Two fathers, Will Orr-Ewing and Pete Montgomery, operating under 'Generation Alpha,' are planning legal action against the UK government to mandate a statutory ban on smartphones in England's schools. They argue that the current guidance, which allows headteachers discretion, is unlawful and unsafe, citing evidence of children accessing harmful content, cyberbullying, and sexual harassment via devices in schools. They have issued a warning letter to Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson, giving the Department for Education 14 days to respond before they proceed with judicial review.
Fathers plan legal action to get smartphones banned in England’s schools
Internet safetySmartphonesSchoolsParents and parentingChildren's healthLawSocietyBridget PhillipsonUKMobile phonesPolitics
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TL;DR: Key points with love ❤️Two fathers, Will Orr-Ewing and Pete Montgomery, operating under 'Generation Alpha,' are planning legal action against the UK government to mandate a statutory ban on smartphones in England's schools. They argue that the current guidance, which allows headteachers discretion, is unlawful and unsafe, citing evidence of children accessing harmful content, cyberbullying, and sexual harassment via devices in schools. They have issued a warning letter to Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson, giving the Department for Education 14 days to respond before they proceed with judicial review.
Trending- 1 April: Children’s commissioner for England published a national survey on mobile phone use in schools.
- 2 Last week: Government guidance from the DfE acknowledged smartphone risks.
- 3 Friday: Will Orr-Ewing and Pete Montgomery wrote to Bridget Phillipson, warning of judicial review.
- 4 Next 14 days: Department for Education has to officially respond.
- Potential legal challenge against the UK government
- Increased pressure for a nationwide smartphone ban in schools
- Potential changes to school policies regarding mobile devices
- Improved child safety or continued debate on the issue
What: Two fathers are planning legal action (seeking judicial review) against the UK government to enforce a statutory ban on smartphones in England's schools, arguing current guidance is insufficient and unsafe for children.
When: Friday (fathers wrote to education secretary), 14 days (DfE has to respond), April (children’s commissioner survey published), last academic year (safeguarding incidents reported), last week (government guidance acknowledged smartphone risks).
Where: England (schools), UK.
Why: To safeguard children from harmful content, cyberbullying, sexual harassment, and other dangers associated with smartphone use in schools, which they believe current non-statutory guidance fails to adequately address.
How: By writing a warning letter to the education secretary, threatening judicial review if the Department for Education does not implement a statutory ban.