With the head of Ofsted calling for smartphones to be removed from schools, the spotlight is rightly on the issue. Yet while this support is welcome, government policy has not gone far enough. We are still waiting for clear, strict guidelines to make all schools truly smartphone-free.
Let’s be clear: smartphones have no place in schools. The familiar policy of “phones in bags” simply does not work.
The evidence is overwhelming:
- The mere presence of a smartphone reduces a student’s cognitive capacity.
- Pupils at smartphone-free schools achieve GCSE results 1–2 grades higher.
- The average teenager receives 237 notifications a day, and it takes 23 minutes to refocus after each interruption.
- Safeguarding concerns are urgent: children filmed while changing for PE, or younger pupils exposed to pornography via older students’ phones, are risks we cannot accept.
We have faced similar challenges before. Just as we phased out tobacco, we must phase out smartphones, starting with Year 7 and working upwards. While it may be too late to fully shift habits in older pupils, we can still create a healthier educational environment for the next generation.
Children deserve 7–8 uninterrupted hours each day free from the pressures of smartphones and social media. School should be a place to learn, connect, and grow, not a battleground for constant digital distraction.
We owe huge thanks to the headteachers already leading the way by creating smartphone-free schools in North London. Their leadership shows what’s possible. But this is not a challenge one school can solve alone, it is a collective action problem. Educational leaders have the power to reset the norm, and our focus now is to continue this work in South London, supporting schools, parents, and pupils to bring about meaningful, accelerated change.
If you are based in South London and are interested in finding out more about how One Collective Power can provide talks and workshops for your school then please see our services available get in touch with us today.
