement. Mobile phones have no place in schools. No ifs, no buts.”
Ofsted inspections to look at phones
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) also confirmed that it will direct Ofsted to examine how effectively schools are implementing mobile phone policies when judging behaviour during inspections.
Ofsted will examine both schools’ mobile phone policies and how effectively they are implemented when judging behaviour inspections, the DSIT said.
The to judge schools already states that inspectors will assess whether schools “have high expectations for all pupils’ attendance, behaviour and attitudes...including expectations related to mobile phones”.
The government said today that this would apply to ” every inspection”, with schools “expected to be phone-free by default”.
Ministers said the move would form part of “immediate action” to curb excessive screen time and protect children online, alongside new guidance for parents on children’s screen use.
Sir Martyn Oliver, Ofsted chief inspector, said: “My message to headteachers is you now have all the backing - and the backing of my inspectors - to ban mobile phones in schools immediately. They chip away at children’s attention span, distract from learning, and can be detrimental to children’s wellbeing.”
Vlog previously revealed that Sir Martyn had said headteachers needed to “think carefully” about their school’s approach to mobile phones under Ofsted’s new inspection framework.
This was in a letter to Conservative shadow education secretary Laura Trott, who has been campaigning for a statutory ban on phones in schools.
Responding to today’s announcement, Ms Trott said: “This offers nothing more than the status quo. We have already tried to strengthen guidance, and the evidence shows it has not worked. Only 11 per cent of schools currently have an effective smartphone ban in place.”
Some 58 per cent of secondary school students reported mobile phones being used without permission in at least some lessons, rising to 65 per cent in key stage 4,
Ms Trott added: “Teachers are crying out for the backing that legislation would provide.”
Watchdog’s involvement ‘heavy-handed’
Meanwhile, school leaders are warning that involving Ofsted in “policing” phone bans risks being “heavy-handed”, adding that most schools already restrict phone use and need practical support rather than increased inspection pressure.
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the NAHT school leaders’ union, said school leaders were “as concerned as anyone” about the impact of phones and social media on children and young people.
He said most schools already have clear restrictions on mobile phone use and had taken the lead in educating pupils about online safety.
However, Mr Whiteman warned: “The government’s suggestion that Ofsted should be ‘policing’ school policies is deeply unhelpful and misguided. School leaders need support from government, not the threat of heavy-handed inspection.”
Call for resources
The Association of School and College Leaders also raised concerns about how any sharper focus on phones in inspections would work in practice.
General secretary Pepe Di’Iasio said it was “good news” that the government was consulting on children’s use of technology, including whether a social media ban would be effective.
But he said it felt as though ministers had been “sluggish” in responding to the risks posed by social media and broader online harms.
Mr Di’Iasio said existing guidance already states that mobile phones should be prohibited throughout the school day, but argued that Ofsted involvement would be more useful if it were matched with funding.
He said many schools rely on policies requiring phones to be kept out of sight, leaving teachers to constantly monitor compliance, even though phone storage systems are available but unaffordable for schools under increasing financial pressure.
What the consultation will cover
The consultation will look at options including raising the digital age of consent and restricting potentially addictive app design features such as “streaks” and “infinite scrolling”.
The government will also produce guidance on screen time for parents of children aged 5 to 16. Guidance for parents of under-fives will be published in April, it said.
Ministers will visit Australia as part of their consultation, where a social media ban for under-16s came into force in December.
The DSIT said it would seek views from parents and young people, with a formal response expected in the summer.
Political pressure mounting
The consultation comes amid growing calls for the prime minister to raise the minimum age for social media platforms, and No 10 has signalled it is open to the idea.
Peers are set to vote this week on an amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, currently being debated in the House of Lords, that would require platforms to block under-16s within a year of the legislation passing.
The amendment, tabled by Lord Nash, has secured backing from the NEU teaching union and 61 Labour MPs.
Former Consrvative schools minister Lord Nash said the consultation amounted to “more delay” and warned that the pace of government action was failing children.
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