Philip Hurst is the principal of what he proudly describes as a “phone-free school.”

Thomas Mills Secondary School in Framlingham, Suffolk, is one of a growing number of UK schools. schools choosing to impose strict rules on smartphones as concerns grow over their impact on children’s mental health.

Since September, students aged 11 to 16 have been asked to put their phones in lockers upon arrival, where they remain until the bell rings at the end of the day.

“The idea is that if they’re out of sight, they’re out of mind,” Hurst tells the Financial Times. Previously, the 1,000 children at his school were not allowed to look at their phones during class, but were allowed to keep them in their pockets and school bags.

Only four phones have been confiscated since the ban was introduced two months ago, he said, “whereas it would have been daily in the past”.

The death of British teenager Molly Russell, who committed suicide after viewing thousands of online messages about suicide, depression and self-harm, was one of the reasons behind Hurst’s decision to impose a ban.

“I am seriously concerned about the mental health effects of the time children spend on the phone,” he said. “I wasn’t prepared to wait for someone to tell me I needed to take action.”

Almost half of the British public believe there should be a total ban on smartphones in schools, according to an Ipsos poll for the FT.

Of the 2,175 adults surveyed, 48 percent favored a complete ban on cell phones in school buildings, while 71 percent said they favored asking students to place their cell phones in a basket during classes.

Of those who responded, 30 percent said they thought 11 to 12 was the most acceptable age for a child to receive a smartphone, while 28 percent said 13 to 14 was more appropriate.

In April, research by regulator Ofcom found that almost a quarter of British children aged five to seven own a smartphone. A significant number of them used social media apps such as TikTok and WhatsApp, even though they were under the minimum age of 13.

At the same time, more and more research is beginning to demonstrate how the proliferation of smartphones and social media apps is leading to increases in eating disorders, depression and anxiety among young people.

Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt argues in his book The anxious generation that smart devices have “rewired childhood.” He believes that smartphones should be completely banned for children under 14.

Research carried out this year by the University of Oxford found that social media use among adolescents is strongly correlated with poor mental health.

THE the academics behind the study told the FT they had discovered a “linear relationship” between higher rates of anxiety and depression and time spent networking on social media sites.

For schools, guidelines set out by the last Conservative government earlier this year state that it is up to each headteacher to decide their own policy on phone use. But parents and policymakers are increasingly calling for bans to be a legal requirement.

“More and more evidence shows that smartphones, and social media in particular, have a negative impact on children’s mental health, sleep and learning,” said Josh MacAlister, a Labor MP and former teacher, who hopes to promote its “safer phones”. private member’s bill in the House of Commons next year.

The government has ruled out supporting its proposal to legally impose a ban on phones in schools. But the MP said the government was “open-minded” about other sections of the bill designed to make smartphones less addictive for children.

His bill would raise the age at which children can consent to data sharing without parental permission from 13 to 16, which he said would make it harder for social media companies to “make content so addictive.”

The second part of MacAlister’s bill would expand Ofcom’s powers to ensure that the “compelling design features” of apps – which the MP describes as “the elements that are addictive by design, the long scrolling, the “Nudges and notifications” – are age-appropriate and are not included in versions of social media used by children under 16.

Wes Streeting, Britain’s health secretary, signaled the government’s support last month: publication on: “Given the impact of smartphone use and addiction on the mental health of children and young people and the concerns of parents, this debate is very topical.”

Ministers will closely monitor developments in Australia, where the government announced last week a ban on social media sites for children under 16 years old.

Another reason Hurst said she chose to introduce a phone ban at Thomas Mills High was the influence of a local group of parents, who are calling on schools to play a role in limiting their students’ use of the devices. children.

Daisy Greenwell, co-founder of Childhood without a smartphone movement, is also based in Suffolk. The group, which initially started as a local WhatsApp group of parents pledging not to give their children phones until the age of 14, has split into separate groups across England and has today 150,000 members.

Greenwell said it was “obvious” that all schools were smartphone-free. “This gives kids six to seven hours a day where they are free to learn and socialize, away from the addictive and predatory algorithms of big tech,” Greenwell said.

“Teachers tell us that smartphones are disastrous in a school context and that they consume enormous amounts of time and resources. »

In addition to banning their use during the day, Greenwell would like to see schools ban smartphones entirely in favor of simpler, “dumb” phones.

“This instantly levels the playing field and dissolves the insidious network effects of the smartphone, where kids only need one because everyone has one,” she said.

It’s an idea that appears to be gaining traction among parents, with Virgin Media O2 reporting last month that it had seen sales of non-smartphones double over the past year, with a “significant peak” in September.

Hurst said children who violate the no-phone policy at Thomas Mills High School are placed in detention and parents are called to collect the devices.

“Overall, the ban has received a very positive response,” he said. “Children and teachers say there is less disruption in classrooms, more eye contact and greater social engagement. Little by little, we are making it normal that going to school, like sitting in the cinema, is simply not an appropriate place to be on the phone.