Mobile Phones

We are increasingly concerned about the impact of smartphones on our children and young people.

Smartphones are a big part of life today. Most adults have one. They are great for finding information and staying connected with family and friends. However, there is now an alarming amount of evidence and research of the negative effects of smartphones and social media on children and teenagers.

These include:

  • Poor mental health, such as depression, anxiety and low self-esteem.
  • Issues with cyberbullying, attention, focus and sleep.
  • Exposure to dangerous and harmful content, and inappropriate material; and
  • Smartphones can be highly addictive, so time spent on a device reduces time spent playing, interacting and developing vital social skills.
  • The distraction of having a continual stream of notifications.

Children often get their first phone in primary school and over 90% of Year 7s now have a smartphone. This period is crucial for brain development, and the younger a child gets a smartphone, the more harm it can cause.

We believe that all parents should actively control their child’s access to the internet & social media.

Research now indicates that age 11-15 is the age group when children are at their most vulnerable to potential negative influences from access to social media. Accessing the internet through a smartphone can pose additional risks; more so, than doing so from a more secure network in the home environment or via their school iPad which is filtered.

  • Seeing or sharing of violent, sexual and pornographic content
  • Inaccurate or false information and extreme views
  • Promotion of harmful behaviours including self-harm, anorexia and suicide
  • Over-sharing of personal information
  • Actively or unintentionally getting involved in bullying or hurtful behaviour
  • People who might bully, intimidate or frighten
  • People posing behind fake profiles for:
  • Mischief-making
  • Sexual grooming and stalking
  • Blackmail and extortion
  • Identity theft and hacking

 

  • Fear of missing out leading to excessive use or exaggeration
  • Getting upset by things they have seen and being uncertain about what to do
  • Engaging, or being pressured into engaging in more risky behaviour either by accident or by design
  • Developing unrealistic, and perhaps depressing ideals of body image and gender
  • Becoming subject to peer pressure or interactions that are intense or too difficult to handle
  • Creating an online reputation that may create problems for them in the future

You can help your child by doing the following:

  • Delay giving a smartphone to your child until they are at least 14 years old and delay allowing your children access to social media until age 16. Many parents have found this decision beneficial for their child’s wellbeing. If you feel they need a phone to safeguard them on their journey to or from school, buy a ‘brick’ phone.
  • Take actions to restrict any device you do choose to provide for your child.
    • Disable all app stores so that they cannot download anything without your knowledge and approval.
    • Disable all mobile access to the internet.
    • Disable the camera
    • Disable all apps between 8.50am and 3.25pm Monday to Friday.
    • Disable all notifications between 8.50am and 3.25pm Monday to Friday.
    • Do not allow your child to access any social media apps (TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat etc) or WhatsApp until they are 16+ years.
    • Disable the device at nighttime (9pm to 7am)

Helpful guidance on how to set up parent controls and privacy settings on every type of device can be found through the following link:

Parental controls and privacy settings guides | Internet Matters

Alongside placing restrictions on smartphone use, it is critical to both educate yourself and your child and to instil positive habits from a young age.

We would encourage all parents to:

  • Model good habits. Your child will take their lead from you, put your phone away when they are around.
  • Educate yourself on the dangers of unrestricted access to the internet and social media for children and young people.
  • Sit down as a family and develop some rules about mobile phone and internet use.
  • Set clear boundaries for your child and monitor any usage regularly – go through the phone regularly checking all their apps and their camera roll.
  • Teach your child about the dangers, talk to them, show them and help them understand why you are restricting their access to the unfiltered internet and social media. Young Minds provides some useful resources to support parents with these challenging conversations.
  • Talk about cyberbullying with your child. Make sure they understand how to block and report people, and how to use the privacy settings to limit what people can see on their profiles.
  • Encourage your child to talk to you openly. Even if it seems like a small thing, it can really help talk things through.

Our Policy

Mobile phones are not allowed in school (Year 7 to 11). We ask the Sixth Form to set an example for the younger students and for this reason, they are only permitted to use mobile phones in the Sixth Form Social Area.

If a mobile phone is seen/heard under any circumstances, it will be confiscated for 2 weeks and a ‘Negative Comment’ issued.

All day trips and residential trips will be phone free (Year 7 to 11). Students will not be permitted to take their mobile phones with them under any circumstances.

Further details can be found in the policy document linked below.

Mobile Phone Policy