How does England’s phone-free policy work?

Researchers said teachers, teaching assistants, site staff and receptionists are all involved in monitoring pupils’ phone use. Multiple staff members record rule breaches, supervise detentions and communicate with parents.

The study, published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), was released after the government issued new guidance advising schools to create phone-free environments, including during breaks and lunchtime. The schools inspectorate, Ofsted, will assess how the policy is implemented.

The research provides the first analysis of the economic impact of smartphone policies in schools. It is based on a nationally representative sample of 20 schools in England, 13 of which have “restrictive” policies and seven “permissive” policies.

According to the findings, restrictive policies require phones to be switched off and kept out of sight in school bags or handed in to reception throughout the school day. Permissive policies allow phone use during breaks and lunchtime.

Based on self-reported data, schools with restrictive policies spend an average of 102 hours per week implementing the rules — equivalent to the workload of 3.1 full-time staff members.

Schools with permissive policies spend slightly more time on average — 108 hours per week, or the equivalent of 3.3 full-time staff — potentially costing around £94 more per pupil per school year compared with more restrictive approaches.

Professor Victoria Goodyear, chief investigator of the Smart Schools Study at the University of Birmingham, said: “School phone policies — whether permissive or restrictive — are a huge drain on schools to enforce.

“The high proportion of teacher time spent managing phone use or phone-related behaviours during the school day may be diverting time away from other wellbeing-promoting activities, such as pastoral support or extracurricular programmes.

“We therefore need new ways of approaching adolescent smartphone use in schools.”

Data from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology shows that 99.9% of primary schools and 90% of secondary schools have a mobile phone policy in place. However, 58% of secondary school pupils reported that phones are used without permission in some lessons, rising to 65% among older pupils.

NASUWT general secretary Matt Wrack said: “Frequent lesson disruption, reduced concentration and confrontations when staff ask pupils to hand over devices have brought the situation to a critical point. Schools cannot be expected to manage this alone without meaningful government support.”

Pepe Di’Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, called for financial support to help schools provide secure storage for mobile phones, such as lockers or locked pouches.