The government has announced plans to legally prohibit smartphones in schools across England. According to the Department for Education, this step will provide "legal force to what schools are already doing in practice".
On Monday, Education Minister Baroness Jacqui Smith informed the House of Lords that the government intends to propose an amendment to its significant Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill. This amendment would "create a clear legal requirement for schools" regarding the smartphone ban in schools across England.
The government has stated it will elevate this guidance to a statutory level, meaning schools will be legally required to comply with it.
Exception For New Legislation
The House of Lords approved a proposal from shadow education minister Baroness Barran. She recommended that the legislation include possible exemptions for sixth form students attending boarding schools and individuals who rely on phones for medical purposes.
The education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, has previously communicated with headteachers across England, emphasising that schools should maintain a phone-free environment for the entire school day, though this guidance has remained non-statutory.
Nevertheless, many headteachers, who often face challenges from parents on this issue, are likely to welcome the move, as it will bring greater clarity and consistency to classroom practices
A study conducted last year by the children's commissioner for England revealed that 99.8% of primary schools and 90% of secondary schools already had established policies that either limited or completely restricted mobile phone use during school hours.
"We have been consistently clear that mobile phones have no place in schools, and the majority already prohibit them. This amendment makes existing guidance statutory, giving legal force to what schools are already doing in practice," a spokesperson from the Department for Education told the Guardian.
Paul Whiteman, the general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, told Guardian: "Statutory guidance will give school leaders the clarity they need to implement a ban and will remove any ambiguity or differences between how schools approach smartphone policies."
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